Fire and Burn Injuries
Burn injuries can leave physical and emotional scars. Modern technology can’t even erase the devastating disfigurement that can occur with some burns. In many cases, you may be entitled to compensation for the financial, physical, emotional, and mental costs of the burn injury. It all depends on the facts and circumstances of the burn. A resourceful Los Angeles burn injury lawyer can help you through the process of filing a burn injury claim or lawsuit. Trusted personal injury lawyers to whom we refer will make sure that the claim is comprehensive as much as it is persuasive and thoughtful.
What Are the Types of Burn Injuries?
The type of burn injury you suffer matters because it can make the difference in the amount of compensation you receive. A less serious burn means less pain and suffering while more serious or life-threatening burns result in severe emotional and mental harm as well as physical harm.
With that said, the three types of burn injuries are defined by their severity:
1. First-degree burns are the least serious and involve damage only to the top layer of skin, known as the epidermis. These burns can typically be treated at home.
2. Second-degree burns are more serious and involve damage to the top and second layer of skin, the latter of which is known as the derma. These types of burns often require medical attention and are identified by blisters. Scarring also is likely to occur.
3. Third-degree burns affect the deepest lays of skin and tissue, including the epidermis, dermis, and fatty layer under the skin. This type of burn requires the most medical treatment and can include skin grafting, which is a long and painful procedure.
The more serious burns also tend to be more complicated, too, which will impact the victim’s recovery or survival prognosis. Serious burn injuries can lead to:
- Infections. An open wound is vulnerable to infection and that infection can travel through the bloodstream and lead to sepsis.
- Weakened immune system. If the burn injury was accompanied by organ damage or infection, it can permanently affect the immune system and the victim’s ability to ward off future infections and disease.
- Weakened respiratory system. If the burn was caused by a fire and the victim inhaled smoke, that smoke could have damaged the lungs.
- Contractures. When scar tissue tightens up over time, it can have painful results, like with movement or breathing, depending on where the scar tissue is and how it changes over time.
It is critical to retain an attorney who understands complications arising out of burn injuries. If not, then compensation may not reflect the full spectrum of a person’s burn injuries.
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What Are Common Causes of Burn Injuries in Los Angeles?
When we think of burn injuries, we automatically assume the burn is the consequence of a fire. But fires are not the only cause of burn injuries. With that said, common causes of burn injuries in Los Angeles include:
- chemical exposure
- radiation
- defective product or faulty service
- electrical fires
- house, vehicle, or other fires.
The cause of the burn matters just as much as the type of burn because the cause typically indicates who is liable and responsible for the burn injury and which type of lawsuit can be filed.
What Type of Burn Injury Claim Can You File in Los Angeles?
Once you know the cause of the burn and that someone or something is at fault, you will be able to identify the type of burn injury claim or lawsuit you can file. Burn injury claims can be based on:
- Defective products;
- Negligent acts;
- Gross negligence or recklessness; and
- Intentional acts.
The type of lawsuit you file matters in some respects because it can mean the difference in what must be proven in order to win fair and just compensation. Most burn injury claims are personal injury claims. A claim based on negligence means someone owed you a duty of care and breached that duty, and because of the breach, you suffered a burn and can file a personal injury claim.
Recklessness, gross negligence, and intentional acts that lead to burn injuries can also result in a personal injury claim (as well as criminal charges in some cases). Defective products, on the other hand, can lead to a strict liability claim, not only for defectively manufactured or defectively designed products, but also for failure to provide adequate warnings or instructions. The type of lawsuit matters in some respects because it can mean the difference in what must be proven in order to win fair and just compensation.
To better understand the type of claim you can file, consider the purchase of a brand-new gas stove.
- In the first scenario, you fail to read the directions, improperly light the stove, and are subsequently burned. You have no claim because you caused your own injury.
- In another scenario, the manufacturer improperly made the stove and because of that manufacturing defect, you are burned when you start the stove. You may have a strict liability and/or other claims, depending on the specific circumstanced of the case.
- In one last scenario, the person installing the stove inadvertently started the gas and by the time you went to light the stove, there was so much gas, that a fire resulted and you suffered burns. You may have a personal injury claim under the negligence theory if you in fact suffered harm because of that negligence.
Contact a Trusted Fire & Burn Injury Attorney in Los Angeles
Time is of the essence in Los Angeles if you have suffered a burn injury and it’s the fault of another person or entity. In fact, you have only two years to file a burn injury claim in California. The clock starts ticking as soon as the injury is suffered. You may think two years is enough time, but it isn’t. Evidence won’t stay around and wait for you to recover.
Finding a trusted burn injury attorney in Los Angeles as soon as possible is critical to make sure that (1) you have a case, and (2) a thorough investigation will be conducted and the evidence will be safeguarded in preparation for the claim from the very beginning. In the meantime, you can focus on your recovery, work and family. Contact us today to consult with a burn injury attorney right for you.
