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One major financial cost of suffering a personal injury is the possible inability to work. For most of us, especially for the 32 million employees who do not have paid sick time, the idea of missing work because of an illness or accident is financially daunting.
If your injuries prevent you from working and functioning like a normal human being, you cannot earn your income, which only worsens the problem of paying for property damage and medical expenses. In personal injury cases, victims can recover compensation for lost wages from the accident. How much can you recover? It depends.
Loss of Earning Capacity vs. Loss of Income
People often confuse loss of earning capacity with lost income. Lost income is the money an injured person missed while she or he was recovering and unable to work.
Loss of earning capacity, on the other hand, refers to money that someone injured in an accident has not yet earned. You may seek loss of earning capacity damage if your injuries – whether mental, physical, or both – impair them to the degree that they lose some or all their ability to work and earn a living in the future.
In most cases, personal injury victims are entitled to reimbursement (from the person who was at fault for the accident or from that person’s insurance company) both:
Time off duty because you were undergoing treatment for your injuries.
Income lost because you were unable to work
The right to be compensated applies whether you’re working full-time or part-time, regular or occasional, have an hourly wage, weekly or monthly income, or are self-employed.
Calculating Loss of Earning Capacity
A loss of earning capacity is one type of reimbursement that can benefit victims who may never fully recover. However, figuring out the value of your loss of earning capacity is difficult. You need to review a series of factors and then calculate a reasonable prediction about your ability to earn in the future. That often requires the assistance of a knowledgeable and experienced personal injury attorney. He or she will be able to consider a number of factors to properly assess and prove your potential loss of earning capacity, such as:
Life expectancy, based on pre-accident health and age
Numbers of years likely to have been able to work
Projected career path and current work experience
Number of promotions already achieved
Pre-accident earnings
Education, existing skills, or other special training obtained
Your value in the field of work and skills in the marketplace
Future salary raises and potential for job promotions
Proving Loss of Earning Capacity
As we’ve previously mentioned, a personal injury solicitor may bring an expert witness, such as a forensic specialist, to present evidence of your losses. Being supported by an expert’s testimony can add significant credibility to your claim. According to AccidentClaims.co.uk, legal professionals with special training are considered unbiased, which is why their statements may carry more weight with a jury.
If you’re self-employed, it can be challenging but not impossible to prove your case and a loss of earning capacity. As such, you may need to prove:
Your ability to work compared to before the injury
The size and impact of the business itself
The loss of profits your business has had since you were injured
Ta records to show evidence of the prior years’ profits
Calculating Future Loss of Income
Future lost income is calculated by a specific formula. These factors include your current career path, current wages, the possibility of promotion, education, skills, work history, and age. Further considerations could include whether you were paid partly or had a fixed salary. Health record before the accident is another factor. What’s more, your employer (if there’s one) will need to provide information regarding your future potential and opportunities for promotion.
A career expert then creates a report analyzing the industry in which you were employed and your job duties. The report will detail how your injuries and prognosis impact your ability to perform your job both mentally and physically.
What to do when your income is interrupted?
First things first, you will need to know as much as you can about your budget and expenses. Start by identifying all income sources and assets, such as savings that may be able to get you through until you can replace your income or resume working. Remove the things you can live without and reduce expenses in the “essentials” category as much as possible.
If there’s not much you can do about your budget, explore options such as debt management plans or working with a credit counselor to help you reduce your monthly payments.
What about other losses?
A personal injury claim has two parts: general damages and special damages.
General damages are dealing with suffering, pain, and loss of quality of life you’ve experienced after an accident. On the other hand, special damages cover loss of income as well as material expenses such as physio and medical treatment, prescription charges, and transport costs to appointments. However, more recoverable expenses fall into this category, such as missed sporting events, unused gym memberships or missed cultural events, and even personal belongings damaged in the accident.
How long will it take?
The process of claiming may take up to three months, so it’s always a good idea to get in touch with a personal injury expert early. Claims like this may seem complicated, but more often than not, they’re more straightforward than you’d think.
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