If the injuries you received from a car accident in Minnesota caused you to miss work, you may be able to file a lost wages claim. You need to prove that your injury was from the car accident, not an unrelated incident.
Proof of lost wages
When you file a claim for lost wages, Minnesota requires that you include supporting documents as evidence. Proof may include doctors’ notes, pay stubs and wage verification letters. The doctor’s note should clarify that car accident injuries are why you need to take time off work. It should also state how much time you need to take off work. You may want to submit the note to your employer and with your lost wages claim. This helps solidify that the accident was the cause.
If you don’t have your pay stubs, you can submit a W-2 form or a note from your employer that confirms how much you earn. The wage verification letter can also include how many days you were absent from work, the number of work hours you missed and any bonuses and other income opportunities you missed.
Self-employed individuals can submit their tax returns, profit-and-loss statements and bank account statements to help prove how much money they would have earned.
Filing a lost wages claim
Minnesota is a no-fault state, so insurance companies usually cover 85% of lost wages after motor vehicle accidents. The remaining 15% requires a lost wages claim with the other driver’s insurance company.
Filing a claim typically involves filling out an employment authorization form, going through an independent medical examination and submitting your relevant medical records. This is in addition to other supporting documents that you may have.
You can seek lost wages from your insurance company and the other driver’s insurance company after a car accident in Minnesota. The other driver has to be at fault for you to acquire lost wages compensation from their insurer.