Hard Evidence—Taking Photos Following Your Mississippi Auto Accident

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Photographs can literally mean the difference between receiving a fair settlement for your auto accident—and not. Photos clearly show the facts surrounding a case without the inconsistencies of human memory. Many times following an accident everyone involved in the accident has a different accounting of the sequence of events or who did what. Photographs can assist you in proving your report of the incident, allowing you to get an equitable resolution which will cover the damages and injuries sustained in your car crash.

Taking Photos after Your Car Collision

While your first order of business following your auto accident is to get appropriate medical care, the next thing you should think about is making sure the evidence is properly preserved in the event you find it necessary to file a lawsuit to recover damages. If you’ve determined you do not need to go to the hospital (make absolutely certain you are not hurt, otherwise should you determine injuries later they may not be covered because you said you were okay) then spend the time while you are waiting for the police to take accident photographs which will allow you to explain to the insurance adjuster much more efficiently.

What Should I Photograph?

Once you have your camera or cell phone ready, take photos of your car and the damage it sustained. Try to get several photos, from different angles, and watch out for the glare of the sunlight which can obscure the damage you are trying to capture. Take close-up shots at about 3-5 feet, then from further out at about ten to fifteen feet. Try to keep a landmark in the photographs. If you are limited in the amount of photos you can take, be careful to get the ones you need the most—the ones which tell the story of what happened.  Next, take photos of the car which hit you in case the driver later tries to say there was more damage than you actually observed.

If the accident took place at a road intersection, take photos of it in case you have to explain to the insurance adjuster just how it happened. Include the street name in the photo and any other traffic signs which are close to the scene of the accident. If there were any skid marks, be sure and take photos, or if there were no skid marks you could still take photos of the lack of skid marks to show the other person didn’t even try to brake before hitting you. Finally, if there were injuries to the people in your vehicle, document the cuts, bruises, swellings and marks to you or the passengers. Take photos close up and a few feet away.

More Reasons to Take Photos

Having photos which clearly document your accident can actually speed up the settlement process and aid you in filing your initial claim. No matter how small or insignificant the damage or evidence appears to be, photograph it anyhow as insurance against the unexpected. Don’t forget to take photos of the inside damage to your car as well, such as a broken or damaged stereo. If you have concise photos, your adjuster will probably have to spend less time asking you questions.  If you end up hiring an attorney to litigate your accident, the photos will be extremely beneficial to a positive end result.

In addition to taking photographs at the scene of the accident, it can be extremely helpful to keep a daily journal or log which records the pain you experience following the accident. You can also jot down any expenses incurred from the car accident including prescription costs, or any way the accident causes changes to your regular standard of living. Contact a Mississippi personal injury attorney from our law firm soon after your accident so we can give you more advice on what you need to document and build a strong case on your behalf.

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Did a Risky Road Intersection Cause Your Auto Accident in Mississippi?

Over 45,000 people are killed on America’s highways each year, and of that number almost half of those accidents were a direct result of a problem with road design or maintenance—some form of dangerous or risky road. Faulty design, construction, maintenance, or inability to adapt to changing conditions are all issues with roadways which can be the direct cause of your car running off the road, rolling over or colliding with another car or fixed object.

There are lots of risky intersections in the United States which make having a serious accident much more likely. It can be difficult to see another car coming at many intersections, and appropriate signage may not be present to ensure the safety of motorists. Many intersections have not been adequately modified despite past indications of hazards to drivers. If any of these conditions were the cause of your intersection accident it is imperative you retain an attorney who is skilled in litigating cases such as these.

Dangerous Road Cases

Car accidents which resulted from dangerous road conditions can, unfortunately, be difficult and expensive to litigate, since you will be fighting a government entity. The investigation of the dangerous intersection and its history of accidents can be quite challenging. The case will likely  require significant amounts of attorney work, experts called in and expense, but the upside of a case such as this is that it has the potential not only to allow you to recover your damages, but to make the road safer for others. Changes that might otherwise never occur, may be made when you demand your rights.

