Calculating Future Loss Of Income

Posted on

Future loss of income is one of the damages to include in your personal injury claim if you have lingering health problems or permanent disability. Below are some of the factors that determine how much you can get for future loss of income.

Education Level

Your educational level has a big influence on your earning ability. Your education level determines your unemployment risk, your salary, and the types of jobs you can do. For example, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, workers with professional or doctoral degrees earn substantially more than those with high school diplomas.

Professional Field

The professional field also matters as people in some fields earn substantially more than others with similar levels of education but in different fields. Some of the professions that have high lifetime earning potentials include anesthesiology, dentistry, psychiatry, and engineering. Therefore, if an anesthesiologist and a theologist suffer the same injuries, the anesthesiologist is likely to have a higher future income than the theologist since the former is not among the top professionals with high lifetime earning potentials.

Certifications

Various professions have certifications that increase the value of workers to their employers. In some cases, the certifications are not necessary to enter the job market, but they greatly enhance your job prospects and also make you eligible for high income. Consider two injury victims in the same industry where one has multiple certifications, and the other doesn't. In this case, the employee with multiple certifications may successfully argue for higher future income due to their certifications.

Skills

The modern workplace is evolving, and employers are placing more and more emphasis on skills rather than educational papers. Academic papers might get you a foothold in the workplace, but it is your skills that determine how fast you progress. Therefore, a skilled and talented worker may rise faster through the ranks than a colleague with relatively lower skills. As an injury victim, you may need an expert witness in your field to prove to the court that you have above-average skills for your industry.

Work Experience

Lastly, work experience also comes into play because some skills are better honed with time. This is particularly true for workers within the same age group. Those who started work earlier and have more experience are likely to command higher salaries than those with limited experiences.

You need to coordinate all the above factors to have the best outcome for your case. A personal injury attorney can help you with the necessary coordination and proof.


Share