Recovering Lost Wages After an Accident

The best Arizona personal injury lawyers know that lost wages can be a major source of stress after an accident, as victims face medical expenses with no income. Knowing how lost wage calculations are made can help you protect your rights and ensure the compensation you demand isn’t leaving out a single penny.

Recovering lost wages after an accident requires demonstrating the income you lost as a result of the accident. In more severe cases, this can extend to reduced earning potential that also has to be accounted for.

What Types of Income Are Recoverable?

Lost income can take several forms. If you’ve suffered injuries that have impacted your ability to work, compensation might include:

• Hourly wages or salary
• Bonuses or commissions
• Sick leave or vacation time used
• Overtime pay

Calculating these losses requires careful documentation from the victim, their employers, and medical providers.

Reduced Earning Potential

An aspect of lost wages that isn’t always present in personal injury claims is reduced earning potential. This refers to instances in which not only has an injury caused the victim to miss out on wages they would have received had it not been for the accident, but their ability to work has been affected for an extended period of time.

For example, a victim might be able to demonstrate that they were on track to change departments at their job and have already begun training for this work. If they can prove that this type of work is now unavailable to them because of their injuries and calculate what these earnings would have been, they may be able to pursue compensation for these losses.

These calculations are complex, especially when determining fault in personal injury cases comes into play. Experienced attorneys will work with experts in the victim’s field, medical professionals, and economists to make sure the victim is fairly compensated.

Proving Lost Wages

The groundwork for proving lost wages comes down to documentation. Insurance companies require evidence of lost wages, and attorneys must use records from numerous sources to calculate the damages.

You should hold onto:

• Work schedules
• Pay stubs
• Medical records
• Tax returns
• Physician recommendations

If you’re self-employed, proving lost wages can be more complex. After your accident, you should immediately start tracking:

• Invoices
• Contracts
• Business records
• Profit-and-loss statements

A skilled attorney can specify what you need and what evidence will build the strongest case. Until you hire strong representation, document everything.

Protecting Your Financial Recovery

After an accident, you want to heal, but you also want to address the financial consequences. The lawyers at Gage Mathers have represented accident victims across Arizona and we can help you calculate your lost wages and future income losses to make sure you get every penny you deserve.

About the Author

Joseph D'Aguanno

Guided by the belief that being a highly skilled specialist in a narrow field is better than being ordinary in everything, Joseph “JD” D’Aguanno leads Arizona’s best personal injury law firm in Phoenix, AZ. Having extensive cross-training in pre-litigation negotiations and trial lawyer skills, with decades of experience, JD strives to provide clients with the most valuable legal services a personal injury lawyer can provide. Under his direction, Gage Mathers Law Group is an award-winning personal injury law firm providing aggressive representation to victims of a car accident, medical malpractice, dog bite, motorcycle accident, and other injurious events. Gage Mathers is trusted by thousands of lawyers and clients throughout the country because of their reputation for getting clients the maximum compensation they deserve.

Years of experience: Over 24 years
Bar number: 020421
Location: Phoenix, AZ
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