Our Rights as Motorists

The agencies which design and maintain our roadways are charged with the duty of ensuring the safety of motorists, at least those who are using reasonable care when driving. Of course until cars begin driving themselves, drivers will skid, slide, lose control of their vehicle, fall asleep or become distracted. While all of these driver issues will certainly be responsible for car accidents, government entities who refuse to take reasonable steps to ensure foreseeable events don’t turn tragic are another thing altogether. When an intersection has been proven to be a danger to drivers, and has caused accidents or near-misses in the past, the government must take steps to correct the dangerous road situation to ensure the safety of drivers.

Why You Need an Experienced Personal Injury Attorney

Dangerous road accident cases require the victim to prove the government knew the intersection was a high-risk road hazard and refused or neglected to take steps to fix the road or install appropriate signage to warn drivers. An experienced attorney will be able to show that the entity in charge of the road failed to do something which caused the danger, or will prove the government knew the intersection was dangerous, had plenty of time to fix it, but neglected to do so. If there is a solid history of accidents on the intersection which caused your accident, this may help show the risk was substantial.

Dangerous road cases can be especially difficult to prove because our laws give the government a certain level of immunity which protects them. If the intersection received the stamp of approval from an approved, reputable engineering firm, then unless the design or plan was changed, the government may indeed have immunity from being held accountable. Even if the design was approved and followed to the letter, however, the government entity may have failed to install or maintain signage which warned of the dangerous intersection, or may have failed to cut tree limbs or branches which blocked the views and potentially caused your accident. As you can see, dangerous road cases are complex and definitely require the assistance of an attorney who has the skill and aggressiveness to pursue the government and obtain a fair settlement for your injuries.

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Coping with PTSD Following a Serious Auto Accident in Mississippi

Of the millions of people involved each year in automobile accidents, a large percentage will suffer serious bodily injury and significant psychological distress. Any event which is threatening to life or body can produce traumatic stress in the victim. Normally the body has a “fight or flight” response which is employed to protect individuals against such threats, however when fight or flight is impossible—such as during a sudden car accident—the threat remains, causing the victim to essentially “freeze,” and PTSD to develop.

How Common is PTSD?

Estimates put the number of those who will suffer post-traumatic stress disorder following an automobile accident at somewhere between ten and forty-five percent. The broad range stems from the fact that many victims are too embarrassed to report their PTSD.  Women suffer more often from PTSD following an auto accident than do men, and this psychological trauma can actually interfere with a person’s daily functioning abilities. Many times, even when there is not full-blown PTSD following an auto accident some people may experience non-specific troubles on the job and in school, have problems maintaining friendships and be unable to enjoy their hobbies and leisure time.

Psychological Trauma is Often Overlooked

Typically broken bones and soft tissue injuries are the issues which are immediately attended in an emergency room following a car accident. Doctors set broken bones, stitch up cuts, attend to scrapes and bruises and check for internal injuries. Victims may have facial lacerations which require further plastic surgery, or may even require major surgeries just to survive. Of course the body must be attended to, yet often the psychological damage resulting from a traumatic car accident can be just as devastating as the physical.

Once you are physically stabilized and on the mend, your mental state may be pushed aside and not taken as seriously as it should be. Most of us are required to drive each day, simply to get to and from work, take our children to school or run necessary errands, therefore if one suffers severe anxiety simply from getting into a car it can become a serious handicap.

Primary Symptoms of PTSD

Victims of auto accidents who experience PTSD may find themselves re-experiencing the accident over and over. They may have recurring dreams of the accident, or even frightening flashbacks while they are awake. Post-traumatic stress disorder victims may try to avoid any type of stimuli which is associated with the original trauma or may find themselves become numb or showing a decrease in normal responsiveness. This numbing can bring about a loss of interest in formerly enjoyable activities, and can cause people to feel detached from others.

There can be intense physical reactions when reminded of the original event such as a pounding heart, rapid breathing, sweating and nausea. People who are suffering from PTSD can also be extremely irritable, have unprovoked outbursts of anger and may be unable to concentrate on the task at hand. PTSD victims often feel extremely helpless and out of control, and should they not take the psychological symptoms seriously and get the necessary help, PTSD can worsen over time.

