How To Prove Lost Wages?
Proving your Injuries and Damages are one of the hardest things you could do after an accident. After an accident, when you file a lawsuit against the negligent party, they most likely will try to argue against every single type of damage that you may claim against them. One of the best things you can do for your case is hiring an experienced attorney on your side to make sure that you gather all the necessary evidence and records to prove all the damages that you have suffered.
What Type of Damages Could I Recover From a Car Accident?
- Medical Damages: This refers to all of the medical treatments that you had to treat the injuries caused by the negligent party. That’s why it is important to gather all your medical bills that list out all the treatments you have needed, and the appointments that you have gone to.
- Property Damage: If you are involved in a car accident, and sustained damage to your vehicle, you have the right to recover compensation for the damage to your vehicle. You may be able to recover compensation to repair or replace the vehicle.
- Punitive Damages: This is only awarded in certain lawsuits, and it is awarded by the court when they determine that the defendant acted with malicious behavior.
What Are Lost Wages?
When you are injured in an accident, there are a variety of damages that you could get compensated for. One of the types of damages include lost wages. Lost wages take into account all the hours of work that you missed because of your injuries. For example, if you had to go to doctor’s office appointments or physical rehabilitation sessions and took time off from work, you have the right to recover those hours of compensation from the negligent party.
There are two types of lost wages, this includes:
- Past Lost Wages: This refers to the amount of hours in the past that you missed out on from work.
- Loss of Future Earnings: If you have suffered any type of Injury that will require permanent treatment and permanent injury, you have the right to recover loss of future earnings. In order to assert loss of future earnings, you must show that you are unable to return back to work in the same capacity as you did prior to the accident. For example, if you worked as an engineer, but the accident left you permanently paralyzed, you most likely will not be able to return back to work. You will then be able to recover loss of income from the accident.
How Much of Lost Wages Can I Recover?
Whether you missed work for a couple days, or you missed work for several months, all this is considered to be lost wages. Even if you took time off from work as sick days or vacation days, you still may be able to recover your sick days and vacation days.
How Do I Prove Lost Wages?
There are several different ways you could prove lost wages, some examples include:
- Pay Stubs: Pay stubs prior to the accident show how much you were making. This is one of the most important pieces of evidence that you can bring to the table when proving lost wages. If you have signed up for direct deposit with your employer, you still have the right to request physical pay stubs from your employer.
- Medical Records: Medical records are important when showing how you have been restricted from work. For example, if you are claiming that you went to a medical appointment during that time, you can use your medical records to prove that those appointments were made during work hours.
- Any Documents of Communication between you and your employer that show that you have taken time off of work to attend these medical appointments.
How Do You Calculate The Lost Wages?
Lost Wages will differ based on each type of plaintiff, because each person works a specific type of job prior to the accident. There are two ways to calculate the amount of lost wages you are to receive. These include:
- Salary Calculations: If you are a salary employee, you should take your salary compensation and divide that amount by 2080. Then you get that number and multiply it by the number of hours that you missed from work. You will then be able to calculate how much you are owed in compensation.
- Hourly Calculations: If you are an hourly employee, then you should take the amount of hours that you missed from work and multiply it by your hourly wage.
What is The Average Settlement Amount For Lost Wages in California?
Since each person holds a different type of job, and gets paid differently from one another, there is no one specific settlement amount that Our car accident attorneys can provide to you when determining lost wages. For example, someone who was working as an engineer and took time off work may receive more in compensation than someone else who may be working as a grocery store clerk prior to the accident. Each case needs to be evaluated on a case-by-case analysis. Give our attorneys a call today to discuss your Los Angeles Car Accident Claim.
How Do You Prove Loss of Income?
In order to prove loss of income, you may need medical experts on your side to testify about how your injuries have restricted the way that you could work in the future. This will require connections with medical experts. Our attorneys have relationships with top medical experts that could assist us when determining the permanent impact of your physical injuries, and how it could affect your day today at work.
Will I Be Able to Recover on Bonuses?
If your employer has given bonuses to their employees, and your injuries have impacted you from collecting bonuses, you have the right to get compensated for the bonuses that you have missed out on from the negligent party.
Do You Have Lost Wages From a Car Accident? Give Our Attorneys a Call Today.
Having an experienced attorney on your side is what could strengthen your case. If you have an attorney on your side that is not experienced in proving lost wages, then you may not be able to recover those damages, and you may lose out in compensation. Having a trusted attorney on your side will help ease the process when recovering such damages. It is important to note that lost wages are different from loss of income. Lost wages refer to the past as loss of income refers to the future.
For a free case evaluation, and to see if you can recover lost wages, give our attorneys a call today. We are available 24/7 to answer any questions you may have about your lost wages, and other types of compensation that you could recover for your case. No two cases are the same, and it requires an experienced and highly rated attorney to take a look at all of the facts regarding your car accident lawsuit.