Key Highlights:
- Ascertaining the amount of a Workers’ Compensation Settlements Amount in South Carolina calls for an unambiguous and legally defined mathematical formula.
- This will be based solely on your average weekly wage, the number of scheduled weeks associated with your damaged body part, and the impairment rating provided by your physician.
- The maximum weekly compensation for injuries arising on or after January 1, 2026, shall absolutely not exceed $1,189.94.
- A Clincher Agreement bars you from seeking further medical benefits forever.
- We do not charge you any lawyer fee if we fail to recover your compensation.
If you are unemployed due to an injury on the job, the real question is: What is this worth, and when can I expect it?
South Carolina does not rely on negotiations alone for this. The bulk of the answer is contained in a formula embedded in state law, and involves your pay rate, a medical assessment of your physical impairment, and a number of weeks assigned by the statute to the particular body part you injured. Knowing the formula means the difference between getting a good deal and one you will later regret.
Now for over 20 years, the lawyers of Shelly Leeke Law Firm have assisted wounded workers in South Carolina in learning what their case is really worth. Having offices throughout the state and working on a contingency fee basis only when we win, we are well aware of how settlements are arrived at.
The following is the method of calculating workers’ comp settlements in South Carolina, with the actual 2026 figures and statutes written by experts at Shelly Leeke Law Firm.
Why There Is No Average Workers Comp Settlement South Carolina
If you have become unemployed as a result of an injury at work, the first thing that matters for you is the purely practical question. How much is it worth, and how long will it take me to receive my money?
The frantic attempts to find an average workers’ comp settlement SC on the internet show one fact: there is no average that really matters.
Two employees who have suffered the same injury in the same company on the same day will receive different amounts, as the first one was earning twice as much, and the second one has an increased impairment rating.
Another person has suffered an injury to a different body part. These three cases cannot be averaged at all.
The only certainty is that you know the exact formula determining your workers’ comp settlement in South Carolina, or your workers’ compensation settlement amount in South Carolina.
When you know your compensation rate, your medical rating, and the weeks of your body part, you can calculate your range.
It All Starts With Your Average Weekly Wage
All of the dollar amounts that appear on South Carolina workers’ compensation claims are dependent on the average weekly wage workers’ comp SC. The average weekly wage determines precisely how workers’ comp settlements are calculated in SC.
Average weekly wages for workers’ comp in South Carolina are calculated based upon the wages earned in the four quarters prior to the quarter in which you are injured. Injuries themselves will be excluded from the calculation.
Any secondary earnings from another job will typically factor into the calculation. Your employer files commission paperwork to document the calculation, including Form 20.
The basic workers’ compensation rate must always be 66⅔% of the average weekly wage, with floors and ceilings.
Maximum compensation rate for SC Workers Comp 2026
The South Carolina Workers’ Compensation Commission establishes the maximum compensation rate every year. The maximum compensation rate is pegged to the statewide average weekly wage determined by the South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce.
For injuries occurring on or after January 1, 2026, the maximum weekly compensation rate is precisely $1,189.94. The precise amount is derived from the published maximum weekly compensation rate advisory of 2026 dated January 13, 2026. It replaced an earlier order from December 2025. Any amount such as $1,178.30 on competitor websites is the wrong and withdrawn amount.
The statutory minimum amount is $75 per week, provided the amount does not exceed your average weekly wage. In case the amount exceeds your average weekly wage, then your average weekly wage is what you are entitled to according to Title 42, Chapter 9, Compensation and Payment.
Your rate is frozen on the exact date of injury. No increase in the maximum rate will increase your payments even if your payments are below the new maximum rate. If two-thirds of your wage exceeds the maximum limit, then you get the maximum amount.
A Mathematical Example of the Calculation
Assuming that you have an average weekly wage of $700, your compensation rate will be about $466 (which is 66⅔% of $700). Assuming that you have an average weekly wage of $2,000, two-thirds of $2,000 will be $1,333 due to the SC Workers’ Comp Max Compensation Rate 2026.
Weekly Benefits When You Are Unemployed
If you are unemployed, these are the weekly benefits you must know about.