Getting the Help You Need

A relatively new tool, known as a magnetoencephalography (MEG) is a non-intrusive way to measure the magnetic fields in the brain, and definitively diagnose PTSD. It is believed that this test can correctly identify PTSD patients with a 90% accuracy rate. If you are having symptoms of PTSD, it is necessary to have a psychologist who is trained in the disorder to thoroughly evaluate you and run tests such as the MEG to back up your claims of psychological trauma. Victims who experience significant PTSD symptoms following a car accident may be able to seek compensation for their psychological injuries therefore should hire an experienced personal injury attorney who is skilled in proving such claims and can assist  in obtaining damages for injuries, both physical and mental.

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Could your Failure to Wear a Seat Belt Affect your Settlement in Mississippi?

If you’ve been involved in an automobile accident, you may wonder about the legal consequences if you were not wearing a seat belt, and whether you could be considered negligent for this reason alone. This can be an extremely complex issue, depending somewhat on what state you currently reside in. While most all states have adopted legislation which requires drivers and front seat passengers to wear seat belts, the states differ widely in the specific consequences attached to a personal injury case in which the plaintiff was found to have not been wearing their safety belt.  While some states don’t consider nonuse of a seatbelt to be relevant in any way at all when determining the plaintiff’s potential recovery, other state courts do consider lack of a safety belt to be relevant.

Causation or Plaintiff Misconduct

If your particular state operates under the causation paradigm, you would not be allowed to recover any damages which resulted from your failure to wear a seatbelt. Some states will require you to prove that your injuries would have resulted just the same whether you had been wearing a seat belt or not, while others will make it the defendant’s job to prove that if you had been wearing your seat belt you would not have suffered injuries. Unfortunately, this issue can be very difficult to prove one way or another. States which operate under the plaintiff misconduct paradigm will focus more directly on your failure to snap your seat belt, which becomes the primary focus for calculating your specific damages. The plaintiff misconduct theory, however does require extremely complicated fact finding in the determination of whether you were properly wearing your seat belt, and the scope of the results of that failure.

No Clear Cut Method of Determining Negligence

Unfortunately, most courts currently have no clear cut rules regarding whether you can be held accountable in a personal injury claim for failure to wear a seat belt. Many courts will take into account your failure to wear your seat belt so far as to reduce your monetary recovery amounts for only the injuries which directly resulted from that failure.  The failure to wear your seat belt will not, however affect your other claims for injury and damages. A few states refuse to consider the seat belt issue at all when awarding damages, such as the Massachusetts law which states that “failure to wear a properly fastened seat belt shall not be considered as contributory negligence or used as evidence in any civil action.”

Seat Belt Defense

Ford and Chrysler companies first offered lap belts in automobiles in 1955, however it was not until 1968 that the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards required that all auto makers install lap belts for all occupants of the vehicle as well as shoulder harnesses for the driver and front seat passenger. State and federal requirements soon followed in an attempt to encourage the use of safety belts. Initially, the seat belt defense was used to completely preclude victims of auto accidents from receiving any settlement for injuries which theoretically would have been prevented through the use of a safety belt. Although some jurisdictions ran with this defense, others rejected it out of hand under the belief that since the plaintiff’s failure to wear a seat belt was not the cause of the accident, failure to wear a seat belt should not preclude recovery.

The use or non-use of a seat belt adds an entire new complex level to personal injury cases, and if it has become an issue in your particular case you must hire an experienced personal injury attorney who can determine whether the fact you weren’t buckled up will affect your settlement.

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Dealing With a Difficult Insurance Adjuster in Mississippi

Hopefully you will end up with one of the “good” insurance adjusters who will offer assistance and will go out of his or her way to make your experience as positive as possible. You have already been through an ordeal with your accident, and if you should end up with an insurance adjuster who appears to being giving you trouble at every turn, you may feel frustration and anger. Supposing you get an adjuster who seems hard-nosed and doesn’t appear to be listening to anything you have to say—what then?

