Free tool — before you send it
Check your deposit letter before you send it.
You already wrote the letter — maybe with help from a chatbot. Before you send it, pick your state and paste it in below. We compare three things against your state's own security-deposit statute: whether the letter cites the right code section, states the right number of days for the return deadline, and names the penalty your state's law actually provides.
DepositHawk is not a law firm. This page provides legal information, not legal advice, and using it does not create an attorney-client relationship. The comparison above runs against published statutory data compiled by the DepositHawk Research Team.
Common questions
Frequently Asked Questions
What does the letter checker actually compare my letter against?
Three things, in this order: whether the letter cites your state's security-deposit statute, whether it states the return deadline your state's law sets, and whether it names the penalty your state's statute provides for a wrongfully withheld deposit. Each comparison runs against DepositHawk's own statute data for all 50 states and DC, not a general read of the letter's quality.
What does it mean if my letter is missing a statute citation?
A statute check result of not found means the checker did not locate a citation matching your state's security-deposit statute anywhere in the pasted text, using the same citation pattern used throughout this tool — a number following a section symbol, the word section, or sec. It does not evaluate whether the letter is otherwise complete, persuasive, or legally sufficient.
Can a landlord tell if a demand letter was written by AI?
Landlords and their attorneys have started building tools specifically to flag AI-written demand letters. The failure mode one attorney points to is an AI system citing statutes without confirming they actually apply, or naming a penalty without checking whether it qualifies. This tool does not judge how a letter reads or where it came from — it only compares three specific facts (statute, deadline, and penalty) against the published law for your state.
Do you store my letter?
No. The letter is compared against state statute data in memory and discarded right after. It is never written to a database or included in server logs. The only thing recorded is a state code and a count of which checks matched — never any text from the letter itself.
Is this legal advice?
Legal information, not legal advice. DepositHawk is not a law firm, and using this tool does not create an attorney-client relationship. The comparison here runs against statutory data the DepositHawk Research Team compiles and verifies for each state. For advice about your specific situation, talk to a lawyer or your local legal aid office.