The Waiting Period of Seven Days
As per Section 42-9-200 of S.C. Code, there will be no benefit for the first seven days of disability. However, if the injury leads to disability for more than fourteen days, the compensation starts from the day of disability itself. In this case, you will get the compensation for the first week retrospectively. Medical benefits provided under Title 42, Chapter 15; Notice, Claims, Medical Attention are not subject to that waiting period.
Temporary Total Disability SC
In case the compensable injury makes you totally unavailable for work, then you get Temporary Total Disability SC. That is equal to the compensation rate weekly. As per S.C. Code § 42-9-260(A), an employer can start payment of temporary benefits right away after you are off work for eight days.
These can go on for up to 150 days from the day of reporting the injury without waiving the good-faith ground for denial of the claim.
Disability payments are limited to 500 weeks according to S.C. Code § 42-9-10(A). If the injured worker is paraplegic, quadriplegic, or has sustained brain damage, then there will be no limitations. The worker receives a payment for life according to S.C. Code § 42-9-10(C).
Receiving Temporary Partial Disability
When you are capable of working but earn lower wages due to fewer working hours or lighter responsibilities, you get temporary partial disability. According to S.C. Code § 42-9-20, you should receive 66⅔% of the difference between the pre-injury average weekly wage and the earnings after the injury. It is subject to the same maximum limitation and strictly capped at 340 weeks.
Your Checks Stopped or are Late
South Carolina has harsh financial consequences for delays in payments. In case of non-payment of an installment that became due more than 14 days ago, an additional 10% fee applies to the installment according to S.C. Code § 42-9-90.
In case of termination or suspension of benefits illegally contrary to S.C. Code § 42-9-260, the carrier shall pay a 25% fee calculated from the withheld money in addition to the benefits themselves.
How Permanent Disability Is Calculated: The Scheduled Member Table
This is precisely the portion that the internet consistently misinterprets. It is where your true value of settlement is sourced from and tells you exactly how are workers comp settlements calculated in SC.
The SC Code 42-9-30 scheduled member rules specify a precise number of weeks allotted to each body part. The weeks represent a total loss of that particular body part. According to S.C. Code Ann. § 42-9-30(20), the amount for a partial loss will be the precise ratio of the scheduled weeks for the partial loss compared to the total loss.
The definitive formula for determining your Workers’ compensation settlement value in South Carolina is quite easy. Impairment Rating times Scheduled Weeks times your Compensation Rate equals Permanent Partial Disability.
For more information on how these formulas are applied in real-life situations, look at these detailed workers’ comp claims examples.
South Carolina Workers Compensation Body Parts Chart
This chart explains the compensation as per the body parts concerned.
Body Part |
Weeks Assigned by Statute |
| Back | 300 at 49% or less loss of use; 500 at 50% or more |
| Shoulder | 300 |
| Hip | 280 |
| Arm | 220 |
| Leg | 195 |
| Hand | 185 |
| Foot | 140 |
| Eye | 140 |
| Hearing, one ear | 80 |
| Hearing, both ears | 165 |
| Thumb | 65 |
| Index finger | 40 |
| Second finger | 35 |
| Third finger | 25 |
| Little finger | 20 |
| Great toe | 35 |
| Other toes | 10 each |
| Disfigurement of exposed area | up to 50 |
The partial loss of the first phalange of your thumb, finger, or toe is considered 50% of your digit, but the loss of any other phalange is considered the total loss of your digit. You cannot be compensated for more than one finger and cannot exceed the amount of an entire hand according to S.C. Code § 42-9-30(6)–(11).
Unlisted body parts and organs are accounted for in S.C. Code § 42-9-30(22) and Commission Regulation 67-1101. In this case, 66⅔%, not to exceed 500 weeks, is available. The upper limit of all injuries will not exceed 500 weeks.
Why the Arm is Not Automatically Valued at 220 Weeks
If you have fractured your arm and have received a 15% impairment from your treating physician at maximum medical improvement, then your compensation rate is $466. 15% times 220 weeks = 33 weeks. 33 weeks times $466 = $15,378. This is not $103,000, which is what you would need for a 100% complete loss of use of your arm. Rating is the key multiplier here.
