Permanent Partial Disability Settlement Calculator: How the Math Works
Reference Guide
There is no lawsuit or class settlement here. A permanent partial disability (PPD) award is a workers’ compensation benefit, and every state calculates it from the same three inputs: your impairment rating, a number of weeks set by state law, and a weekly rate tied to your average weekly wage. Below are the official formulas and 2026 caps for New York, Texas, California and South Carolina, with two worked examples.
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The Formula Behind Every PPD Calculator
A permanent partial disability settlement calculator does one multiplication: impairment percentage × weeks for that body part or rating × weekly compensation rate. The states differ in where the weeks come from.
Schedule states assign a fixed number of weeks to each body part. In New York, for example, an arm is worth 312 weeks, a leg 288, a hand 244, a foot 205, an eye 160 and a thumb 75, per the Workers’ Compensation Board. A partial loss of use gets that percentage of the weeks.
Rating states convert a whole-person impairment rating into weeks. Texas pays three weeks of impairment income benefits for each percentage point. California feeds the percentage into a formula that also uses your age and occupation.
The weekly rate is a share of your average weekly wage — two-thirds in New York, 70 percent in Texas — capped by a state maximum that depends on your date of injury.
Case details
PPD awards are decided by state workers’ compensation agencies, not by class-action courts. In New York, a Workers’ Compensation Law Judge sets the level of disability; the Board says a schedule award is given “not for an injury sustained, but for residual permanent physical and functional impairments.” In California, your treating physician or a qualified medical evaluator rates the impairment, and a disability evaluator or the judge applies the formula, per the Division of Workers’ Compensation. In Texas, impairment income benefits begin the day after you reach maximum medical improvement. Each state has its own appeal clock — see workers’ comp appeal deadlines by state.
2026 Weekly Caps That Limit Any Calculation
New York: $1,281.50 per week for accidents from July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027, and $1,222.42 for July 1, 2025 to June 30, 2026. The minimum for the current period is $384.45. The rate in effect on your date of accident is the one that counts, per the Workers’ Compensation Board.
South Carolina: $1,189.94 per week for injuries on or after January 1, 2026, set by a Workers’ Compensation Commission order that superseded its December 15, 2025 figure of $1,178.30.
Texas: the IIB maximum is 70 percent of the state average weekly wage, per the Texas Department of Insurance.
A calculator that ignores the cap overstates higher earners’ awards.
When a PPD Calculation Applies to You
PPD applies after a work injury has stopped improving but left a lasting, partial loss — you can work, but not at full function. Texas calls that point maximum medical improvement. Before then you are usually on temporary benefits; see the workers’ compensation claim process.
Know which track you are on. New York splits permanent injuries into schedule losses (arms, legs, hands, feet, eyes, hearing) and non-schedule injuries such as the spine or brain. Non-schedule benefits depend on lost earning capacity, not a body-part chart. For accidents on or after March 13, 2007, they run for a capped number of weeks: from 225 weeks at 15% or less up to 525 weeks at 96% or more.
The Board itself says “there is no simple formula to determine loss of wage earning capacity,” so treat any online result for a back or neck injury as a rough range.
Two Worked Examples
Texas impairment income benefits. A 15% impairment rating × three weeks = 45 weeks. Average weekly wage $1,000 × 70 percent = $700. 45 × $700 = $31,500, if $700 is under the state maximum. See the Texas calculator.
California is harder to do by hand: the rating is adjusted for age and occupation, and the weeks per percent rise with the rating (3 weeks per percent below 10, 4 weeks from 10 to 14.75, under Labor Code 4658(d)). For injuries on or after January 1, 2013, future earning capacity is no longer part of the rating. Use the California calculator.
A negotiated lump-sum settlement can differ from these figures. They are the statutory award, the number a settlement is usually measured against.
Dates That Change the Calculation
March 13, 2007 — New York Caps Non-Schedule Weeks
For New York accidents on or after this date, non-schedule PPD runs a capped number of weeks, from 225 up to 525, depending on lost wage-earning capacity.
