Burn Injury Claims – How Much Compensation Can I Claim?

Burn injuries can cause significant physical pain, scarring, and psychological suffering. If you were burned in an accident that wasn’t your fault, you may wish to seek burn injury compensation compensation for your suffering.

Our experienced personal injury team can help burn victims secure compensation. If you call us, an advisor will provide an initial consultation over the phone. They’ll explain your chances of being paid compensation for burn injuries and explain your options too. If your claim is accepted by one of our personal injury lawyers, they’ll try to secure as much compensation as possible on a No Win, No Fee basis. That means you can relax during the claims process knowing that you’ll only pay your solicitor if you receive compensation.

To talk to us about a burn injury claim right away, call our team today on 0800 652 1345. Alternatively, please read on to learn more about when compensation for burn injury claims might be possible.

Am I Entitled to Compensation for a Burn Injury?

So that we don’t waste your time, our solicitors will check the viability of your burn injury claim before agreeing to work for you. Whilst reviewing your case, they’ll want to confirm whether:

• The defendant owed you a legal duty of care; and
• As a result of a negligent action (or lack of action), the defendant caused an accident or incident; in which
• You were burned.

Duty of care is something you shouldn’t be too concerned about as your solicitor will understand which legislation could provide this in your case. For instance, if you want compensation for a burn injury at work, the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 might apply. Similarly, if you’re burned by a defective product at home, the Consumer Protection Act 1987 might be relevant.

Common Examples of Burn Injury Claims

Some example situations of accidents that can lead to burn injury claims include:

• Accidents at work. If your employer failed to provide adequate safety measures, equipment, or training, resulting in a burn injury from handling hot machinery, chemicals, or open flames.
• Accidents in public places. You suffered a burn injury due to poorly maintained equipment or a lack of safety warnings in public spaces, such as a restaurant or firework display.
• Beauty treatment negligence. If a beauty technician’s error during a treatment led to burns, such as from improperly used lasers, chemicals, or hot wax.
• Road traffic accidents. If a vehicle accident caused by another driver’s negligence led to a burn injury from fire or chemical exposure.
• Defective products. Where a burn injury was caused by a faulty product, like faulty hair straighteners or a defective heater.

For a claim to be successful, you’ll need to prove that another party was at fault and that your burn injury led to physical or emotional harm.

What Types of Burn Injuries Can I Claim For?

You may be able to claim compensation for various types of burn injuries if they were caused by someone else’s negligence. These can include:

• Thermal burns caused by contact with flames, hot surfaces, or scalding liquids.
• Chemical burns from exposure to strong chemicals, such as acids or cleaning agents, which can damage the skin on contact.
• Electrical burns resulting from electric shock, often in workplaces or from faulty equipment.
• Radiation burns caused by prolonged exposure to radiation sources, such as UV rays from sunbeds or certain medical treatments.
• Cold Burns (frostbite) caused by extreme cold, resulting in tissue damage, often from prolonged contact with freezing surfaces.

Each type of burn can vary in severity, but compensation may cover physical pain, scarring, medical costs, and other related losses. Our team can help with a burn injury claim by offering a free consultation to start with. If you’d like to know more, please call us today.

What Evidence Do I Need for a Burn Injury Compensation Claim?

Generally, a burn injury compensation claim will be handled by the defendant’s insurance company. As a result, you’ll need proof that clearly shows how your burn injuries occurred, who was to blame and how you suffered. Even if the defendant was apologetic at the accident scene, their insurer won’t pay out compensation unless you’ve got the proof to prove your case. As such, to try and make your claim solid, you could collect:

• Photographic proof. Taking pictures of the accident scene can be a good way of showing what caused the accident to occur. Ideally, you should attempt to take photographs as soon as possible and before anything is moved from the accident scene.
• Medical evidence. It is important to have any burn injuries assessed and treated at a hospital or minor injuries unit. This should help to ensure you’ll recovery will occur as quickly as possible. Additionally, you could ask for a copy of your medical records to help prove the extent of your injuries.
• Witness information. This can be important if there is any doubt over who was responsible for causing your burns. If you provide contact details of any person present at the time you were injured, your solicitor might contact them for a statement later on.
• Accident report forms. Thanks to RIDDOR most businesses and employers need to keep records relating to injuries on their premises. As such, you should report your burns as soon as possible. You’ll be given a copy of the accident report which could be used as proof to show when and where you were the accident occurred.
• CCTV footage. If your accident was caught on camera, it’s a good idea to act quickly to secure any relevant footage that could be used in a car accident claim, as an example. Data protection laws mean you’re entitled to ask for a copy of yourself but it’s often deleted quickly so you must act swiftly.
• A diary. When making a burn injury claim, you’ll be asked to explain how you’ve been affected by your injuries. For this reason, it’s a good idea to keep a record of any costs you’ve incurred or events that you’ve had to miss because of your injuries. Similarly, you should keep track of any dates that your injuries prevented you from working.

