How Your Personal Injury Lawyer Calculates Lost Wages?
Accidents are always unfortunate and most likely leave you injured and emotionally disturbed. Not only are you hurt at the moment, but there can be unimaginable aftermath to an accident. In a situation where you are vulnerable, you never have to be alone. The first thing you need is someone who can guide you to receive what you are entitled to. Being left in a situation where you are unable to work enables you to receive compensation. With personal injury lawyers in Houston, you can claim lost wages while you are forced to take time off work.
What are lost wages?
Whenever you go through an accident, sustain injuries or are mentally traumatized, it becomes impossible for you to work. For every hour that you spend in a doctor’s office or recovering at home, you lose money. Lost wages allow you to focus on completing your recovery without having to worry about your expenses.
There are many different parts of lost wages that can be calculated and claimed as compensation. Not all parts of lost wages may apply to your job. However, the information will allow you to calculate easily.
Daily/Weekly/Hourly Wages
Depending on how many days of work you miss, calculating the amount you can claim becomes easy. The number of days or weeks that you miss is first converted into hours. Once you have a precise estimate of the number of hours missed, the figure is then multiplied by your hourly wage.
For example, in the case that you have missed 20 days of work due to recovery from your back injury, the calculation below would be your lost wages if you worked a standard of 40 hours per week.
No. of Days Missed = 20
Daily Working Hours = 8
Total Working Hours = 160 Hours
Hourly wage = $25
Total Lost Wages = $4,000
Calculating Overtime
Suppose you were the person that had a habit of working overtime. You don’t have to worry. With the right proof, you can claim overtime to be included in your lost wages. As long as you were regularly working overtime, and it shows in your salary slips, you can easily be compensated. This includes working extra every weekend or during a particular season. For example, if you work extra during the summer season when customer flow is increased.
Vacation or Sick days
Many companies use sick leave or paid vacations to allow you to recover. However, with personal injury lawyers in Houston, you can ask for compensation for those days. Afterall, if not injured, you could have used the allotted days for when you were sick or looking to take a vacation.
Tips/incentives/perks
If you have a company car, a membership to a gym or any other incentive offered by the company, you can add them to your lost wages. In the case that you were not injured, you would have been able to use all those services, which is why their value can also be added to lost wages. The same goes for tips. As long you have proof of the tips you earned, they are also eligible to be added to your lost wages claim.
Documentation and proof required to maximize lost wages claim
It is not easy to claim maximum lost wages and give your body the time to recover. With the right car accident lawyer, you will be able to ease the process. Despite having the right assistance, you will still need documentation to strengthen your case.
The best piece of documentation you can use is a letter provided by your employer. The letter can contain details on hours you have missed along with perks and bonuses that you were normally provided. In addition, you will also need as much documentation as possible. This can include but is not limited to any documentation that mentions:
- Your employer
- Working hours
- Your wages
- Employment date
- Perks
What is lost earnings potential?
With the right lawyer, you can also claim earnings that you may have earned if you continued to work regularly. In legal terms, this is referred to as Lost Earnings Potential. Through this claim, using documentation and future analysis to decide on what promotions you may have received, you can increase your claim. A lawyer can guide you better on how you can decide your lost earnings potential.
You can file for lost wages if you are self-employed
It is not necessary to be employed by someone else if you are looking to claim lost wages. If you own a business or are self-employed, you are still eligible to claim lost wages. As long as you have a great lawyer and can prove regular income through the documentation, you are good to go. Sure, it can be tricky, but you can use business records, receipts and bank records to calculate how much would you have earned if not involved in an accident.
How can an attorney help?
Personal injury cases often result in victims receiving minimum to no compensation. The main reason for this is due to the fact that personal injury claims are much more technical. It is always harder to prove the trauma that one goes through. There are many challenges associated with claiming lost wages. However, personal injury lawyers in Houston are experts that can help you out. From documentation to legal briefings, they can be of great help and have an excellent track record. With an attorney, you can also reduce the risk of making mistakes or skipping any legal proceedings.
A personal injury victim has simply suffered enough. Being affected physically and mentally creates many challenges. You deserve to get maximum compensation, and that is possible with having the best attorney in your corner. With the right help, you can put your best foot forward and present a valid argument.