California Burn Injury Lawyer

Need a burn injury lawyer that will aggressively pursue the maximum compensation for your injuries?

One of the worst types of personal injury cases is where the victim has suffered serious burns. Not only can people die from third-degree burns on a majority of their bodies, but if they don’t, they will suffer a lifetime of pain and suffering, along with permanent scarring. Someone’s life can be completely turned upside down after a burn injury. And it is that much worse when the burn injuries were caused by someone’s negligent, careless, and reckless actions.

But burn injury litigation and lawsuits can be complicated. If you or a family member has suffered serious burns due to someone’s negligence, the best course of action is to hire a law firm that has the knowledge, skills, and resources to win the compensation you deserve.

There are many types of personal injury negligence cases where victims suffer from serious burns. Here’s more on burn injury lawsuits and what you could do if you sustained an injury.

Free Consultation With A Personal Injury Attorney

If your burn injury is someone else’s fault, then after seeking medical attention, consult with an attorney to determine what can be done about it. Critically, a consultation with an attorney can enable you to know what direction to take from a legal angle. My Rights Law is dedicated to helping injured clients get the best resolutions to their situations. In your consultation, our catastrophic injury lawyers will prudently evaluate your burn injury case and advise you about possible legal solutions. Most cases are taken on a contingency fee basis. This means that attorney’s fees are not charged unless you prevail against the responsible party in your case. Don’t just hire any attorneys for legal representation when it comes to your serious injuries. Consider the skilled personal injury attorneys at My Rights Law who will hold your wrongdoer accountable and make them pay you for what they’ve done. For a free consultation with the legal team at My Rights Law, call (909) 340-2000 or leave us a message on our secure web form.

Car And Truck Accidents Can Cause Serious Burns

In some car and truck accidents, the impact and damage to the vehicles are so violent that fires are started. Sometimes the car or truck even explodes. This can cause serious burns for people who are stuck or pinned in the vehicle. In many of these crashes, the accident was caused by someone’s negligent, careless, and reckless driving. Some drivers are distracted by their smartphones, some are driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol, and some drivers are driving aggressively and erratically. These drivers put everyone else on roads and highways at risk of serious injuries, including burns.

Defective And Dangerous Products

In some burn injury lawsuits, the victim suffers burns due to a defective and dangerous product. The product may be designed and made in a way that is dangerous, or it may malfunction, causing serious burns to the victim. Whatever the cause, the product’s manufacturer and seller could be liable for designing, manufacturing, and selling a defective and dangerous product. Examples of dangerous products that could cause serious burn injuries include the following:

• Poorly designed automobiles that tend to explode or catch on fire when in an accident;
• Battery-operated products;
• Heaters;
• Electric blankets;
• Cleaning chemicals;
• Flammable clothing and household items;
• Vaping devices;
• Malfunctioning stoves and cooking devices, such as crockpots;
• Smartphones;
• Computers; and
• Electric cars.

Premises Liability Accidents

Premises liability is the area of law where property owners are held responsible for the injuries caused by a dangerous condition on their property. A common example is where a customer slips and falls on a spilled product in a grocery store. But some premises liability cases can be serious and cause significant injuries, including burn injuries and even death. Property owners have a duty to inspect and repair any dangerous condition on their property. If the dangerous condition cannot be repaired, then the property owner has a duty to warn people who are legally on their property.

In some cases, people can be seriously burned by water that is kept too hot, such as in showers or hot tubs. Gas explosions in a home could also cause a victim to be seriously burned. Recently, there have been instances where buildings collapse and catch on fire, causing people trapped inside to be burned.

General Negligence Cases

In addition to the specific cases listed above, there is a category of general negligence-type cases that involve someone being seriously burned. For instance, there have been cases where people are careless around a backyard firepit or throw fireworks too close to guests. In other cases, people have neglected a barbeque or turkey fryer, and it caught on fire, causing serious injuries.

What Should You Do If You Are Seriously Burned In An Accident?

If you have suffered serious burn injuries due to someone else’s negligence, you should do certain things immediately to help you recover both your health and monetary compensation for your injuries.

