Burn injury claims – how to claim compensation for a burn injury

Reasons for burn injury claims

Burn injuries are caused by tissue damage when the skin is exposed to heat, radiation, chemicals or electronics. Some of the commonest reasons for burn injury claims include:

• Accidents at work – for example, a scald or burn from steam or fire in a restaurant kitchen
• Faulty equipment – for example, poor wiring in the workplace or a faulty home product
• Chemical burns – for example, if a teacher or lecturer was not keeping students safe in a lab setting
• Road traffic accidents – for example, if a collision caused your car to set alight
• Medical accidents – for example, if laser eye surgery malfunctions
• Accidents in public – for example, if a sunbed were to malfunction or a customer was burnt by a hot liquid in a restaurant.

You can generally make a burn injury claim if the accident was not your fault. It may be down to the organisation – for example, if an employer did not inspect equipment, or down to a product, for example, if a smartphone overheated. In other cases, you could claim for negligence, such as medical negligence if a doctor was not properly trained.

We can advise you on which organisation the claim would be against.

What are the different types of burn injuries?

Burn injuries are generally categorised by ‘degrees’. These range from one to four on the scale – first, second, third or fourth degree. A doctor will classify your burn based on the symptoms:

• First-degree burns – these are generally mild and may cause pain or reddening of the outer layer of the skin (the epidermis).
• Second-degree burns – these affect the epidermis and the dermis, the lower layer of skin. They cause pain and redness, as well as swelling and blistering.
• Third-degree burns – these go through the lower layer of the skin and damage deep tissues. Skin may become white or blackened, and may feel numb.
• Fourth-degree burns – these burns go deeper than the tissue and can damage muscles, bones or nerve endings, resulting in loss of feeling.

However serious on long-lasting your burn, our expert burn injury solicitors are here to get you the compensation you deserve.

How to make a burn injury claim

To make a no win, no fee burn injury claim, you should call Express Solicitors as soon as you feel well enough to do so. We’ll take you through a consultation to talk about your injury, and help you to gather evidence, such as:

• Witness statements
• Photos or CCTV
• Workplace accident records
• Medical reports
• Police reports
• Receipts or proof of financial losses.

Once we’ve gathered your evidence, we will send a ‘letter of claim’ to the insurer of the person or organisation responsible. For example, if you were in a road traffic accident and were not at fault, we would send the letter to the motorist’s insurer.

While we’re waiting to hear back, we will look at your case and assess it based on three things: how serious your injury is, how much money you’ve lost, and how your life will be impacted long-term. We’ll also look at psychological damage, for example, if you’ve suffered facial scarring. We’ll come up with a compensation amount based on all these factors.

If the insurer accepts responsibility, you will receive your compensation settlement minus our fees. We work on a no win, no fee basis, so you’ll only pay us if we win. If the insurer does not accept fault, we may have to take it further – but it’s very unlikely that your case will go to court.

This process may take months, if not up to two years, to complete, but this is because we’re working to get you every penny you deserve. We’ll keep you informed throughout the process and may be able to sort ‘early compensation payments’ to tide you over.

How long do you have to make a burn injury claim?

You generally have three years from the date of your burn injury to make a claim, but there are exceptions to this. If you were under 18 at the time, you will have three years from the date of your 18th birthday, or you can have a ‘litigation friend’ represent you at any point up until your 18th birthday.

If the accident happened abroad, laws may differ. If you were ‘mentally incapacitated’, for example, if you suffered brain damage, then there is no time limit. If you were burnt by a faulty product, you generally have three years – but if the product is recalled and a fault is discovered, you would have three years from this date.

We always advise you to claim as soon as possible so that we can gather the most accurate evidence to support your no win, no fee burn injury claim.

Why you should choose Express Solicitors for your burn injury claim

At Express Solicitors, we understand how devastating a burn injury can be, not just physically, but emotionally. Our expert burn injury solicitors will listen to your story sensitively and help you to gather evidence to get the largest settlement possible. We have decades of experience and have won millions of pounds in cases just like yours. Start your no win, no fee burn injury claim today to get your life back on track.