Payments for lost wages may not cover all income loss

Like other states, North Carolina offers reimbursement for lost wages to those who suffer a work-related illness or injury in this state.

However, the workers’ compensation program puts several caps on how much a victim of a workplace accident or illness can receive in reimbursement.

For one, a worker may not recover more than 66 2/3% of her gross wages averaged out week-to-week. This is subject to a cap of $1,102 for the year 2021.

This cap means that those who earn over about $86,000 a year will not get a full 66 2/3% wage reimbursement benefit. The more an injured victim made over the $86,000, the more likely it is that his or her family will feel the pinch if the victim cannot return to work.

It is also important to remember that the insurance carrier or administrator of a self-insured plan may elect to dispute all or part of a worker’s claim. These caps only apply when the employer and the companies backing them agree to pay.

Workers’ compensation does not cover non-economic losses

It is also important to remember that workers’ compensation benefits do not cover what the law calls non-economic losses.

Non-economic losses are those items that are very real in that they impact the life of a victim and yet have a dollar value that is hard to specify precisely.

What options do Charlotte victims have to pursue additional compensation?

Charlotte victims who discover that workers’ compensation will not pay for all of their losses should first consider seeking work comp benefits anyway.

It does not always work this way in practice, but the idea behind workers’ compensation is to get workers at least some of the money they need after an injury and illness and to do so efficiently.

Although suing one’s employer or fellow employee is probably off the table, it may also be able to pursue a third party personal injury claim against anyone else who was responsible for the loss.