“I was recently injured at a Harbor Freight Tools store. I was returning an 8″bench grinder and asked the store worker if I could test the replacement grinder since I live far from the store. The worker said ok, so I sat the grinder in the floor and turned it on. When it came on it started vibrating real bad and it spun to the right. I pulled it back around straight and as I went to turn the power off, it spun to the right again and sucked two of my fingers in. As a result I lost 6 hrs pay from my job while at the emergency room. I received 4 stitches on my middle finger as it was ground down just short of the bone. The store defected that grinder. My question is: After contacting there claims department, they want me to send them a letter as to why I feel they are responsible. Should I send them a letter or have a lawyer prepare it? I wanted minimal reimbursement for my lost wages, etc. I’ve not had any intention on suing unless they give me the run around. Thanks in advance for your help.”

Generally speaking, in a situation like this, the ounce of prevention is worth the proverbial pound of cure. Put in context, the cost of paying a lawyer to write a letter up front will be peanuts compared to the cost to litigate, and is much more likely to have the desired result than if you write the letter yourself. You should be sure to a) use an attorney who specializes in personal injury law, and b) have the lawyer include in the letter that you want to resolve this peacefully and do not wish to sue, and that the reason the attorney is involved is only to make sure that you do everything properly. That will help to keep the company from getting defensive, and make them more likely to settle this quickly.