Dealing With the Adjuster Yourself

If you’ve decided to go it alone regarding your insurance settlement, first and foremost you will have to grow a tough skin and remind yourself over and over that while this accident and the subsequent injuries and expenses are highly personal to you, to the insurance adjuster it is just another day on the job. The job of the insurance adjuster is to get their company off for the least amount of money possible in order to increase the bottom line at the end of the year. Although insurance companies are perfectly happy to accept your insurance premiums month after month, year after year, they are banking on the odds that you will not have an auto accident. If you do have an accident, their goal is to pay you only the amount they absolutely must pay. When you fully realize this, then you understand that the insurance adjuster is simply doing what he has been told to do, and that even if he seems hard-nosed and inflexible, it really isn’t personal.

On the flip side, while you are not trying to hit the lottery, you do want all of your medical bills and lost wages fully covered. Especially if the accident wasn’t your fault, it can seem awfully unfair to be stuck with piles of bills that you simply don’t deserve. The insurance adjuster may not believe your injuries are severe enough to warrant a settlement, or he may not even believe your injuries are related to the accident but were injuries you had prior to the accident. Keep in mind that the first settlement offer is likely to be extremely low. Insurance companies count on you wanting to get the settlement over and done so you can get on with your life. They also know that many times you will be absolutely unaware of the future medical bills you will be stuck with, so if they catch you early on, they can minimize their payout.

Your goal is to be patient and immovable as the Rock of Gibraltar. Determine the lowest amount you will accept after running the numbers. Make sure your bottom line number will completely cover the repairs to your vehicle, your medical bills past, present and future, any rehabilitation which could be involved, prescriptions, and money for all lost wages to date and any future lost wages you can anticipate. Once you’ve reached that figure, don’t budge. Politely tell the adjuster that this amount is what you will accept, and don’t be persuaded by anything they say to lower the amount. If the insurance adjuster also refuses to budge, it is time to contact a personal injury attorney.

Hiring an Attorney to Deal with the Difficult Adjuster

If you’ve exhausted your stores of patience and are becoming frustrated with the difficult adjuster, hiring a personal injury attorney can get the ball rolling in the right direction. Often all it will take is a call from your new attorney to get a much better settlement offer. Once your attorney reiterates your refusal to accept an unreasonable offer, your adjuster may become much less difficult. Besides—insurance adjusters do not want their company being sued. It looks bad to their boss or supervisor if every case they handle goes into litigation, and the truth is the adjuster wants to settle just as badly as you do, they simply don’t want to settle for a fair amount. Often all it takes is for your attorney to draft a complaint and send it over to the adjuster for his or her attitude to change dramatically and a reasonable settlement offer to be sent right back. Your attorney will look at your initial estimation of damages and let you know if it’s reasonable, or even too low, then the two of you can go from there. Your attorney will be much better equipped to deal with the difficult insurance adjuster—after all, that’s what they do every day.

 

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When to Hire a Car Accident Lawyer in Mississippi

Not all car accidents require the help of an attorney. Most of the time, you will not need the help of an attorney when property damage is the only issue, or if personal injuries were minor. In some cases, however, you may benefit greatly from the insight and expertise of a qualified car accident lawyer.

Consult an attorney if you were seriously injured. In addition to the actual amount of your medical expenses, you may be entitled to additional compensation for wages lost during your recovery, future economic loss, and even pain and suffering. An experienced attorney can help you beyond knowing what compensation to seek. Studies conducted over the last few years have shown that settlements negotiated by attorneys are as much as 3-1/2 times larger than those received by individuals without legal counsel.

Hire an attorney if the insurance company offers a settlement too soon. Settling out of court benefits the insurance company because it saves them money, but negotiating the settlement before enough time has passed to ascertain the degree of your injuries will do you an injustice. A qualified lawyer can review the case and determine whether or not the settlement offer is fair.

Get legal advice if the accident was your fault. In most states, even if you were negligent in some way, the other driver probably had some responsibility for the incident as well. Most states operate under a system called comparative negligence, which allocates a degree of responsibility to each party, based on their actions. If there is a chance that you might be sued, you should set up a consultation with a car accident attorney to discuss the case. Even if you were at fault, your lawyer may be able to help limit the degree of financial responsibility.

