Who the letter is for
A fraud complaint letter serves different purposes depending on who reads it. A complaint to the police or the district attorney asks for a criminal investigation, while a complaint to the New York Attorney General, the FTC, or another regulator may support a broader inquiry or a mediation program. A letter to a bank or card issuer is usually a dispute of a charge, and those disputes often have their own timing rules. A letter to the person or business you believe defrauded you is a demand, and it can carry legal consequences of its own. Decide which kind you are writing before you start.
Writing it so it is useful
Strong complaints are factual and organized, with a clear timeline, the amounts and dates of payments, copies of contracts, receipts, and messages, and a plain description of what was promised and what happened. Speculation, insults, and exaggeration can make an otherwise credible complaint easier to set aside. Attach copies rather than originals. Keep a copy of what you send and proof of when it was sent. If you are writing to a bank about an unauthorized transaction, send it promptly, because delay can affect how much of the loss the bank has to cover.
The line not to cross
A demand letter to the other side should not threaten criminal charges or a report to authorities as leverage for payment. In New York and many other states, using the threat of an accusation to obtain money can expose the writer to a charge of extortion or coercion, and the defenses that exist are narrow. You can describe a civil claim you intend to bring, and you can report a crime, but tying the two together is risky. We can review or draft the letter, help decide where it should go, and consider whether a lawsuit, an arbitration, or a regulatory complaint is the more effective path. Preserving the evidence and meeting any deadlines comes first.
