Does a demand letter have to be sent by certified mail?

Usually nothing requires it, but certified mail with a return receipt gives you a dated record that you sent the letter and that it was delivered. That record helps if the dispute goes to small claims court, where judges often ask whether you tried to settle first.

How much does it cost?

For a one-page letter from a prepaid balance: $8.61 certified, $11.64 with an electronic return receipt, or $14.27 with the green-card return receipt. Paying for just that letter by card costs $8.83, $11.83 or $14.42. The preview shows the exact price first.

Can the AI write the demand letter for me?

It can draft one from the facts you give it, and you should read and correct it before it goes. Mailsnail prints and mails exactly what you approve. It doesn't give legal advice, so for large amounts or anything unusual, have a lawyer look at it.

What if I already wrote the letter?

Give the assistant a link to your PDF and it mails that file as is, or paste the text and it formats it as a letter.

How to send a demand letter by certified mail, with AI

A demand letter is the step before small claims court: a written request that someone pay what they owe, or fix what they broke, by a deadline. Sending it by certified mail with a return receipt gives you proof of when it was mailed and that it arrived, which is exactly what you want in hand if they ignore it.

With Mailsnail connected to your AI assistant, drafting and mailing it is one conversation. No printer, no envelope, no line at the post office.

Connect once

Add this URL to Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor or any app that supports MCP connectors, then sign in:

https://api.mailsnail.dev/mcp

Step-by-step instructions for each app are on the setup page.

Draft it with the assistant

Give it the facts plainly. For example:

I paid a contractor, Acme Remodeling, $2,400 for a bathroom repair that was never finished. Draft a demand letter asking for a full refund within 14 days, mention my invoice number 1182 and the dates I paid, and say I'll file in small claims court if they don't respond. Then send it to them at 410 Elm St, Dayton OH 45402 by certified mail with an electronic return receipt. Show me the proof first.

A good demand letter is short and factual. It says what happened, what you want, the deadline, and what you'll do next. Ask the assistant to keep it calm and specific: dates, amounts and documents, not adjectives.

What happens next

verify_address checks the recipient's address is deliverable, so the letter doesn't bounce on a typo. Free.
preview_letter renders the letter and returns a proof PDF and the exact price. Nothing is charged.
You read the proof. This is the version the recipient will hold, so check names, amounts and the deadline.
send_letter mails it by certified mail with the return receipt you chose and gives you a receipt token.

Pick your proof

Service	What you get	From a balance	One letter by card
Certified	USPS tracking and proof of mailing	$8.61	$8.83
Certified + electronic return receipt	The recipient's signature as a PDF	$11.64	$11.83
Certified + green card	The signed card mailed back to you	$14.27	$14.42

One page, black and white. Extra pages are priced at our cost and the preview always shows the exact figure.

Keep the record

Save the receipt token with your notes. Later, ask the assistant "where is my demand letter?" and get_letter returns the USPS tracking number, the latest scan and, for an electronic return receipt, a link to the signature PDF. Print those for your small claims file.

If the deadline passes without a reply, your county court's website will explain how to file. Most small claims courts are designed for people without lawyers.

What Mailsnail doesn't do

We print and mail exactly what you approve. We don't give legal advice or decide whether you have a claim. For large sums or tricky situations, talk to a lawyer or your local legal aid office.