Accidents which cause injury can have a profound impact on your life. The physical and emotional pain can be traumatic enough, but often an injury can result in financial concerns. This is particularly stressful if you find yourself completely unable to work.

You may be entitled to claim for compensation if you have become injured due to somebody else’s actions or negligence.

A personal injury claim can assist with easing the financial burden associated with your injury. The compensation awarded usually correlates with the losses that occur from an injury or accident rather than the injury itself.

These losses may encompass:

• Travel expenses
• Loss of earnings
• Prescription costs or medical charges
• The cost of replacing damaged property (e.g. a broken bike in a cycling accident claim)

How you can claim for loss of earnings

It may be necessary for you to take time off work in order to recover from an injury. In the worst case scenario, you may not be able to do the same job you used to do. Taking long periods of time off work can put a strain on your family’s finances.

We often encounter clients who are concerned about whether they will be able to recover the earnings that they have missed out on due to their injury. The answer to this question is yes.

How do we calculate loss of earnings?

Your solicitor will evaluate the claim and take account of any earnings that you have missed out on during your injury. This is known as the ‘special damages’ part of your claim.

In order to claim loss of earnings, you will need to provide payslips as evidence of your salary. To make a claim for lost overtime it will be necessary to prove that you frequently worked additional hours before your injury. You will also be required to supply evidence which suggests that you would have continued working overtime if your injury had not prevented you from doing so.

Your lawyer will retrieve a report from a medical professional to clarify that your injuries are severe enough to justify time off work. This information will support your loss of earnings claim.

Can I claim loss of earnings if I am self-employed?

It can be a little trickier to claim back loss of earnings when you are self-employed. This is primarily because most freelance workers or contractors are unable to rely on monthly payslips due to variable hours and incomes. In order to support your loss of earnings claim you should write down how often you worked before your injury and keep a precise record of which days you were unable to work subsequently. It is a good idea to detail any work obligations or deadlines that you planned before your injury but were unable to meet.

Is it possible to claim back future loss of earnings?

In most cases, it is possible to return to work after a number of weeks. More serious injuries can extend recovery time to months or even years.

Your earnings capacity may be considerably reduced if your injury has prevented you from carrying out the same job you were doing before. In the worst case scenario, you may not be able to return to work at all.

It is possible to claim compensation for future loss of earnings if your injury has affected your ability to work in the future. For these claims, it will be necessary for your solicitor to seek a prognosis of your injury from a medical professional. This will give an indication of when (or if) they think you’ll be able to resume working.

How to make an effective loss of earnings claim

There are various steps you can take to support your claim:

• Keep copies of sick notes from your doctor
• Keep hold of any payslips you are issued during your time off
• Keep an accurate log of your absence from work. Any unsuccessful attempts to return to work should be noted down.
• Find payslips for 3 months prior to your injury or accident to illustrate your earnings pre-injury.
• Note down any pre-booked holidays you were unable to take due to your injury
• Note any overtime you worked before the accident and how much you think you would have done had the injury not occurred
• For longer periods of absence, it may be possible that you have missed out on a promotion or pay rise. Advise your solicitor if this is the case. They will be able to instruct you on how evidence can be gathered to prove this.
• Your income may have been negatively impacted due to changing roles or duties in your job. Make sure you highlight this to your solicitor so that they can take this into account when assessing your claim.

Making a claim for loss of earnings with Jefferies Solicitors

If you have become injured due to third-party negligence we can help you. Our expert lawyers will help to alleviate the financial strain resulting from your injury. The team at Jefferies Solicitors works across both England and Wales helping families and individuals to recover loss of earnings following accidents and medical negligence.

Contact Jefferies Solicitors to discuss your claim on 0800 342 3206 or feel free to fill out our online contact form.