How Are Lost Wages Determined in North Dakota Personal Injury Cases?
After a personal injury, you may have missed time from work. If your injuries were severe, you may be permanently injured and unable to return to work. In either case, you are entitled to compensation for your lost wages and, in some cases, for your lost earning potential.
The lawyers at Fremstad Law can help you recover compensation for lost wages as part of your personal injury claim. Contact us today!
What Are Lost Wages?
Lost wages refer to the money you would have earned if your injuries did not prevent you from working. They come from a variety of different causes. You may have missed work because you were in the hospital; perhaps you were at home because your doctor told you not to return to work; or you may have missed time from work because you needed to go to a doctor’s appointment. You may also have missed work due to mental health issues like PTSD, anxiety, or depression caused by your physical injuries.
You are entitled to compensation for the time you missed from work because of a personal injury. Lost wages are presented as part of a personal injury claim and compensate you for the money you would have earned from the date of your injury until the time you receive compensation. The party who caused your injuries or their insurance company are responsible for paying your lost wages.
How Are Lost Wages Calculated?
Calculating lost wages can be straightforward. If you are an hourly worker, calculate the number of hours you missed and multiply it by your hourly wage.
The equation is similar for salaried employees. Start with your annual salary and divide it by the number of hours you usually work in a year (for a full-time employee working 40 hours per week, this number is 2080). This gives you your hourly rate. To arrive at your lost wages, multiply your hourly rate by the number of hours of work you missed.
Your use of sick days or vacation days is usually NOT considered when calculating lost wages. Even if you were required to use those days, you should still be compensated for the time you missed from work because of your injuries.
How Do You Prove a Claim for Lost Wages?
To prove your claim for lost wages, you can use a wage documentation form to request information from your employer. You will need to include information about your earnings and the amount of time you missed from work.
You can also use pay stubs and tax returns to prove your yearly earnings, and medical and hospital records and receipts to prove the amount of time you were unable to work because you were in the hospital or required to stay home. We often ask clients to provide multiple years of pay stubs and tax returns depending on the complexity and type of wage loss.
Calculating Lost Wages for the Self-Employed
If you are self-employed, calculating lost wages is more complicated. Many business owners have complex pay structures that keep their business afloat, especially after suffering a personal injury. In addition, someone who is self-employed may have lost clients or missed out on business opportunities.
To prove lost wages for someone who is self-employed, your lawyer may need to work with an economic expert to calculate the economic loss caused by a personal injury.
What About Lost Earning Potential?
People who suffer catastrophic, long-term injuries are entitled to compensation for lost earning potential. Whereas lost earnings accounts for economic losses between the time you were injured and the date of the resolution of your case, lost earning potential accounts for the future costs associated with a personal injury, such as raises and bonuses you would have received, or even a new career path you may have taken if you were not injured. Sometimes, life care planners and economic experts are needed to calculate the present value of future lost earnings.
Calculating lost earning potential is much more complicated than calculating lost earnings. Experts like forensic accountants, economists, and health care practitioners often use complex forecasting models to calculate your lost earning potential over the course of your life expectancy.
Fremstad Law Will Fight to Protect Your Future
Depending on the nature and severity of your injuries, lost wages and lost earning potential can make up a significant portion of a personal injury settlement or verdict. To maximize your financial recovery and protect your rights and your future, it is critical that you work with an attorney who has experience investigating and litigating personal injury claims.
The North Dakota personal injury lawyers at Fremstad Law help people who have been injured because someone else was negligent, careless, or reckless. We will act as your advocate and fight for your right to full and fair compensation.
Our lawyers handle a variety of personal injury claims, including injuries caused by automobile accidents, motorcycle accidents, bicycle accidents, dog bite injuries, premises liability claims, and product liability claims. We generally handle these cases on a contingency fee, which means you don’t owe us a fee unless we recover money for you.
To learn more about our personal injury practice and how we can help, contact us today to schedule a confidential consultation to discuss your situation.