Seek legal help if insurance refuses to pay covered expenses or cuts off payments. Insurance companies obviously are in business to make a profit, but they are required to live up to the terms of the policies they’ve underwritten. If you feel that you did not receive the benefits to which you were entitled, ask a lawyer to review the situation.

Finally, talk to a lawyer if you’re uncertain about the legal process. You do have certain rights under the law, and if you think your rights have been abused, speaking with an attorney can clarify the situation. Initial consultations are usually free, and if you are entitled to benefits that have been withheld, your attorney is the best resource to resolve the problem.

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Despite Improvements in Crashworthiness T-Bone Accident Still Serious Danger

The advent of side-impact crash tests began back in 1997 by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).  These tests involved only cars but grew to include pickup trucks, SUVs and vans. The test slams a barrier into the driver’s side of a vehicle at 38.5 miles an hour with a dummy in the driver’s seat of the car and another one placed in the rear passenger seat. The dummies are wearing their seat belts when the test is conducted.  The dummies are measured by instruments to see what, if any, injuries they sustained and then the car is given a crashworthiness rating in stars. The star rating goes from one to five stars, and the higher the star rating the safer the car.

While these tests provided valuable information about vehicle safety, the rising number of larger vehicles like SUVs and trucks led the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety to develop a new side-impact crash tests in 2003. These tests were thought to better predict a car’s safety when it hit by a larger vehicle such as an SUV. In some of the first crash safety tests conducted under this updated system, two out of twelve small SUVs were rated good and only two out of ten midsize sedans were rated good.

These tests were a little bit different than the old test in other ways also.  The barrier that struck the car was a foot taller (mimicking the height of an SUV), the barrier only struck at 31 mph rather than 38.5 mph, and the dummy was smaller (mimicking the size of a small women or teenager).  The dummy was smaller in order to test for the effectiveness of side airbags.

Changes Have Come

Side airbags are now all but standard on many of the new passenger vehicles on the market.  A substantial amount of these improvements are due to the testing that IIHS conducted starting back in 2003.  Impacts from side collisions can be especially devastating because there is no crumple zone like on the front and rear of a vehicle. The makers of automobiles also have done a lot over the years to actually strengthen the sidewalls of vehicles as well as installing side air bags.

The overall conclusion after analyzing crash data of the tests over a period of decades is that airbags and a vehicle’s structure work together to help minimize injuries in side-impact crashes. Without side airbags in a car, the chances of serious injury or death are greatly increased.  This is significant because 28.9% of all auto accidents in the U.S. and 20.9% of all fatalities are due to side-impact or T-bone accidents according to the NHTSA.  These accidents often occur at intersections where other drivers fail to yield or stop. The injuries that a person can sustain in side-impact accidents can be severe including spinal cord injuries, head injuries, brain damage, soft tissue injuries and broken bones.  If you have been injured in a side-impact (T-bone) crash in Mississippi, then you need the services of a good Mississippi personal injury attorney.  The experienced Mississippi accident lawyers at the Barrett Law Office have been representing T-Bone accident victims since 1933.  Our experienced Mississippi car accident lawyers offer a free initial case evaluation so call us today at (662) 834-2376.

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Can Social Media Sites Compromise My Mississippi Auto Accident Lawsuit?

An increasing number of people share every aspect of their lives on social networks like Facebook, Twitter, MySpace and others.  This tendency to publicize the minutia of a person’s life on social network sites can have a dark side.  If you are involved in a serious car accident, tractor-trailer accident, SUV rollover accident or other serious motor vehicle collision, the insurance company for the other driver will almost certainly seek discovery of your social network sites for evidence that will help their insured avoid liability or reduce your damages.  Insurance companies are increasingly mining pictures and comments on social network sites as a valuable source of evidence in auto accident lawsuits in Mississippi as well as other states.

There are many ways that social network content can compromise a personal injury lawsuit.  Courts in several states have ordered injury victims in car accident lawsuits to produce access to their social network information on an increasing basis.  Anyone who is involved in a Mississippi personal injury lawsuit should presume that any information on any of their social network sites would be available to the insurance company of the other driver for purposes of defending the lawsuit.

