Whether you should buy personal injury leads depends on three things: what kind of lead you're buying (shared, exclusive, live call or "signed case"), how the vendor gets them, and whether your intake can turn them into retainers fast. Exclusive leads from a transparent source can be a sensible way to add cases while your own marketing ramps up. Shared leads and signed-case deals are where firms most often lose money or run into ethics trouble.
Before comparing prices, understand what you're actually paying for.
The four kinds of PI leads, compared
Personal injury lead vendors sell roughly four products, and the differences matter more than the price tags. The same word, "lead", covers everything from a form fill emailed to five firms to a person who has already signed a retainer.
| Type | What you get | Main risk | Worth testing? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shared lead | Contact info sold to several firms | A race to the phone; low sign rates | Rarely |
| Exclusive lead | Contact info sold to you only | Quality varies by source | Yes, with a trial |
| Live transfer / pay-per-call | Caller connected to your line | Short calls, wrong case types billed | Sometimes |
| "Signed case" | A client who has already signed a retainer | Serious Rule 7.2, 7.3 and 5.4 concerns | Approach with great caution |
Prices vary a lot by market and case type. Exclusive leads typically cost more than shared ones, and signed-case offers cost far more than either. For reference, our own exclusive PI leads run $200–$350 per lead, generated from our own ads and landing pages.
The ethics of paying for PI leads
Paying for leads is generally permitted under the ABA Model Rules, but only within specific limits. Rule 7.2(b) prohibits giving anything of value to a person for recommending a lawyer. Comment [5] to Rule 7.2 explains that a lawyer may pay others for generating client leads, such as internet leads, as long as the lead generator doesn't recommend the lawyer, payment is consistent with Rules 1.5(e) and 5.4, and the generator's communications are consistent with Rule 7.1.
Under that comment, a lawyer shouldn't pay a lead generator that states or implies it is recommending the lawyer, is making the referral without payment, or has analyzed the person's legal problem to decide which lawyer gets the referral. Paying a percentage of your fee to a nonlawyer vendor can look like fee sharing prohibited by Rule 5.4(a). A vendor that phones accident victims or sends people to hospitals to sign them is a solicitation problem under Rule 7.3, and Rule 8.4(a) prohibits violating the rules through another's acts. States vary, and several have issued their own opinions on lead services. Check yours. Not legal advice.
This is why "signed case" offers deserve so much scrutiny. Ask who talks to the injured person, what they're told, who presents the retainer, and how the price is set. If the answers involve a nonlawyer evaluating the case, steering the person to you, or a fee tied to case value, walk away.
How to vet a vendor before you buy personal injury leads
A good vendor will answer these questions without hesitation. A vague answer is itself an answer.
Ask where the leads come from
Their own Google Ads? Comparison sites? Purchased from other networks? Ask to see the actual ads and landing pages people respond to.
Read the consumer-facing copy
If the landing page says "we'll match you with the best lawyer" or implies a free legal evaluation by the vendor, you have a Rule 7.1 and recommendation problem.
Get exclusivity in writing
"Exclusive" should mean the lead is never resold, not "exclusive for 24 hours".
Confirm consent to contact
Ask how the vendor collects consent for calls and texts. Telemarketing laws such as the TCPA can expose firms that contact people improperly.
Know the credit policy
What counts as a bad lead (wrong number, no injury, already represented, outside your state), and how fast are credits issued?
Start with a small trial
No long-term contracts. Buy a small batch, track every lead to outcome, then decide.
Our questions to ask any marketing agency apply to lead vendors too.
Doing the math on purchased leads
The only number that tells you whether leads work is cost per signed case. Cost per lead on its own is meaningless, because a cheap lead that never signs is the most expensive one you can buy.
A hypothetical example: you buy 20 exclusive leads at $300 each, spending $6,000. If 3 sign, your cost per signed case is $2,000. If your average PI fee is several times that, it may be a good buy. If only one signs, it's $6,000 per case, and the answer probably changes. Run your own numbers with your own fees and sign rates. The PI cost-per-case guide shows how to set targets, and the cost per signed case explainer covers tracking.
Want exclusive PI leads from a source you can see?
We'll show you the ads and pages behind our leads, and review your intake setup so you know whether buying leads makes sense right now.
Leads only work if intake is fast
Purchased leads decay faster than organic calls, because the person often filled out a form on a site they don't remember and may have contacted other firms too. Call within minutes, not hours. Have a text follow-up ready for no-answers. Try several times over the first two days before giving up.
Track every lead in a CRM with its source and outcome. Without that, you'll never know whether a vendor is delivering or just billing. The PI intake guide covers scripts, and the PI lead generation guide covers building your own lead flow.
When not to buy leads
Skip purchased leads if no one can call them back within minutes, if you can't track outcomes, or if you're using them to avoid fixing your own website and Google Business Profile. Leads are a supplement. Over time, a firm that owns its own search presence usually pays less per case than one renting someone else's. See our lead generation for lawyers overview for building that.
Frequently Asked Questions
Generally yes, under the ABA Model Rules, if the lead generator doesn't recommend the lawyer, payment doesn't amount to improper fee sharing under Rule 5.4 or violate Rule 1.5(e), and the vendor's communications aren't misleading under Rule 7.1. Paying a vendor that solicits accident victims or steers them to you is a different matter. States vary, so check your bar's rules and opinions.
It depends heavily on market, case type and whether the lead is shared, exclusive, a live transfer or a signed case. Exclusive leads usually cost more than shared ones, and signed-case offers cost much more. Our own exclusive PI leads are priced in the $200 to $350 range. Judge any price by your resulting cost per signed case.
Usually not for small firms. When the same contact goes to several firms at once, the result is a race to the phone, and the person often gets several calls in minutes. Sign rates tend to be low. If you test shared leads, you need instant callback and careful tracking to see whether they produce cases.
Be very careful. Arrangements where a nonlawyer evaluates the case, steers the person to you, or is paid a share of your fee raise serious issues under Rules 7.2(b), 7.3 and 5.4(a), and some states have specifically addressed these services. Ask exactly how clients are found and signed, and get your state's guidance before agreeing to anything.