Recovering Compensation for Lost Wages in a North Carolina Truck Accident

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Actions have consequences – even if they are unintentional. When a party acts irresponsibly or “negligently” and another party is harmed as a result, the negligent party may be liable for damages. This means that the party is responsible for compensating the injured party for the financial losses suffered as a result of the injury. Damages in a personal injury lawsuit involving a severe injury often include compensation for lost wages. Read on to learn how these damages may be calculated in a lawsuit.

Determining Lost Income from Missed Work

Car accidents, truck accidents, work accidents, defective product injuries, and negligent medical care are just some of the situations that can trigger a personal injury claim. Most of the people who file a personal injury claim must take some time off of work to recover from their injuries. They may also need to take off additional time off work in the future for follow-up doctor’s appointments, physical therapy, or other ongoing medical care.

In a personal injury claim, missed work may be compensable – even if the injured person uses sick days or other forms of paid time off to cover the missed work. Lost wages for an hourly worker are calculated by taking the worker’s hourly wage and multiplying it by the number of work hours missed because of the injury. For example, if the worker makes $30 an hour and missed 40 hours of work, his or her lost income would equal $1,200. If the worker is a salaried employee, lost income may be calculated by taking his or her yearly salary and dividing it by the number of work hours in a year. Then, that number is multiplied by the number of work hours the employee missed due to his or her injuries.

Of course, this example has been simplified for the purposes of brevity. In real personal injury lawsuits, the amount of compensation a person receives is influenced by many different factors. Often, the injured person’s lawyer negotiates an out-of-court settlement with the defendant’s insurance company. However, some personal injury cases do go to trial.

Contact a North Carolina Truck Accident Attorney

If you or a loved one has been injured in a truck accident caused by a negligent or reckless truck driver, contact a seasoned North Carolina truck accident attorney. Truck accidents can be more complex than other types of motor vehicle accidents because depending on the circumstances of the crash, there may be multiple parties who are liable for a victim’s injuries.

Our Carolinas personal injury law firm has successfully represented many clients who were injured in truck accidents and will use all available resources to aggressively advocate for you and your family in obtaining the financial compensation you deserve.

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