Claiming for Loss of Earnings if an Injury Leaves You Unable to Work

Types of Loss of Earnings Claims

1. Short-term loss of earnings: For injuries causing a few days or weeks off work
2. Long-term loss of earnings: For injuries resulting in months or years of inability to work
3. Loss of future earnings: For injuries affecting your long-term earning capacity
4. Loss of overtime or bonuses: For missed opportunities to earn additional income
5. Self-employed loss of earnings: For business owners or freelancers who’ve lost income

It might be that an accident has stopped you from working for a few days or weeks. Alternatively, your situation might be serious enough to prevent you from doing your job for months, years, or even indefinitely. Whatever your circumstances, and whatever type of injury you’ve suffered, a loss of earnings claim requires evidence.

Evidence Required for Loss of Earnings Claims

For Employed Individuals

• Recent payslips (typically for the 3 months or 13 weeks prior to the accident)
• Bank statements
• P60 forms
• Employment contract detailing salary and benefits
• Statement from your employer confirming time off and lost wages

The simplest way to prove how much income you’ve lost is through your most recent payslips. In many cases, payslips for the three months, or 13 weeks, prior to the accident will be enough, but you may need more. Bank statements can be used if necessary.

In straightforward cases, it’s then a case of calculating how long you’ve been unable to work and how much take-home pay you’ve missed out on. Be aware that the sum you’ll be due will reflect your net monthly pay – in other words, the income you normally receive after tax and national insurance contributions.

Issues such as overtime, bonuses, holiday allowances, pension payments and other perks can all be considered too, so long as you can prove you would otherwise have benefited from them. Where things like overtime are concerned, payslips of colleagues can provide useful evidence to back up your case.

And don’t worry if you work erratic hours or have a variable wage from month to month. It’s often possible to look at previous payslips to come up with a figure that represents your average income.

For Self-Employed Individuals

• Tax returns for the past 3 years
• Business accounts
• Invoices or contracts for work you were unable to complete
• Bank statements
• Accountant’s statement

Although the claims tend to be slightly more complicated, you’re still entitled to claim for loss of earnings if you’re self-employed.

You’ll need to provide the last three years’ worth of your verified business accounts (or as close to three years as possible) to show your average earnings. This helps to work out the loss of profit caused by your accident.

Where feasible, you should also show evidence of work projects that were in the calendar before the injury, but which became impossible to fulfil. Evidence of this kind might take the form of written instructions from a client, a pre-agreed contract that’s now been lost, or even a dated email exchange.

It’s also helpful to keep a careful record of the days you were (or still are) unable to work, as well as a detailed overview of your financial accounts.

Calculating Loss of Earnings

Your solicitor will typically calculate your loss of earnings based on your net pay (after tax and national insurance). The calculation may include:

1. Basic salary
2. Overtime payments
3. Bonuses
4. Commission
5. Pension contributions
6. Other work-related benefits

For those with variable income, an average may be calculated based on previous earnings.

Claiming for Future Loss of Earnings

If your injury has long-term effects on your ability to work, you may be able to claim for future loss of earnings. This could include:

1. Reduced earning capacity due to disability
2. Inability to return to your previous job
3. Need for retraining or career change
4. Early retirement due to injury

If you’ve been unlucky enough to suffer a serious accident, your claim might be far more significant. And if your capacity to work is still severely reduced, affecting your long-term prospects, the losses you’re suffering may well be substantial. This may also apply if you’ve returned to work, only to find that your injuries have forced you to stop again.

If you’re nearing retirement age, or have been involved in an extremely bad accident, it might be genuinely impossible for you to return to work at all. In this instance, your total losses could include your expected earnings up until the time you were likely to retire.

Most cases of this kind would use the standard retirement age, unless there was strong proof that you were due to carry on working beyond this time. Evidence such as a formal arrangement with your employer would be valuable here.

Self-employed workers can also potentially claim loss of earnings beyond retirement age – but again, a solid argument would be needed to support the case.

Impact on Benefits

Receiving compensation for loss of earnings may affect your eligibility for certain benefits. It’s important to seek advice on how a compensation award might impact your specific situation. Some benefit payments would generally be deducted from any compensation you’re due for loss of earnings.

Interim Payments

If you’re struggling financially while your claim is ongoing, or you’ve been forced to stop work for an extensive period, you may be able to request an interim payment. This is a partial payment of your expected compensation to help cover immediate expenses – a way of receiving part of your compensation before a final decision has been made.

Other Financial Losses You Can Claim

In addition to lost wages, you may be able to claim for:

1. Medical expenses
2. Travel costs to medical appointments
3. Cost of care or assistance at home
4. Modifications to your home or vehicle
5. Loss of pension contributions

Other recoverable expenses could include unused gym memberships, missed cultural or sporting events (assuming tickets had already been purchased), and even clothing and personal effects damaged in the accident.

If you’ve had to employ tradespeople to take on tasks around the house that you would otherwise have done yourself, it may also be possible to add these expenses to a claim. Ensure you keep all receipts.

Maximising Your Loss of Earnings Claim

To ensure you receive full compensation for lost earnings:

1. Keep detailed records of all time off work
2. Document any missed opportunities for overtime or career advancement
3. Gather all relevant financial documents promptly
4. Be honest and accurate about your earnings and time off
5. Consider the long-term impact of your injury on your career

Claiming for loss of earnings is an important part of ensuring you’re fully compensated for the impact of your injury. While the process can be complex, especially for those with variable income or self-employment, a skilled personal injury solicitor can help you navigate the claim and maximise your compensation.

To find out more, or to start your claim today, call us on 01225 430285. If you prefer, we can call you back. After just a few minutes on the phone, we’ll have enough information to allow our solicitors to get your claim started.

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Frequently Asked Questions