How a Back Injury Workers Comp Settlement SC is calculated (The Supreme Court Presumption)
The back is the sole schedule member with two distinct classifications. If the loss of use is 49% or less, it is valued at 300 weeks. If the loss of use is 50% or greater, then it is valued at 500 weeks.
In the instance where the back has suffered 50% or greater loss of use, it is presumed to be totally and permanently disabled. The injured worker is paid compensation pursuant to S.C. Code § 42-9-10(B).
It was held in the historic decision of Clemmons v. Lowe’s Home Centers, Inc., 420 S.C. 282 (2017) that a one percentage point difference changes everything in the law. This presumption is rebuttable, but it changes the entire legal landscape. That is why a back injury workers comp settlement SC is such a fiercely contested issue.
Two Members Equals Total and Permanent Disability
According to S.C. Code § 42-9-10(B), the loss of both hands, both arms, both shoulders, both feet, both legs, both hips, or vision in both eyes, or any two of those, is automatically total and permanent disability. No further proof of incapacity for work is ever needed.
Disfigurement, Scarring, and Burns
Permanent disfigurement to the face, head, neck, or other part usually exposed in the course of work is payable up to 50 weeks.
When there are other payments for an injured member, there would be no extra payment for disfigurement. However, burn scars or keloid scars on the body are strictly compensable, apart from other payments, according to S.C. Code § 42-9-30(23).
Impairment Rating South Carolina Workers Comp
The assignment of your rating is done by a doctor when you are at maximum medical improvement (MMI), which is precisely the time you have reached your peak physical condition.
The Impairment Rating South Carolina Workers Comp is purely a medical assessment regarding your physical loss. Your disability is a legal matter which considers your:
- age
- educational attainment
- employment experience
- permanent disability, and
- transferable skill.
The difference counts.
Your clients will always ask who chooses my doctor workers comp SC. The employer usually selects your doctors for treatment.
According to the S.C. Code § 42-15-60, the employer shall furnish treatment during a period not exceeding ten (10) weeks from the date of injury in order to bring about a cure or give relief. You should accept the chosen physician unless otherwise ordered by the Commission.
Failure to accept treatment or an examination means you lose your eligibility for compensation until such time as you agree to the treatment or examination. The proper way to see your own physician is to request the Commission to change your physician by order. It is never a unilateral process. You may contact your lawyer if you feel the carrier physician underrated your injury.
One critical clause: should the physician provided by the employer be negligent, the result of such malpractice will be viewed as part of the initial injury suffered in the accident under S.C. Code § 42-15-70.
South Carolina Workers Comp Death Benefits and Excluded Damages
Workers’ compensation only includes medical services, temporary disability payment, permanent disability compensation, artificial members, mileage to authorized medical facilities, and workers comp death benefits South Carolina.
Death Benefits: In case of death proximately caused by an accident within two years of the accident or within six years after total disability has continued since the accident, S.C. Code § 42-9-290 provides for workers comp death benefits South Carolina.
Wholly dependent survivors get weekly payments at the rate of compensation for 500 weeks from the day of the accident, in addition to burial costs of up to $12,000. A spouse or child survivor is conclusively presumed to be wholly dependent according to S.C. Code § 42-9-110. If there are two or more children, the survivor gets at least half of the payments made.
Not compensated; and this will come as a surprise to most people: workers’ compensation never covers pain and suffering. Such damages are not even mentioned in the Act. Any big injury compensation verdicts you may hear about are made through a personal injury lawsuit, following totally different legal principles.
Clincher Agreement South Carolina Decision
A Clincher Agreement South Carolina is a complete and final settlement. It ends the case forever, including your absolute right to receive any future medical care relating to that particular injury.
You give up your rights in exchange for a one-time settlement now. You accept the risk that you get worse down the road, and it will be your responsibility for the cost. Maximum medical improvement doesn’t mean the end of your need for medical care. Implants fail, fusions need to be revised, and arthritis sets into an old injury joint. Once you’ve signed off on a Clincher agreement, you’re responsible for all medical expenses moving forward.
