Can I Be Compensated for Future Lost Income?

If your accident injuries are severe enough to cause a long-term or permanent disability that affects your income, that loss can be part of the compensation you seek. It requires medical expertise to determine how much your functioning will be limited and vocational expertise to estimate how it will affect your future earnings.

The essential parts of a personal injury lawsuit exceed what you or your attorney can establish. To create a successful lawsuit, you may need expert witnesses to review the evidence and give their opinions on important matters.

One is your estimated lost earning capacity caused by an accident injury. This estimate would also include any work-related benefits you would be expected to earn (like contributions to your 401k retirement plan and health insurance).

This isn’t just an issue if you’re totally disabled. This also comes into play if a partial disability allows you to work, but your physical or psychological issues will probably result in a career that pays less than what you expected.

How Would My Future Earning Losses Be Calculated?

Several steps in the process require different facts to be considered.

First, we would look at your past earnings to predict what financial future you would have had but for your injury. We would need copies of past tax returns and pay stubs to establish a baseline for your income. We would also want to know your past promotions, raises, and overall career path to understand where your career was heading.

Your age is an important factor. Lost earnings are usually far greater for younger people than those nearing retirement.

We would also need an expert medical evaluation. A doctor would assess the severity and permanence of your injuries, possibly along with an assessment by an occupational therapist. These opinions and information they obtain will help us understand:

• If you can return to work at all
• If so, whether you can return to your job after recovering from your injuries
• Whether you’ll face physical or psychological barriers that may limit how much you can earn where you worked and whether an employer is likely to accommodate you
• If you need retraining for a different career

If you’re not expected to work in the future, we would estimate your career earnings based on what you earned in the past, and predict how your career and income would’ve developed until your retirement. All that missed income and benefits would be claimed.

If you’re expected to return to work, your lost income claim would include:

• Any time you need to recover from your injuries
• Time away from work getting rehabilitation so you can go back to your old job or
• Time spent training to do something else that’s expected to earn you less income

With those issues determined, we can estimate your income lost because you must take time off to recover and get rehabilitative care to:

• Return to work without restrictions or limitations, or
• Reduce your duties or find another job or career that pays you less

Given what we know about what you earned in the past and the professional progress you were making:

• We would estimate what your earnings would’ve been if you’d never been injured
• Subtract from that your expected reduced earnings for the work we believe you’ll perform in the future

These income loss figures are not certain but are very educated estimates. You may make more money after your accident than you would’ve in your old job, but you can’t count on it.

Defendants often criticize and try to pull apart plaintiffs’ lost income figures. They may come up with numbers that are, not surprisingly, less than ours because they want to lower their costs.

Speak To a Kentucky Personal Injury Attorney Today

Lost income claims can be substantial, depending on the accident victim’s age, earning potential, and degree of disability. If you or a loved one is severely injured and their ability to support themselves or their family is in doubt, Satterley & Kelley, PLLC is here to help.

We will fight for you to obtain all the compensation you deserve for a severe injury caused by another. To schedule a free consultation to discuss your situation, how Kentucky law may apply, and how we can help, call our Louisville office toll-free at 855-385-9532. You may also use our online contact form if it’s more convenient.