Understanding How A Car Accident Affects Future Earnings

Law Blog

An accident injury will affect your life in many ways — sometimes even the way you have earned your income up to that point. Future earnings may be owed to you if the accident permanently affected your career. Read on to learn more about future earnings after an auto accident.

Past Income Determines Future Income

Among other factors, the salary you were earning before you were hurt in a car accident determines your future earnings. Lost wages, which almost all accident victims are eligible to receive, consist of payment for all time missed from work. Future earnings, however, are another matter. This category is concerned with how much income you would have earned if you hadn't been hit by a careless driver. That is not the only consideration, though. Other factors affecting how much you may be paid for future earnings are:

1. Your age: Since the compensation is based on the remainder of your working years, your age matters. If you are close to retirement, for instance, the compensation for future earnings won't be as high as those just starting out on their careers.
2. Your education level: This factor can reduce your compensation by pointing out that you might be able to earn money in an alternate career field if you have the education.
3. Your injury: Some injuries are worse than others. In most cases, your level of disability is equated to a percentage. You could be, for example, 75% disabled. Those 100% disabled will usually be entitled to a larger settlement.
4. Other cases: Also a factor in how much you are offered are other similar cases in the same general geographical area.

How to Take Action

You won't automatically be offered lost earning potential money. Insurers are often reluctant to pay victims anything other than medical expenses and auto repair. If your injury has left you unable to do your job both now and, in the future, speak to a personal injury lawyer. They will work with you to build a case against the other driver so that you are paid everything you deserve.

It can be tricky to determine how much you would have earned had you not been permanently disabled in the wreck. Your lawyer may call on medical, economic, and vocational experts to determine what you deserve. If the other side does not want to cooperate with you and pay you what your lawyer thinks you are owed, you may have to file a lawsuit against them. To get started on your quest to make your future more comfortable after an accident that has robbed you of your livelihood, make an appointment at a law firm, such as the Law Office Of Carlos Molinar.

14 December 2021