If you’ve suffered a serious brain injury that wasn’t your fault, you may be entitled to claim compensation for earnings you’ve already lost and will continue to lose in the future. Loss of earnings is often one of the largest elements of a brain injury claim, and it covers both employed and self-employed people.

The law allows you to recover past losses from the date of your injury, as well as future losses if your ability to work has been permanently affected. We understand how frightening it can be to face life after a serious brain injury without the income you relied on, and we’re here to help.

If you’d like to discuss your situation with a specialist solicitor today, get in touch with our personal injury team at Ashtons Legal. We have offices in Bury St Edmunds, Cambridge, Ipswich, Leeds and Norwich, and we offer virtual consultations if attending in person isn’t possible for you.

What counts as loss of earnings in a brain injury claim?

Past loss of earnings covers the net income you’ve missed out on from the date of your injury to the date your claim is settled or decided at trial. This isn’t limited to your basic salary. Your claim can include:

• Net take-home pay lost during the period you were unable to work
• Overtime, bonuses, commission and shift allowances you’d have reasonably expected to earn
• Employment benefits such as company car, or private medical insurance
• Employer pension contributions lost as a result of your injury

If you’re self-employed, the approach is slightly different. Rather than salary, the claim focuses on lost profit, and you’ll need to provide accounts, tax returns and financial records to support the figures.

What is future loss of earnings and how is it calculated?

Where a brain injury affects your ability to work long-term or permanently, future lost earnings can form a very significant part of your claim. Solicitors and the courts use what’s known as the multiplier/multiplicand method to calculate this. This is typically the preferred approach.

In plain terms, the multiplicand is your annual net loss going forward, and the multiplier is a figure reflecting how many working years you’ve lost. The multiplier is drawn from the Ogden Tables, a set of actuarial tables used by UK courts, and takes into account:

• Your age at the time of the injury
• Your expected retirement age
• Your career trajectory before the injury, including any realistic prospect of promotion
• Statistical factors relating to employment, health and mortality

What if the injured person can still work but in a lesser capacity?

Not every brain injury results in a complete inability to work. Many people return to employment, but in a different role, on reduced hours, or at a lower rate of pay. In these situations, you can still claim the difference between what you would have earned and what you’re now able to earn.

Where there’s a risk that your injury may affect your future employment prospects, even if your current earnings haven’t yet dropped, a court can make what’s known as a Smith v Manchester award. This compensates for the disadvantage you face on the open labour market if you were to lose your current job in the future. There are also other approaches the courts can adopt, if the traditional multiplier/multiplicand methodology is not considered to be appropriate.

What evidence is needed to support a loss of earnings claim?

The specific documents you’ll need depend on your employment situation, but typically include:

• Payslips, P60s and your employment contract
• Written confirmation from your employer of your pre-injury role and earnings
• HMRC records
• For self-employed claimants: tax returns, business accounts and invoices
• Medical evidence from neurologists and neuropsychologists linking the brain injury to your inability to work
• Reports from vocational or employment experts on your future earning capacity
• Care and case management reports where relevant to your overall recovery

Instructing specialist solicitors as early as possible makes a real difference. We can help you gather and preserve evidence before it becomes harder to locate, and ensure your financial losses are fully and accurately documented.

Are there other financial losses that can be claimed alongside lost earnings?

Yes. In serious brain injury claims, the overall picture of financial loss often extends well beyond lost salary. Other recoverable losses can include:

• Loss of pension, calculated separately with the help of pension experts
• Loss of employment benefits, such as private medical insurance or a company car
• The cost of paid care, as well as the value of unpaid care provided by family members or friends
• Rehabilitation costs and specialist therapies
• Aids, equipment and assistive technology
• Adaptations to your home or vehicle

Does it matter whether the injury happened at work, on the road or in a public place?

No. Loss of earnings is recoverable regardless of where or how your brain injury occurred, provided someone else was at fault. Common scenarios we advise on include:

• Accidents at work
• Road traffic accidents (RTAs)
• Accidents in public places, including slips, trips and falls

Our personal injury solicitors handle all types of brain injury claims and can advise on the particular circumstances of your case during an initial conversation.

What about people who were not working at the time of their injury?

Even if you weren’t in paid employment when your injury occurred, you may still be able to claim financial losses:

• If you had a realistic prospect of entering or returning to work, that potential income can be claimed.
• Unpaid carers or those performing domestic work can claim for the economic value of those contributions.
• Retired claimants may have financial dependency losses that can be quantified.

Every case is assessed on its own facts, and we’ll work with you to identify every financial loss that can be recovered.

How long does it take to resolve a loss of earnings claim after a brain injury?

Serious brain injury claims often take several years to reach resolution, and that’s not unusual. The full extent of future losses, particularly future earnings and care costs, can’t be properly assessed until the medical picture has stabilised and independent experts have had time to evaluate your long-term prognosis.

During that time, you don’t have to manage without financial support. You can apply for interim payments: sums paid by the defendant’s insurer before the claim concludes. These can cover ongoing lost income, rehabilitation costs and essential living expenses while your claim progresses, and they’re something we’ll pursue for you as early as possible.

How Ashtons Legal can help

Our brain and head injury solicitors are experienced in handling serious and catastrophic brain injury claims. We work with a coordinated team of independent experts, including neurologists, neuropsychologists, neuropsychiatrists, employment specialists, care experts and pension specialists, to build a thorough and fully evidenced picture of your financial losses.

We’re approved by Headway, the UK’s leading brain injury charity, and we’re members of the Brain Injury Group and the Major Trauma Group. We’re also signatories to both the Serious Injury Guide and the Rehabilitation Code, reflecting our firm commitment to early rehabilitation support alongside the legal claim. Our in-house Court of Protection team and rehabilitation and welfare advisors mean we can support you and your family holistically, not just with the litigation itself.

Ranked Band 1 by Chambers and Partners and Tier 1 by The Legal 500, you can be confident you’re working with a team at the top of its field.

We offer ‘no win, no fee’ funding, meaning there’s no financial risk to you in bringing a claim. If your claim isn’t successful, you won’t pay us anything.

Contact our brain injury solicitors today

If you or a loved one has suffered a serious brain injury and you’re worried about the financial impact on your working life, we’re here to help. You can contact our specialist teams in Bury St Edmunds, Cambridge, Ipswich, Leeds or Norwich.

Call us on 0330 404 0749 or fill in our online enquiry form and a member of our team will be in touch shortly. We also offer virtual consultations if attending an office in person isn’t convenient for you.