Posted on Friday, September 16th, 2016 at 11:31 pm
When you are injured in a personal injury accident, you suffer financial, physical, and emotional damages. Lost wages are a portion of the financial damages you suffer as the result of being injured by another person. Under California personal injury laws, you are entitled to receive compensation for your lost wages. However, you must prove that you suffered damages and the value of those damages. For lost wages, the easiest way to prove damages is to gather information regarding your income prior to and after the traffic accident.
What Documentation Do I Need To Prove Lost Wages?
The answer to this question depends on several factors including whether you are employed or whether you work for yourself. Another factor to consider is whether you are an hourly or salaried employee. Examples of documents your attorney may ask you to begin gathering include:
- Copies of previous tax returns (especially if you will not be able to return to work at all);
- Copies of pay advices for the past six months; and,
- Letter from your employer stating the amount of work you missed due to your injury, the average days/hours you work, your pay rate, and details about any other compensation you may receive.
If you will be out of work for several years, you are unable to return to work, or you can work but you are not able to earn the same income as before the accident due to your injuries, more information will be required to prove your damages for lost wages. We may retain the services of a financial expert to assist us as we calculate the total for future lost wages and compensation. You are entitled to receive your past lost wages; however, you are entitled to receive compensation for any future lost wages and compensation.
You Need A Sacramento Personal Injury Attorney
The value for a lost wages claim may not be clear-cut. Depending on your specific situation, your claim may be complex. The insurance company may deny your lost wages claim for a variety of reasons. This could make collecting what is rightly yours very difficult.
As experienced personal injury lawyers, we know how to correctly value a lost wages claim; and we know what documentation we need to support that claim. Furthermore, we understand how insurance companies work and we understand how to battle an insurance company so that it does not “roll over” the accident victim to pay an amount that is much lower than the person’s actual lost wages.
Our attorneys search for every type of damage that should be included in a lost wages claim to maximize the amount you can receive from the insurance company. For example, we search for job promotions you missed; raises you would have been entitled to receive; missed bonuses; and other forms of compensation you lost because you were unable to work due to the injuries you sustained in the traffic accident.
If you try to handle your claim on your own, you may miss these damages causing your settlement claim to be lower than it would have been if all damages were included. The insurance company for the at-fault party will not explain this to you nor will it do your job for you. This is why you need to hire an experienced accident attorney who is on your side, who has your best interest as his top priority, and who will protect your legal rights.
Do Not Make A Costly Mistake With Your Lost Wages Claim
Find out how our attorneys can help you with a lost wages claim by calling Tiemann Law Firm at (916) 999-9000 or by chatting with a representative on our website to schedule a free consultation and case evaluation.