• Seek medical treatment: Treating serious burns as soon as possible determines the amount of long-term pain and suffering you will have to endure. Immediate medical treatment could also help with future scarring. In many burn cases, people who do not get immediate treatment run the risk of infection at the burn sites. An infection could lead to unnecessary health problems and ongoing treatment and hospitalization. Seeking medical treatment will also help with any future litigation, as the medical records and diagnostic reports from the doctors and medical professionals can help establish the extent of the burn injuries and treatment. The doctors could also give an opinion on the permanency of any scarring, disability, or other symptoms related to the burns.
• Make an official report of the incident: If necessary, contact the police, fire department, local municipal code enforcement office, product manufacturer, or the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. The point is to tell someone with authority who can take down details of the accident or incident and the subsequent injuries, so they can write up an official report. This report could be used in future litigation, proving the details of the incident.
• Take photos and videos: As the saying goes, a picture is worth a thousand words. Make sure to record via picture and/or video everything you can about the incident, as well as the severity of the burns and the ongoing healing process. Take pictures of changes in scarring over time, too. These pictures and videos can be used in future litigation to demonstrate the serious, long-term pain and suffering you went through.
• Record the details: Make sure any witness contact information is obtained so that their recorded statements can be made. Peoples’ memories fade over time, so locking down early what people remember from the accident or incident will help in any future litigation. You should also keep an ongoing diary of the incident and what you have experienced, focusing on the medical treatment, the pain and suffering, and how the burn injury has affected your daily life.
• Maintain and secure any evidence: Make sure that any potential evidence is maintained and secured for future inspection and use. In some cases, people do not realize the importance of something and throw it away. There have been instances where people are seriously burned by a defective product, but the product was thrown away after the incident. Don’t let this happen.
• DO NOT talk to any insurance adjuster: After an incident where you or a family member was seriously burned, an insurance adjuster might want to interview you and take a recorded statement. Do not agree to do this. If a recorded statement is ever given, it should be approved by an experienced personal injury attorney who sits by your side during the questioning.
• Call an experienced and knowledgeable burn injury attorney: To recover the most compensation legally allowed for your burn injuries, you need an expert fighting for your rights. The defendants and insurance companies will have an army of adjusters, investigators, and attorneys fighting against you and trying to pay you as little as possible. You need a law firm that has the skills and resources to take them on and win your case.

What Damages Are Available For Serious Burn Injuries?

An experienced and knowledgeable personal injury lawyer will be able to review the case and your injuries and determine how much it is reasonably worth. However, there are many factors that go into determining the value of a personal injury case – there is no set formula that spits out a number.

Here are some of the factors that go into determining the value of your case:

• How badly were you injured? Did the burn injuries heal completely in six weeks, or will you suffer from the injury for years, maybe even forever? Was surgery required to fix your injuries? Were there permanent aspects to the injury, such as scarring or more limited movement?
• How much are your medical bills? The amount of medical bills can be helpful in demonstrating how serious an injury is. This includes past medical bills as well as future medical bills for any ongoing treatment. A good personal injury attorney can hire an expert to determine what amount of future medical treatment will be necessary and factor that into the equation of appropriate damages.
• Were there any lost wages? Just like with medical bills, this number includes both past lost wages as well as future lost wages due to lower earning power caused by an ongoing disability. Have the burn injuries prevented you from working, and is there an associated disability that will prevent you from getting substantial, gainful work in the future? Again, a good attorney will hire an expert to determine the amount of future lost wages, along with interest, that you might lose due to a permanent disability caused by the burn injuries.
• What was the amount of pain and suffering you have endured? This category of damages is called “non-economic damages” and can be difficult to calculate because every case is different, and every injury affects people differently. The same injury could cause one person much more pain and suffering than someone else. The only way to have a sense of what is normal for a particular type of case and a particular type of injury is to hire an experienced lawyer who has handled many of these cases in the past. Burn injuries can cause significant pain and suffering. You need a lawyer who can convey the level of past pain as well as future pain to the defendants and their insurance companies.

What Happens If A Family Member Dies From Burn Injuries?

If a loved one or family member dies in a fire or from burn injuries, the family may be able to file a wrongful death lawsuit against the responsible parties. This type of lawsuit is distinguished from one that the individual could have filed themselves if they were still alive. In most states, the family members that can file a wrongful death lawsuit are spouses, domestic partners, children of the deceased, grandchildren (if the children are deceased), or anyone else entitled to the property of the deceased. The money damages available in most wrongful death lawsuits might include:

• Funeral expenses;
• Burial expenses;
• Loss of services the deceased would have provided;
• Loss of companionship; and
• Loss of financial support the deceased would have provided over their lifetime.

What Can I Do Legally If I Have Severe Burns?

If you have sustained a burn injury, then to learn more about your potential lawsuit, you should pursue a free consultation with qualified burn injury lawyers. A free case evaluation with a knowledgeable lawyer allows you to determine whether to file a suit and how to proceed. My Rights Law is a personal injury law firm whose objective is to help burn injury victims obtain financial compensation and justice. Our law firm is ready to help you when you need us. For a free consultation with the legal team at My Rights Law, call (909) 340-2000 or contact us by filling out our secure web form.