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Jun 10, 2026
If you are injured on the job or diagnosed with an illness brought on by your employment, you may be entitled to workers’ compensation benefits. North Carolina ensures that every company with at least three employees must carry workers’ compensation insurance to protect both workers and employers. Knowing exactly how much you may receive in workers’ comp can be difficult, which is where a North Carolina workers’ compensation settlement chart comes into play.
What Is a Workers’ Compensation Settlement Chart?
When you suffer a workplace injury, such as slip and fall, and are poised to start receiving workers’ compensation benefits, it can be difficult to immediately understand exactly how much you may be receiving in benefits.
North Carolina workers’ compensation amounts can vary, but a workers’ compensation settlement chart can help clarify your questions. It provides a fairly accurate estimate of how much compensation an injured worker should receive for their injury based on a number of significant factors, such as the specific type of injury and your average weekly wage.
What Factors Are Considered in a Workers’ Compensation Settlement Chart?
Since every state considers different factors in its own workers’ comp settlement charts, the factors that comprise the chart can vary from state to state. In North Carolina, those factors are the following:
- The Affected Body Part: There’s a certain monetary value attached to every injured body part, from the back to the spinal cord. That value is assessed based on a rating provided to the North Carolina Industrial Commission. The more “valuable” or “useful” the body part is, the higher in value it may be.
- Value of the Injury: Once the body part in question has been assessed, a monetary value will be placed on it. Workers’ comp benefits are about two-thirds of your average weekly wage, which is based on your earnings, including overtime and bonuses, during the period before your injury.
- Your Total Estimated Recovery Time: The third factor considered in a workers’ comp settlement chart is the approximate time, in weeks, that you will be in recovery and unable to work. During that time, you will be receiving workers’ comp benefits.
- Your Wages: The last factor considered is the estimated average of your weekly wages at the time of the accident.
By multiplying the second, third, and fourth factors, you can estimate a value for a temporary injury. For permanent injuries to scheduled body parts, though, the number of weeks is not estimated case by case. It is fixed by state law, as the chart below shows.
North Carolina’s Workers’ Compensation Settlement Chart by Body Part
For permanent injuries to certain body parts, North Carolina does not estimate your recovery time. State law assigns a fixed number of weeks to each body part under the schedule of injuries in N.C. Gen. Stat. § 97-31. Your permanent partial disability award equals your impairment rating, multiplied by the weeks listed for that body part, multiplied by your weekly compensation rate. A 10 percent rating to an arm, for example, pays 24 of the 240 scheduled weeks. The current schedule sets these weeks:
| Body Part | Weeks of Compensation |
| Back (total loss of use) | 300 weeks |
| Arm | 240 weeks |
| Hand | 200 weeks |
| Leg | 200 weeks |
| Hearing, both ears | 150 weeks |
| Foot | 144 weeks |
| Eye | 120 weeks |
| Thumb | 75 weeks |
| Hearing, one ear | 70 weeks |
| First (index) finger | 45 weeks |
| Great toe | 35 weeks |
These weeks are the backbone of any North Carolina workers’ compensation settlement chart, but the dollar value still depends on your weekly wage, so two workers with the same injury can receive very different amounts.
Maximum and Minimum Weekly Workers’ Comp Benefits
Your weekly check is 66 2/3 percent of your average weekly wage, but North Carolina caps that amount each year. For injuries in 2026, the maximum weekly benefit set by the North Carolina Industrial Commission is $1,446, up from $1,380 in 2025. There is also a minimum of $30 per week. Benefits do not start on day one. The state applies a seven-day waiting period, and those first seven days are paid only if your disability lasts more than 21 days. If your two-thirds figure lands above the yearly cap, you receive the cap, which is why higher earners often see a wider gap between their wages and their benefits.
Can I Sue My Employer for a Workplace Accident and Receive Workers’ Compensation?
In most cases, you cannot sue your employer for a workplace accident and receive workers’ compensation. Workers’ comp in North Carolina is a no-fault system, which means that you don’t have to prove fault to receive benefits. Even if you contributed to your own injuries, you should still be eligible. However, this also means that you usually cannot file a personal injury claim against your employer.
FAQs
How Is a Workers’ Comp Settlement Calculated in North Carolina?
A workers’ comp settlement in North Carolina is often calculated by using a workers’ compensation settlement chart. Every state in the country calculates workers’ comp a bit differently, with different factors considered.
In North Carolina, workers’ comp can be calculated by identifying the monetary value attached to the body part injured in your workplace accident, then multiplying it by your weekly wages and the percentage of disability assigned to you. This is just one way to calculate workers’ compensation benefits.
Which Body Part Has the Highest Value in a Workers’ Compensation Claim?
Typically speaking, more functional body parts have a higher value in a workers’ compensation claim. For example, an amputated arm might have more value than a lost finger. Workers’ compensation depends largely on the severity of the injury at hand and which body part was injured, as well as how. That being said, according to information gathered by the National Safety Council, the body part that is usually the most costly is the head, along with the central nervous system, which averages about $90,043 per lost-time claim in the most recent reporting.
How Much Does Workers’ Comp Pay in North Carolina?
Generally speaking, workers’ comp in North Carolina is two-thirds, or 66 2/3%, of your average weekly wages, according to the North Carolina Workers’ Compensation Act, up to a yearly maximum of $1,446 per week for 2026. While you would ideally receive the total of your average wages, this agreed-upon percentage could help keep you afloat during your recovery period.
An experienced workers’ compensation attorney can help you make better sense of the percentage, as well as help provide you with a timeline of when you should start receiving payments.
How Is Permanent Partial Disability Calculated in North Carolina?
Permanent partial disability, or PPD, benefits are calculated in North Carolina by multiplying an impairment rating percentage by the injured worker’s weekly compensation rate and the number of weeks that state law assigns to the affected body part under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 97-31, not an individually estimated recovery time. PPD benefits are paid out when an injured worker has come to the end of their recovery period but continues to have an impaired body part. These are called “scheduled injuries.”
How Long Do Benefits Last, and Are Settlements Taxable?
Wage-loss benefits in North Carolina are generally capped at 500 weeks, which is just over nine years. Workers who can prove total and permanent disability may qualify for benefits beyond that limit, but most claims fall within it. You also have a deadline on the front end. Under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 97-24, you generally must file your claim with the Industrial Commission within two years of the injury, or you can lose the right to benefits entirely.
Most workers also ask whether the money is taxed. Workers’ compensation benefits and lump-sum settlements are generally not subject to federal or state income tax, so the figure on your settlement chart is usually the amount you keep. A clincher agreement, North Carolina’s term for a final lump-sum settlement, closes the claim for good, so it is worth having an attorney review the numbers before you sign.
Reach Out to an Experienced Workers’ Comp Attorney Today
Workplace accidents can result in severe, life-altering injuries that may cause you to re-evaluate your career. Workers’ comp exists to help you adjust to a possible new normal and not worry about your finances during your recovery period.
At Bridgman Gantt Law Offices, we understand what you are going through. Workplace accidents can be devastating and stressful, and filing for workers’ comp can be confusing and a source of more stress. We can help you choose your next steps and provide you with the right kind of guidance during this overwhelming time. Reach out to us to speak to one of our valued team members. While you focus on your recovery, we can ensure you obtain the benefits you’re entitled to.
North Carolina Workers’ Compensation Resources:
