Dear {entity}:
I am writing to let you know that I won't be able to provide the documentation requested in your communication of {date}, because these documents were destroyed in a house fire on {date}.
In a perfect world, I would have had time to return home to gather my files, or my fireproof safe would have worked, or, even better, the fire never would have occurred. But in the real world, my life has turned upside down and I have no way to procure or recreate these documents. I have reached out to {agency/vital statistics entity/etc.}, but was unsuccessful due to {reason}.
Surely you have heard of {Fire Name}. I am far from the only person in this predicament. Please let me know what alternatives you have to providing this documentation.
Download this hardship letter — free!
Formatted and ready to use with Microsoft Word, Google Docs, or any other word processor that can open the .DOC file format.
Index of Hardship Letter Examples