Car Accident Caes: 3 Financial Impacts For Wait Staff Workers
As a wait staff worker, your job requires standing for hours at a time, carrying heavy items, and constantly moving around a restaurant. When you've been involved in a car accident, your ability to perform these tasks may be limited due to the injuries that you have suffered. If someone else is liable for your accident, then you may seek damages through a settlement case. As you plan your settlement case, it's important to gather information about your medical bills and lost income due to missing work. As a wait staff worker, there are three additional financial impacts to consider for your case. By understanding these various impacts, you can get the most value for your settlement and ensure that you are fully compensated for your injuries.
Tip Income
Along with a regular paycheck, many wait staff workers rely on tips as a huge part of their income. Including the amount of tips you're missing out on can make a huge difference in the compensation that you receive. The average pay scale for a waiter is around $5.00 an hour. These low pay rates are allowed because tips make up such a huge part of someone's income. When calculating your lost tips, it can be done on a weekly or monthly basis. There are multiple ways to track this, including claimed tips on your paycheck, bank deposits, or any personal budgeting you used to calculate the various tip rates. By including as much information as possible, you can receive the full compensation for the tips that you're missing. A car accident attorney can also gather further proof by taking statements from other employees and gathering information on their tip income.
Special Events
As a part of a wait staff, you may have taken special gigs on the side to help earn you extra money. While these gigs may not have been a steady job, they are a source of income and should be counted towards your settlement. For example, many wait staff workers take side gigs with catering companies. These companies work events like wedding receptions. A wedding reception service is often a one-day gig that can earn you both income and extra tips. There are multiple ways to add special event income to your settlement case. For example, you may have booked gigs that you had to drop out of due to your injuries. This is solid proof that you have lost income.
An attorney can also calculate the monthly average that you earned on special events. For example, if you did two special events a month, then this can be calculated for the number of months that you have missed work from. It's also important to consider the time of year where the injury has occurred. During the holiday season, you may have taken more gigs working at holiday parties and office gatherings. If this is the case, then the amount of compensation you are seeking may increase.
Physical Therapy
Waiting on tables can be physically tolling. If you've been involved in a car accident, that physical toll can become even more challenging. Before you head back to work, you may have to go through various physical therapy sessions to ensure that you are in shape and have the strength to complete a variety of tasks. Physical therapy sessions may focus on your endurance, small motor skills, or balance. If your health insurance does not cover these costs, then you can seek compensation for physical therapy through your settlement case. An attorney can use bills, receipts, or future estimates to help showcase the money you've spent on the various therapy needs.
By covering all of these aspects, your case can represent every impact in your life and ensure that you receive a proper settlement. Consult with an attorney from a firm like Welsh & Welsh PC LLO to help move things forward and build all of the evidence.