When dealing with personal injury claims and lawsuits, there are a variety of terms and vocabulary that describes the types of losses and the compensation plaintiff’s may be entitled to. Loss of income is one of those terms. In context of a personal injury claim, loss of income refers to the wages that the injured party will or has lost as a result of an injury. Loss of income also refers to the benefits that person may be missing out on due to the injury.
To help you better understand loss of income, we offer this example. It’s common for an individual not to be able to work due to a car accident. So, if a person who was injured in a car accident isn’t able to work for two weeks as a result of that accident, they will have lost income during that period of time.
With the average person injury case, the plaintiff will be able to recover the income they lost due to their inability to work related to the injury causing accident. Monetary damages can be awarded by filing a lawsuit against the person who caused the accident. In order to file a successful personal injury lawsuit that covers loss of income, and future earning ability, the plaintiff will need to prove that the other person was at fault. They need to prove that the actions of the dependent were what caused the plaintiff’s inability to work and continue working for the period of time of healing.
It’s not necessary for income to be lost all at one time in order to recover it. Sometimes the impact of injuries allows a person to be able to work some of the time with occasional flair ups of issues related to the accident. For example, if a person has been injured and has had to miss 60 days over the period of a year, it’s not necessary for those 60 days to be consecutive in order to recover income for those missed days. It will be necessary to prove that it was the injury that caused your absence from work.
Understanding Lost Earning Capacity
Loss of income is the money and injured party has lost due to the impact of an injury. Personal injury lawyer in Sherwood Park knows that lost earning capacity is different in that it refers to a decrease in a person’s ability to financially support themselves as a direct result of their injury. Lost earning capacity is also sometimes called Future Loss of Earnings or Impairment Earning Power.
Permanent injuries will cause lost earning capacity. An individual who has permanent shoulder damage due to a car accident will likely experience difficulty working in the future, especially if their job requires turning and lifting.