If a case is settled on the Commission’s Agreement for Permanent Disability form, S.C. Code § 42-15-60(B)(1) states that the employer is relieved from furnishing additional medical care one year following full payment. That specific ruling is critical to understand.
A lump-sum commutation of weekly payments may only be made after weekly payments have been made for six weeks or more. Such a commutation must be approved by the Commission and cannot be less than 90% of the commutable value of the future installments according to S.C. Code § 42-9-301.
The Workers Comp Deadline South Carolina
There are two deadlines set in stone that determine if you can even make a workers comp deadline South Carolina claim.
Requirement |
Deadline |
Authority |
| Report the injury to your employer | 90 days | § 42-15-20 |
| File the claim with the Commission | 2 years from the accident | § 42-15-40 |
Many injured workers end up losing their claims on account of assuming that the employer takes care of the filings. As per S.C. Code § 42-9-390, a settlement agreement needs to be filed with the Commission. For procedural information, check the Commission’s FAQ for injured workers. The Commission has its main office in Columbia at 1333 Main Street.
Third Party Claim Workers Comp SC.
Workers’ compensation is normally the sole legal recourse against your employer under S.C. Code § 42-1-540. You may not sue your employer for being negligent.
But § 42-1-560 guarantees your absolute right to go after the negligent third party that was responsible for the injury. This third party claim workers comp SC is directed at the driver that hit your work vehicle or the reckless subcontractor at the worksite. It covers the manufacturer of faulty equipment or a negligent property owner.
A third-party action is just a standard personal injury suit. It may involve enormous compensation for pain and suffering, which is totally precluded in workers’ compensation. In cases where there are severe injuries, the value of the third-party action usually exceeds the comp claim severalfold.
The third-party claim is typically subject to the lien of the workers’ compensation insurance company. Having both claims handled jointly will preserve your final compensation. Please see our South Carolina workers’ compensation page and our personal injury practice.
Talk to a South Carolina Workers’ Compensation Attorney
If you already have an offer on the table or an impairment rating that took you by surprise, we will evaluate it for you free of charge. You will know precisely how the formula works to get your correct South Carolina Workers’ Compensation Settlements, the Workers’ compensation settlements amount in South Carolina you deserve.
The Shelly Leeke Law Firm has been dedicated to protecting injured workers throughout South Carolina since 2007. We keep fully staffed offices defending injured workers in Columbia, Goose Creek, North Charleston, Myrtle Beach, Greenville, Mt. Pleasant, Walterboro, and Beaufort. Learn about all the areas we cover, led by Attorney Shelly M. Leeke.
Call (843) 604-3273 or schedule a free consultation. We do not charge any fees unless we win, are available 24/7, and speak Spanish
FAQs About Workers’ Compensation Settlements Amount in South Carolina!
Is my workers’ comp settlement taxable by the IRS?
Wrong. By law, a workers comp settlement taxable is answered simply: it is strictly tax-free. In addition, under S.C. Code § 42-9-360(A), your payment is free from any claim by creditors or state taxes.
What happens if workers comp stopped my checks SC?
South Carolina takes strong measures against the carrier. For example, according to S.C. Code § 42-9-260, if workers comp stopped my checks SC, the employer shall pay a 25% penalty of the amount withheld directly to me.
What does a workers comp lawyer cost in South Carolina?
You don’t have to pay anything at all. S.C. Code Ann. § 42-15-90 requires that all fees charged by your workers comp lawyer cost South Carolina attorney be approved by the Commission beforehand to prevent you from paying an unfair fee.
What if the accident was my own fault?
The workers’ compensation system is a no-fault system. Ordinary negligence is not a bar. S.C. Code Ann. § 42-9-60 only excludes the worker from receiving compensation if the accident occurred solely due to intoxication or intentional misconduct.
Is there a workers comp and SSDI offset rule?
Yes. Getting the two benefits means applying a strict formula to decrease your benefits according to what you earned before, the workers comp and SSDI offset. Visit our South Carolina Social Security Disability page for more information.
