Mike Hancock is the founder of Hancock Injury Attorneys, a former insurance defense attorney, and an AV-Preeminent–rated lawyer by Martindale-Hubbell, with over 35 years of experience practicing personal injury law.
Key Takeaways
- Lost wages refer to income that has already been missed because of the injury. For example, if someone is unable to work for several months following an accident, those missed paychecks may be calculated based on the person’s hourly wage or salary and the time they were forced to miss from work.
- Loss of earning capacity is different and often far more significant. This refers to the income an injured person is expected to lose in the future because their injuries limit the type of work they can perform. Determining these future losses often requires input from medical providers, vocational rehabilitation experts, and economists.
- In Florida car accident cases, a portion of lost wages may be paid under Personal Injury Protection (PIP) coverage. This no-fault insurance coverage is available to people involved in motor vehicle accidents and provides up to $10,000 in benefits.
After a serious accident, many people face the same frightening reality: they cannot work, but the bills keep coming. Medical expenses, household costs, and everyday financial responsibilities don’t pause just because an injury prevents you from earning a paycheck.
Attorney guidance can be critical during this time because recovering lost wages after an accident is often more complex than people expect. While some compensation may come quickly, other types of wage losses require careful documentation, medical evidence, and expert analysis.
Video Transcript:
You can't work. The bills don't stop. And now you're asking who's responsible.
Lost wages can be a big part of serious personal injury claims. Let's take a look at who is typically responsible for paying your lost wages and what type of lost wage claims are available.
In car accident claims in Florida, part of your lost wages can be paid quickly by your no fault insurance. That's also known as PIP. And PIP stands for personal injury protection coverage.
Everybody who is in a car accident has PIP coverage available to them. It's always $10,000, never more, never less. It pays a certain portion of your medical bills and a certain portion of your lost wages. It'll actually pay, more specifically, 60% of your lost wages up to a total of $10,000.
Beyond the PIP coverage, which makes for kind of a quick recovery of some of your lost wages, we're going to be looking to the at-fault party to pay for your lost wages. That comes in the form of a settlement or a jury verdict.
When we talk about lost wages, we're talking about anything that has occurred in the past. Let's say six months after the accident, you've lost six months worth of wages. We refer to that as lost wages.
We're also looking at your future lost wages. We actually refer to that as loss of earning capacity. That's the technical name for it. So, we have lost wages, anything in the past, and loss of earning capacity, any wages you are expected to lose in the future.
The lost wages in the past are easy to calculate. It's just the amount of time you lost from work multiplied by the amount you get paid by the hour, and it's easy to calculate lost wages.
It's necessary when we are calculating loss of earning capacity, the amount you're going to lose over the next 10, 20, 30 years of your life, to get your doctors involved to render opinions as to what you are and what you aren't able to do in the future.
We get economists involved and vocational rehabilitation experts involved to render opinions based upon your doctor's opinions, what you're expected to be able to do in the future and what jobs you might not be able to do in the future.
The loss of earning capacity claims in serious injury claims are often in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, if not above that. A loss of earning capacity claim takes into account the following.
I might represent a 30-year-old man who might have less than a high school education but is making over $50,000 a year doing manual labor. The vocational rehabilitation expert might provide a report that says based upon his education and his work history, he's no longer able to make $50,000 a year because of restrictions placed upon him by his doctors, but he can only make $30,000 a year doing basically a job sitting down somewhere.
He'll be severely restricted on what he can do because of his lack of education. We might have a $20,000 to $30,000 a year loss of earning capacity. Multiply that over 30 years, and you might have a loss of earning capacity claim by itself that is above $600,000.
So those are all the different issues involved when we're discussing lost wages. Some of these wages we can get paid really quickly to help you get by, and others are going to be developed as we develop the case and file a lawsuit.
Some of the other loss of earning capacity claims might take a number of months for us to determine. If you have any questions about who's responsible for paying your lost wages after an accident or a slip and fall or any other type of personal injury claim, please give me a call. I'd be happy to discuss your particular case with you and give you my evaluation and recommendations as to how we can get those lost wages paid.
What Is The Difference Between Lost Wages and Loss of Earning Capacity?
There are generally two types of income losses that may be considered in a serious personal injury claim: lost wages and loss of earning capacity.
Lost Wages
Lost wages refer to income that has already been missed because of the injury. For example, if someone is unable to work for several months following an accident, those missed paychecks may be calculated based on the person’s hourly wage or salary and the time they were forced to miss from work.
Loss of Earning Capacity
Loss of earning capacity is different and often far more significant. This refers to the income an injured person is expected to lose in the future because their injuries limit the type of work they can perform. Determining these future losses often requires input from medical providers, vocational rehabilitation experts, and economists.
Medical professionals evaluate the injured person’s long-term physical limitations, while vocational experts analyze how those limitations affect the person’s ability to perform certain jobs. Economists may then calculate the long-term financial impact of those restrictions over the course of a career.
In serious injury cases, loss of earning capacity claims can reach hundreds of thousands of dollars, particularly when the injury permanently reduces a person’s ability to earn the same income they once did.
How Can PIP Coverage Cover My Lost Wages?
In Florida car accident cases, a portion of lost wages may be paid under Personal Injury Protection (PIP) coverage. This no-fault insurance coverage is available to people involved in motor vehicle accidents and provides up to $10,000 in benefits. PIP can pay a portion of medical expenses and typically covers 60% of lost wages, helping injured individuals recover some income while their case develops.
However, PIP coverage is limited. Once those benefits are exhausted, recovering additional lost income usually requires pursuing a claim against the at-fault party. Compensation for lost wages may then come through a negotiated settlement or a jury verdict.
How an Experienced Personal Injury Attorney Helps
Recovering lost income after a serious injury requires more than simply submitting pay stubs. An experienced personal injury lawyer at Hancock Injury Attorneys can gather employment records, obtain medical opinions, and work with financial and vocational experts to accurately calculate both current and future loss of income.
They can also handle negotiations with insurance companies, which often try to minimize wage-loss claims. By presenting clear evidence and expert analysis, your lawyer can help demonstrate the true financial impact of the injury and pursue the compensation needed to protect a client’s long-term financial stability.
Take Action Today: Protect Your Rights After a Serious Injury
If you cannot work after an accident, you should not have to face the financial consequences alone. Speaking with an experienced personal injury attorney at Hancock Injury Attorneys can help you understand your rights and explore options for recovering the wages you have lost.
Taking action early can make a significant difference in protecting your financial future and ensuring your claim is properly developed. Call us at 813-915-1110 to schedule your free case consultation today.
FAQs
Who pays for lost wages after a car accident in Florida?
Initially, a portion of lost wages may be paid through your Personal Injury Protection (PIP) insurance coverage. Additional lost income may be recovered from the at-fault party through a personal injury claim.
What is the difference between lost wages and loss of earning capacity?
Lost wages refer to income you have already missed because you were unable to work. Loss of earning capacity refers to the future income you may lose if your injuries permanently limit your ability to work.
How are future lost wages calculated?
Future income losses often require input from doctors, vocational experts, and economists. These professionals evaluate your physical limitations and estimate how those restrictions may affect your long-term earning potential.
Can loss of earning capacity claims be significant?
Yes. In serious injury cases, future income losses can reach hundreds of thousands of dollars depending on the person’s age, occupation, education, and long-term medical restrictions.