If you’ve been involved in a car accident, then chances are you’ve had to take some time off work to recover from physical injuries and mental distress. You may be able to recover earnings you missed out on while taking time off. Contact a car accident lawyer or truck accident lawyer in San Antonio to help you recover these earnings.
Ask a Car Accident Lawyer in San Antonio: Can You Recover Lost Earnings After a Car Accident Injury?
If you’ve been involved in a car accident, then it’s possible for you to recover lost earnings and future lost earnings. These will generally be covered as part of the economic damages in your settlement. Lost earnings should cover you from the time of the accident to the time you return to work. If you won’t be able to return the work to work in the future, then you may be reimbursed for your lost earning capacity.
Lost earning capacity should cover you from the time you stopped working up to retirement age. The amount you get in lost earning capacity depends on whether you had to stop working altogether, switch to part-time, or switch to a lower-paying field/job after the accident. Both lost wages and lost earning capacity are calculated based on your annual, weekly, hourly, or monthly salary at the time of the accident.
How Can a Car or Truck Accident Lawyer Help You Recover Lost Earnings?
A car accident attorney can help you understand your rights regarding recovering lost earnings and other types of compensation. They can also offer legal advice regarding how you may attempt to prove you’ve lost out on income or that your earning potential has been impacted by the accident. On top of that, your lawyer will investigate the accident, help you gather evidence to prove your damages, and calculate the value of your damages.
Your attorney will also negotiate with the insurance company, help you deal with paperwork, and do anything else necessary to help you recover compensation. If a lawsuit needs to be filed, your attorney will advise you on this and help you as needed. If you need to go to court, then they’ll represent you at trial if this is the best move for your case. They’ll likely advise settling without trial if going to trial would be risky in your case.
What Kind of Employees Can Recover Lost Earnings?
Full-time employees, part-time employees, independent contractors, and even self-employed individuals can recover lost earnings. How you go about recovering lost earnings depends on your type of employment.
Proof of income may be enough for full-time and part-time employees and some independent contractors. Self-employed individuals may have to show proof of income alongside evidence showing how their business has been impacted by the accident.
What Ways Are There to Recover Lost Earnings?
1. From the Liable Driver’s Insurance Company
In most cases, the liable driver’s insurance company is responsible for paying out all of your damages. Even though it seems simple, this is often a long process and may require a lawsuit if the company is refusing to settle. Your attorney will help you build a case and present it to the insurance company, so the insurance company knows that you’re entitled to damages.
2. From the Liable Driver
If the liable driver’s insurance company cannot pay out, then you may be advised to seek compensation directly from the liable driver. However, if the liable driver can’t afford to pay, then they may file for bankruptcy and get the judgment discharged.
3. From Your Insurance Company
If you’re dealing with a case where the liable driver was underinsured or uninsured, then you may have to use your own auto insurance policy to cover your damages. However, you must have uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage as part of your policy to be able to do this.
4. From a Government Entity
Car accidents are not always caused by negligence on the part of the other driver. Their driving may have been impacted by unmaintained roads. In these instances, you may pursue compensation from the government agency responsible for taking care of the roads and keeping them safe.
5. From the Other Driver’s Employers or Their Employer’s Insurance Company
If the other driver was working at the time of the accident, such as driving a delivery truck, then their employers may be responsible for paying out after the accident. The employers most likely have an insurance policy that covers them in instances such as the one you’ve been involved in. Sometimes both the driver and their employers may be held liable, and your attorney will investigate to help determine liability in the case.
6. From Your Employers or Their Insurance Company
Were you driving a commercial vehicle when you got into an accident? If so, you may be entitled to Workers’ Compensation if your employer carries Workers’ Compensation Insurance. However, there’s a chance you may only be able to cover part of the income you missed out on while recovering from your injuries.
7. From Any Other Negligent Parties
Car accidents are often complex cases, and there could be other negligent parties involved in your situation. If this is the case, then any of them could be responsible for paying you your lost wages and other compensation. Some other potentially negligent parties include other motorists and car manufacturers, depending on the circumstances surrounding the accident.
What Other Compensation Can You Recover?
Property Damage
Your vehicle will most likely have sustained serious damage, and items inside it may be damaged, too. You may be reimbursed for the cost of fixing or replacing your property that was damaged in the car accident.
Medical Expenses
You may have many medical expenses after a car accident, and you should be fully reimbursed for them. Any current accident-related medical bills you’re dealing with should be covered by the settlement. Keep a copy of all hospital bills you’ve been issued to help recover the correct sum.
Future medical expenses, such as the cost of treating ongoing pain or disabilities caused by the accident, should also be taken care of. It’s also not just the cost of treatment that you should be reimbursed for various hospital fees, the cost of medications, and more should be covered.
Non-Economic Damages
You’ve probably heard of “pain and suffering” regarding personal injury lawsuits. Pain and suffering damages cover a wide array of things. These damages can be paid out to compensate you for literal pain, but you can also be compensated for other types of suffering. You may experience ongoing mental anguish or decreased quality of life. You may be compensated for these things and more.
Loss of Consortium
Loss of consortium is a type of non-economic damage that specifically applies in wrongful death cases. If a loved one lost their life in a car accident, then you may be entitled to seek loss of consortium damages after their death.
Contact Gamez Law Firm if you’re looking for an attorney to help you recover lost wages and other forms of compensation. There are numerous parties you may seek lost wages from, and the sum you seek should reimburse you for all the time you had to take off work. An attorney can help you fight for those lost wages.