Compensation
What if your injury affects your future earning capacity?
A lasting work limitation may have consequences beyond current wages. Understand the evidence needed before estimating future loss.
A job title does not show every limitation
Two people with the same injury can have very different work consequences. An injured hand may affect a craftsperson differently from someone whose tasks can be adapted. Describe lifting, precision work, concentration, travel and working hours rather than only naming your occupation.
Keep records of attempted returns to work, adjustments and the reasons they did or did not succeed. A brief return followed by relapse may tell a different story from stable long-term recovery.
Compare realistic scenarios
What would you probably have earned without the incident? Consider established hours, qualifications and evidence of likely career developments. Promotion or business growth should be supported rather than assumed. The injured situation may include reduced hours, alternative work or retraining.
Calculations can require assumptions about benefits, pension effects, tax and the period of loss. Ask for those assumptions to be explained in understandable language. A large total can hide an unrealistic premise just as easily as a small one.
Medical and occupational evidence have different roles
A medical assessment can address restrictions and prognosis. An occupational expert may help translate those restrictions into job demands or earning options. Neither should silently decide questions outside their expertise.
See understanding expert reports for questions about the scope and assumptions of a report. For a business owner, also read documenting self-employed income.
Do not close uncertainty without understanding it
When recovery is still unclear, an advance may be more suitable than treating the future as settled. Sometimes parties negotiate assumptions or reservations, but their meaning must be clear. A settlement should explain which future risks you take over.
The existing article on how long a claim takes provides process context. Before signing, review final settlement and discharge with an adviser who understands the work evidence.
Example: returning to work on fewer hours
Illustrative example · fictional situation, not a client case
A worker returns after an accident but initially works shorter days. Their current payslips show a reduction, while the employer describes the arrangement as temporary. Neither a permanent lifetime loss nor a complete recovery should be assumed from that first month alone.
Practical takeaway: Keep the work arrangements, income records and relevant prognosis together. Distinguish what has already happened from assumptions about the future.
For someone whose working life changed after a heavy-vehicle collision, legal support after a truck accident can consider the accident investigation alongside longer-term losses. If the injury followed a car collision, our car accident lawyers provide the corresponding starting point.
Records for discussing future work and income
- Employment terms and a representative income history.
- Actual hours and income after returning to work.
- Written details of adjustments, alternative duties or retraining.
- Relevant medical or occupational assessments.
- A list of unresolved assumptions rather than a single unexplained lifetime figure.
Questions you may still have
Does continuing to receive wages mean there is no future loss?
No. Current wage payment does not answer every question about future capacity, pension effects or career changes. Any actual and probable loss must still be established.
Is a permanent medical impairment percentage the compensation percentage?
No. Medical impairment and financial loss are different measures. Work demands and personal circumstances affect the translation into earning consequences.
Sources and legal context
General information about Dutch personal injury claims. Some source material is in Dutch. Your circumstances may require a different assessment.
This guide explains general principles. It is not a decision on liability or the value of an individual claim.