January 1, 2013 — California Drops Future Earnings
For injuries on or after this date, California permanent disability ratings no longer account for diminished future earning capacity.
December 15, 2025 — South Carolina Sets a 2026 Rate
The Workers’ Compensation Commission first certifies a 2026 maximum weekly rate of $1,178.30.
January 2026 — South Carolina Revises Upward
An updated order sets $1,189.94 for injuries on or after January 1, 2026, applying retroactively and superseding the December order.
July 1, 2026 — New York Maximum Rises
The New York weekly maximum becomes $1,281.50 for accidents through June 30, 2027, up from $1,222.42.
As of October 2026 — The Rating Is the Fight
Weeks and weekly caps are fixed by statute. What is actually disputed in most PPD cases is the impairment percentage and, in New York non-schedule cases, the loss of earning capacity.
Three Things to Watch For
PPD awards involve large lump sums and stressed claimants, which attracts the following:
Calculators that want your Social Security number
The math needs only a rating, a body part and a wage. A “free estimate” form demanding your Social Security number, claim number or employer is collecting a lead or your identity, not running a formula.
Buyers offering cash now for your weekly payments
Companies that buy future benefit payments for an immediate lump sum price in a steep discount. Compare the offer against the full statutory award before signing anything that assigns your payments.
Calls asking a fee to “release” your award
State boards and insurers do not phone to collect a processing fee before paying a PPD award. Check any such call against the number on official correspondence from your carrier or the state agency.
Permanent Partial Disability — Questions People Actually Ask
Short answers to the questions people ask most about this case.
How does a permanent partial disability settlement calculator work?
It multiplies three numbers: your impairment percentage, the weeks state law assigns to that body part or rating, and your weekly rate (a share of your average weekly wage, capped by the state maximum for your injury date). In New York, a 25% loss of use of a hand is 61 weeks; at $600 a week that is $36,600 before temporary benefits are deducted.
What is a 15 impairment rating?
It means a doctor found a 15% permanent loss of function. What it pays depends on the state. In Texas, a 15% rating is worth 45 weeks of impairment income benefits (three weeks per point) at 70 percent of your average weekly wage. In New York, a 15% loss of use of an arm is 15% of 312 weeks, or 46.8 weeks. See impairment rating settlements.
What is the maximum weekly compensation rate in South Carolina for 2026?
$1,189.94 per week for injuries on or after January 1, 2026, under an updated Workers’ Compensation Commission order that replaced the earlier $1,178.30 figure. The 2025 maximum was $1,134.43. See the South Carolina calculator.
Is permanent partial disability for life?
Usually not. Schedule awards are a fixed number of weeks. In New York, non-schedule PPD for accidents before March 13, 2007 continues while the disability and wage loss last; for later accidents it stops after 225 to 525 weeks, depending on lost earning capacity.
How long do you receive permanent partial disability?
As long as the weeks your rating buys. A Texas 10% rating gives 30 weeks of benefits. A total loss of use of a New York leg is 288 weeks, and a partial loss gets that percentage of 288.
Which weekly maximum applies to my claim?
The one in effect on your date of accident, not the date you settle. In New York that is $1,281.50 for accidents from July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027, but $1,222.42 for accidents in the year before.
Is a permanent partial disability settlement taxable?
Workers’ compensation paid under a workers’ compensation act is “fully exempt from tax,” per IRS Publication 525. The exception: any part that reduces your Social Security benefits is treated as Social Security and may be taxable. More on settlement taxes.
Why does my back injury not appear on the chart?
Spine, brain and similar injuries are non-schedule in New York. They are paid on lost wage-earning capacity, which the Board sets from medical evidence plus factors such as work history, education and skills. A non-working claimant found to have 60% remaining earning capacity, for example, receives 40% × two-thirds of the average weekly wage.
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This page is for general information only and is not legal advice. Lawsuit status, eligibility, and compensation can change. Settlement Insight is not a law firm and does not represent any party. Consult a licensed attorney about your specific situation.
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