Lost Wage Claims in a Personal Injury Case

If you were injured in a car accident, slip and fall, or other serious accident, you probably know you can seek compensation for your accident-related medical expenses. But did you know you may also be entitled to compensation for lost wages after an accident if your injuries force you to miss time at work? Below, our injury lawyers in Birmingham describe how to recoup lost wages following an accident caused by someone else’s negligence. 

Proving Your Lost Employment Income

To recoup compensation for your lost wages, you must be able to show precisely how much income you lost. You can do so by gathering evidence of:

• How much time you missed from work – You can provide information such as work schedules, approved time-off requests, or other records showing the exact hours, days, or weeks you were unable to work. You may also want to provide documentation of the hours you typically worked before the injury occurred.
• How much you would have earned if you had been able to work – If you are an hourly or salaried employee, you can simply provide proof of your usual hourly or daily rate and multiply it by the amount of time you missed at work. If you work for tips, commissions, or other irregular wages, you can calculate a specific figure by determining the average amount you would expect to earn during a typical week or month.
• Details about your role and duties at work – To outline your work role and duties, you can provide a letter from your employer describing your responsibilities, including any physically strenuous work you are expected to perform. This can help demonstrate why your injuries prevented you from doing certain types of work while you were recovering.

Proving Your Lost Potential Income

In addition to recovering compensation for your lost wages, you can also claim money for losses in your potential income. This includes money you might have earned if your injuries had not prevented you from working and benefitting from certain professional opportunities. 

Losses in potential income are more challenging to prove than lost wages, but you can use the following types of evidence to support your claim:

• Tax returns – Your tax returns can show how much income you have earned over time, including any year-over-year earnings increases you have enjoyed due to promotions, bonuses, better performance, or attracting new business.
• Bank statements – Your bank statements can provide a more granular record of your earnings over time, including the specific sources of any income or deposits you earned from work.
• Income statements – Your income statements can provide additional verification of your income before and after your injuries. 
• Client invoices – If you work with multiple clients, you can provide invoices from those clients to demonstrate your various sources of income and how much you might have expected the demand for your business to grow if you hadn’t been forced to miss work.

How Serious Injury Law Group Can Help

The Birmingham personal injury attorneys at Serious Injury Law Group are here to help you get back on your feet if you were injured in an accident. Our tough Birmingham and Montgomery accident lawyers will do everything we can to maximize your compensation for lost wages and any other personal or financial losses you suffer. 

To learn more about what sets us apart, contact us today to get started with your free initial consultation.