The insurance company may use information on a social network site to prove any of the following:

  • Contributory Negligence: The insurance company may use damaging disclosures on your social media page to shift the blame for your car accident or injuries to you and reduce your recovery or in certain cases avoid liability entirely.  It is important not to discuss the details of your accident with anyone but your Mississippi auto accident attorney.  Disclosures of this kind may include posts that indicate you were not wearing a seat belt, were using your cell phone at the time of the accident or were exceeding the speed limit.
  • Pre-Existing Condition: An insurance company may look for disclosures that suggest your injuries are linked to other prior incidents or medical conditions.  If the insurance company can establish that your injuries were caused by a prior accident, this may result in a substantial reduction in damages.  An example of this situation might include posts on a social media page about suffering back pain from a prior incident.
  • Negative Image: The insurance company may look for evidence to make you appear unethical, immoral or otherwise unsympathetic to a jury.  Publication of information about excessive drinking, drinking and driving, drug use or other types of information or pictures posted on your social website may be used to create a negative impression of you so that the jury is less inclined to award a substantial verdict.
  • Contradicting Liability: It is always inadvisable to discuss the details of your Mississippi car accident on your social media site.  Most people do not realize what types of details can damage a personal injury lawsuit.  The insurance company may comb the details you provide on your social media site to develop factual evidence designed to disprove liability of their insured.

The best option is to pull your social media sites down entirely if you are involved in a Mississippi car accident lawsuit.  If you are unwilling to go this far, you should at least avoid discussing any aspect of the car crash on your social network site.  A Mississippi car accident victim should also be very careful about who you friend or engage in chats with on your social media site.  An auto accident victim in Mississippi should always presume that all of the information and pictures posted on one’s social media site might be discoverable in a Mississippi personal injury lawsuit.  At the Barrett Law Offices PLLC, our experienced Mississippi car accident lawyers represent injury victims throughout Mississippi.  Our law firm has roots that reach back 75 years so contact us today for your free initial consultation at (662) 834-2376 to see how we can help.

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Mississippi Potholes More Than a Minor Nuisance

Many in Mississippi do not realize the serious danger that can be posed by potholes, particularly to those on motorcycles and bicycles or pedestrians.  Potholes can be as a big as a foot wide and several feet deep.  Even if you slow down to go over one, a pothole can cause a motorcycle or bicycle to tip over or a pedestrian to trip and fall.  The danger is amplified if you do not see a pothole.  The impact with a pothole on the tire of a car, truck or SUV can cause a tire blowout resulting in loss of control of the vehicle or even a rollover accident.

Potholes are typically caused by several factors such as constant driving over a tear in the asphalt or weather elements such as sleet and hail.  Rainwater is one of the biggest factors in creating potholes and causing them to expand in size.  Public entities like municipalities are typically responsible for repairing holes and cracks in streets promptly to prevent them from becoming potholes.  Because some cities do not repair the potholes littering their streets, pothole accidents are on the rise.

Potholes can have a substantial impact on a vehicle causing a tire blowout and/or loss of control of the vehicle.  Studies have shown that going over a pothole unexpectantly is like having a car hit you at over 30 mph.  This impact can result in a motorcycle or bicycle falling over resulting in catastrophic injuries or the driver of a car or SUV losing control of the vehicle.  The results of a pothole accident can be catastrophic injuries or even death.

Motorcycle accidents and bicycle accidents caused by potholes are extremely dangerous.  Because these vehicles have only two wheels, they are ill-equipped to handle going over a pothole at a high speed.  It is also important to realize that buses, trucks, minivans, and SUVs are at risk as well.  Even a larger vehicle can have its suspension, steering or tires damaged resulting in the loss of control of the vehicle and serious pothole accident related injuries.

Anyone who is aware of potholes should take pictures of the potholes in their neighborhood and surrounding areas.  It is important to make the city aware of such potholes so that they can be repaired which may prevent pothole accidents that can cause serious injuries or wrongful death.  If you have informed the city of potholes in your neighborhood, you should keep detailed records of any correspondence with city officials.  If you or someone you love is involved in a motor vehicle accident caused by a pothole, the photos and records of correspondence provide important evidence of the public entity’s knowledge of the hazardous pothole.