If you call 0800 652 1345 for a free consultation, your advisor will review what proof you might have for free and let you know if you have enough to begin a claim, and if not, what we could do to obtain it.

What Is the Time Limit to Make a Burn Injury Claim?

Any personal injury claim in the UK must be made within a 3-year time limit. For burn injuries, the limitation period will usually begin from the date of the accident. Although you might think 3-years is a long time, it’s always better to not leave it too late before claiming.

Starting as early as possible could mean you’ll be entitled to an interim payment to cover the cost of private medical treatment to help speed up your recovery. It will certainly make it easier for you to collect evidence and recall how you’ve been affected when discussing your claim with your solicitor.

Importantly, burn injury claims involving children don’t have such a strict time limit. Parents or guardians could use the litigation friend process to take action for the child at any point before they become 18 years old.

How Much Compensation for a Burn Injury Can I Claim?

Any type of accident that causes you to suffer burn injuries can result in short-term and long-term suffering. Both need to be considered when calculating compensation. Generally, your claim will focus on the suffering your injuries have caused (general damages) and any costs you’ve incurred because of those injuries (special damages).

While each claim is unique, compensation for burns at work or in your private life could be based on:

• The pain and suffering you’ve endured from the burns.
• Any impact your injuries has had on your social life or hobbies (loss of amenity explained here).
• The cost of private medical treatment.
• Any travel expenses linked to your injuries.
• Care costs if someone had to take time out to look after you while you were injured.
• The cost of making changes to your home or vehicle if they’ll help you to cope with any permanent disability.

As you can only make a single claim for these injuries, it’s important to factor all aspects of your suffering into your requested settlement. If you work with one of our personal injury solicitors, they’ll try to ensure you’re paid the highest level of compensation possible. If you’d like us to review what could be included in your claim, contact our team here for a free claim consultation.

Burn Injury Compensation Amounts

When calculating a burn injury compensation claim, there’s a published set of guidelines (by the Judicial College) that personal injury solicitors can refer to specifically for general damages. As mentioned above, in most cases, any payout a claimant would get will depend mainly upon the severity of the burn and its effects but also where the burns are situated. The current guidelines advise compensation of:

• Compensation is likely to be above £127,930 where significant burns cover 40% or more of the body.
• £9,560 – £27,740. for burns resulting in a single disfiguring scar or multiple laceration scars on the arm(s), hand(s), leg(s), chest, back.
• £36,340 – £118,790 where burns result in very severe facial scarring.
• £21,920 – £59,090 as above, but less severe facial scarring.
• £11,120 – £36,720 as above, but less severe.
• £4,820 – £16,770 as above, but less severe.
• £2,080 – £4,310 as above, but less severe.

While these burns compensation payouts are useful to personal injury lawyers and insurers, they’re only advisory so are not guaranteed.

Will I Need a Solicitor to Claim Burn Injury Compensation?

While you can claim burn injury compensation on your own, having a solicitor on your side can make the claims process much simpler. If you work with a solicitor who specialises in personal injury claims, they’ll manage the claims process for you and deal with any negotiations.

Some people are put off from hiring a solicitor because they’re worried about paying their fees. For that reason, ours don’t ask to be paid upfront and offer a No Win, No Fee service for burn injury claims they accept. That means you’ll only pay your solicitor if you are awarded compensation.

The type of No Win, No Fee agreement our solicitors use is called a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). This explains how your claim will be processed and what will need to be achieved before you need to pay your solicitor.

If your case is won, you’ll pay a ‘success fee’. If the claim fails, you won’t. This fee is a percentage of any compensation you’re paid. It is used to cover the cost of your solicitor’s work and expenses. Legally, when funding your claim with a CFA, the maximum success fee you’ll pay is 25%.

Please call today to check if you could be represented by one of our No Win, No Fee solicitors.

Burn Injury Claims Frequently Asked Questions

Start a Burn Injury Compensation Claim Today

One call to our advice centre might be all it takes to start your burn injury claim today. If you call us on 0800 652 1345, your case will be reviewed for free and you’ll be offered legal advice about the prospects of being compensated.

Again, if your case is taken on by one of our solicitors, they’ll try to secure compensation for you on a No Win, No Fee basis.

Please use live chat or give us a call if you have any further questions on burn injury compensation claims.