Missing work after a collision can mean more than a smaller paycheck. You may use leave, lose overtime, work fewer shifts, or struggle with duties you previously performed without difficulty. A useful lost-income record connects three things: your injury-related limitations, the work affected, and the earnings information supporting the amount claimed.
Separate past lost earnings from future earning capacity
Virginia’s civil model jury instructions, Nos. 9.000 and 9.010, recognize past lost earnings and supported future earnings or earning-capacity loss as potential damages. The claimant must establish the loss and its connection to the defendant’s negligence with sufficient evidence for a reasonable estimate. These categories are not automatic payments or a formula based only on time off.
Past lost earnings concern work and income already affected. Future earning capacity concerns a supported change in your ability to earn going forward. A temporary restriction does not by itself prove a permanent loss. The medical outlook, actual job demands, and available evidence shape the analysis.
Start with your actual job duties
Write down what your work requires. A shipyard employee’s lifting or climbing duties may present different questions from a delivery driver’s time behind the wheel or an office employee’s concentration and computer work. We need the details of your job, not assumptions based on its title.
Give your medical provider an accurate description of those duties. Keep written restrictions, recommendations, and updates. Your provider determines medical limitations; we use the documentation to explain the work-loss claim.
Gather a consistent set of records
- Before the collision: pay statements, schedules, usual hours, and records of regular overtime or commissions.
- After the collision: missed dates, reduced shifts, modified duties, and changes in compensation.
- Employer confirmation: a factual explanation of dates missed, pay rate, and the payroll calculation.
- Medical support: restrictions and treatment-related absences that explain why particular work was affected.
- Leave records: identify sick leave, vacation, disability payments, or other benefits separately so their treatment can be reviewed.
Use the same dates throughout your calendar, employer verification, and supporting documents. If records disagree, identify the discrepancy. Do not adjust information just to make the claim appear consistent.
If you are self-employed, preserve the business context
Bring invoices, contracts, appointment calendars, historical earnings records, and relevant tax documents. Identify work canceled, delayed, transferred, or completed by someone else. Gross business revenue is not necessarily the same as your lost personal income; expenses and other causes of a revenue change need to be examined.
A list of hoped-for jobs is different from documented work you were expected to perform. We assess the available history and whether accounting or vocational input would help explain the loss. Do not create replacement records that appear to have existed before the collision.
Document daily-life changes separately
Keep a brief factual record of limitations at home: help with childcare, interrupted sleep, assistance with transportation, or difficulty with usual activities. These facts can help explain the injury’s overall effect, but they should not be counted as wages unless they actually relate to an earnings claim. Read our personal injury overview for the broader questions we review.
How Phoenix uses the records
We compare wage documents with treatment records and the timeline, identify gaps, and present the supported loss during negotiation or litigation when appropriate. We also examine responsibility and available insurance. Strong payroll records do not eliminate a liability defense or guarantee that insurance will cover the claimed amount.
See our Virginia injury claim-process guide for how record collection fits into a claim. Keep legal deadlines under review while collecting documents; § 8.01-243(A) generally sets a two-year personal injury filing period, subject to exceptions.
Common questions
Does an employer letter prove the entire claim?
No. It can support the payroll facts, but the medical explanation and connection to the collision also matter.
What if my pay varies every week?
Bring a meaningful period of historical records and explain seasonal work, overtime patterns, and other fluctuations. We can evaluate a supported comparison instead of selecting only the highest week.
Can I claim a permanent income loss?
That requires an individualized assessment of the medical outlook and work evidence. A permanent-loss claim should not be assumed from an initial period away from work.
Talk with Phoenix about your injury claim
The Phoenix Trial Firm is Black-owned and military-owned. We help injured people from our Hampton office at 2 Eaton Street, Suite 900, and our Smithfield office at 1807 S. Church Street, Suite 200C. Call 757-777-9285 or request a free personal injury consultation.
Learn more about our personal injury representation and attorney fees and case expenses. Representation and fee terms are governed by a written agreement.
About the author: Maxie Lawton is a Phoenix co-founder and former Army Ranger who represents injured people. His own recovery from serious injury informs his approach to client communication and preparation.
Virginia sources checked October 14, 2026. This article provides general information, not advice about a particular claim. Outcomes depend on the facts, law, proof, and available coverage. Contacting us does not establish an attorney-client relationship; representation requires our agreement. Please avoid confidential details in an initial inquiry.