To reduce your chances of being a victim in a pothole accident, you should slow down and drive carefully over any potholes.  If you or someone you love suffers serious injury or wrongful death in a pothole accident, you should promptly contact a Mississippi personal injury attorney specializing in motor vehicle accidents.  At the Barrett Law Offices PLLC, we have roots that extend back over 75 years representing injury victims in Lexington and throughout Mississippi.  We offer a free initial case evaluation so that we can provide candid legal advice so call us today at (662) 834-2376.  NO RECOVERY NO FEE!

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Addressing Loss of Future Earnings Following an Auto Accident in Mississippi

Perhaps you were one of the luckier drivers who were able to return to work shortly after your auto accident with little interruption in your work schedule. Unfortunately, many others who have been involved in car accidents are not so lucky and can face prolonged physical recovery which limits or prevents entirely their ability to return to work. In our uncertain financial climate, such a misfortune can put such a strain on family finances that many are simply unable to recover from. Medical bills continue to mount alarmingly, and regular bills are stacking up, unable to be paid.

What You Will Need to Recover Lost Wages

In order to successfully recover lost wages following your accident you must have documented income prior to the accident. The only exception to this is if you were a student working toward a degree before your accident, you may be entitled to lost wages based on what you would have earned once you finished your degree. Additionally, the wages you received before your accident must have been claimed as taxable income. If you suffered an injury as a result of the accident, it must have impaired your ability to work in your previous position, and finally a medical doctor must have the opinion that you have specific physical restrictions or disabilities. Should the doctor conclude you are totally and permanently disabled, then future lost wages are clear-cut, however if it is determined you are partially disabled or have restrictions which prevent you from continuing to do your previous job, you may still be able to recover lost wages.

What are Work Restrictions?

If you’ve been off work following an accident, you will probably be required to have your doctor sign a release which allows you to return to work. There may be certain restrictions on your work which your doctor will put in writing and you will take to the HR department or your immediate supervisor. Your doctor may specify that you be restricted to light duty work which limits the amount of weight you can lift. If your particular job requires you to lift and move materials, then your doctor may restrict the number of hours you can work each day. If there is no light duty work available at your workplace, then your employee will state this in writing for the benefit of the insurance company.

Your doctor may also state that you cannot sit in the same place for more than two hours at a time, or simply no long periods of sitting. If your job involves sitting in front of a computer for long periods of time, and that amount of sitting aggravates your injuries, then your doctor will provide more work restriction details. If your injuries were especially serious, then you may never be able to return to your previous job, which will have a major impact on your life and your future.

Document All Lost Wages

After your accident, while you are recovering from your injuries, it is crucial that you keep good records documenting your lost wages. You will need your employer to provide a letter which states the amount of time you’ve been off work, how much money you typically make per hour, or how much you make monthly, the number of hours you will typically work in a week, as well as any overtime you consistently work.  If you haven’t worked much overtime in the past, but you had agreed with your employer that you would be working overtime in the future, then your injuries prohibited that work, then this should also be included in your letter.

By the same token, if you were expecting a raise or a job promotion, then your employer should include this information in your letter, along with the specific details of how much more your paycheck would have been, or when the promotion was to take effect.  Remember  the wages you are claiming as lost are generally gross earnings as opposed to net, however if you are also claiming Worker’s Comp, it will depend on your state of residence whether you will receive net wages, gross wages or only a specific percentage of gross wages.  Keep careful track of all days and hours you have missed from work without pay, including sick days or vacation leave.

Lost wages are a very important aspect of your overall settlement for your personal injury claim; depending on the extent of your injuries it could be a long time before you are able to return to work, if at all. Your personal injury attorney is the best source of information regarding your claim for loss of future earnings, and it’s very important to follow all his or her advice.

We represent clients on a contingency fee basis so you do not pay until we recover compensation for your Mississippi auto accident.  An experienced Mississippi auto accident  lawyer at Barrett Law, PLLC offers compassionate and zealous advocacy for Mississippi accident victims so contact us immediately at (662) 834-2376 to learn how we can help.

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