Burns are serious yet often overlooked consequences of many incidents that result in personal injuries. These catastrophic injuries can require extensive medical care and, in the most extreme examples, can result in the permanent loss of feeling or use of an affected area.
Whenever another person or company is responsible for an incident that results in a burn, they have an obligation under the law to provide fair compensation. This can cover a wide range of incidents, such as car crashes, industrial accidents, or even medical malpractice. A Houston burn injury lawyer strives to help people like you to prove that the negligent actions of another person was the cause of a burn and seek out the fair compensation that you need to set things right.
Types of Burns and How They Affect You
Your skin is a waterproof workhorse and the body’s largest organ. Skin permits people to sense heat and cold because it notifies nerves to pull the hand away from a boiling pot on the stove. Unfortunately, if someone or an entity carelessly causes a burn injury, the person affected may not be able to pull away or the time needed to recoil.
Your skin is comprised of three layers: the epidermis, which is what you see, the dermis, and the fat layer below the dermis. Minor burns to the epidermis redden and are painful, but with ointment and care, they eventually heal, and the redness subsides. Second-degree burns damage the epidermis and the dermis. The burned area swells and blisters, along with the appearance of splotching. Scarring occurs and the pain is severe.
Skin heals after minor burn injuries, but severely burned skin generates dense scar tissue, hinders the body’s ability to control its temperature, and is a petri dish for infections. Third-degree burns char skin black, or make it appear dry white, and once the burn enters the subcutaneous fat layer, underlying nerves are destroyed, causing numbness in the area and making skin, or bone and other tissue, impervious to regeneration.
According to the Mayo Clinic, you should seek immediate medical help if a second-degree burn is larger than two inches, or any burn covers a large swath of the body, or if it involves your hands, feet, face, genitals, or a major joint.
What Events May Result in Burns?
Burns most often result from exposure to extreme heat or flames. As a result, being in a situation where these hazards are present could each result in these types of injuries. Perhaps the most common are car accidents, where oil or gas may ignite and inflict harsh injuries on drivers or passengers. In these incidents, a Houston attorney must assemble evidence to show that another driver was responsible for the incident that resulted in a burn injury.
Extreme heat may also be present in other situations. A hairdresser might not have proper control over a curling iron or a tanning salon may use defective beds that do not open when needed. Other aestheticians who use harsh chemicals could cause burns if they leave a customer exposed for an extended period.
Finally, burns may also result from medical errors. Doctors can use dangerous heat to close wounds and utilize radiation in the form of x-rays to diagnose conditions. The improper use of these tools can cause burn-related damage. Regardless of a person’s exact source of an injury, a lawyer is prepared to investigate the incident to show that another’s negligence was the sole source of the incident. It is important to recognize that there is always a limited time under the law to pursue these cases. For most people, Texas Civil Practice & Remedies Code § 16.003 creates a time limit of two years from the date of injury to demand compensation.
Seeking Out Fair Compensation for Burn Injury Victims
Demonstrating that another person or company was responsible for a burn incident is only one portion of a comprehensive case. It is just as important to be able to explain how the incident has affected one’s life and to be able to connect those changes to the accident.
All burn injury cases will center around the physical injuries and the medical care necessary to bring a person back to their best health. Even something as seemingly minor as a first-degree burn may require medical attention. In addition, more severe second- and third-degree burns may leave a permanent impact on an individual’s life. A burn lawyer in Houston will need to collect the medical bills and other records connected to the injury.
Burns also have the potential to affect a person’s life in other ways. They may inflict emotional traumas and mental health concerns that are just as severe as any physical injury. If a person requires counseling to regain their quality of life or has experienced pain connected to the burn, they can demand payment for their experiences.
Stages of Recovery
The National Library of Medicine reports that physiological recovery is divided into three stages: critical, acute, and long-term rehabilitation. The critical stage occurs immediately following the burn injury and involves the stressors of uncertainty about survival, accommodating to the emergency room and hospital environment, and growing anxiety. During the acute phase, patients become more alert to their physical and psychological conditions as they continue to undergo painful procedures with less sedation and must reconcile their depression, grief at what they have lost, and anxiety.
The long-term rehabilitation phase begins once the patient leaves the hospital, but with severe burns, physical treatment continues while learning to re-integrate into society causes embarrassment, depression, and withdrawal in many cases.
Finally, if a burn forces a person to miss time at work, this is another potentially compensable loss. This can involve a single missed shift to seek ER care or it may require payments for permanent disability. Talking with legal counsel allows them to determine the full value of a case and demand proper payments from all liable parties.
Punitive Damages
While compensatory damages allow burn patients to recoup money for what they have lost through negligence, punitive or exemplary damages punish the defendant for gross negligence, according to the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 41.003. To meet this standard, the defendant must have acted with wanton disregard for human life or the damage their actions would likely cause. In Texas, punitive damages are capped. If awarded, punitive damages are usually two times the economic damages plus the amount awarded for non-economic damages with a cap of $750,000. Your Houston burn injury attorney can advise if you qualify.
Speak with a Houston Burn Injury Attorney About Your Claim
Incidents that expose a person to extreme heat, caustic chemicals, or even radiation can result in burns that impact your physical health, emotional well-being, and even your ability to earn a living. If another party was responsible for such an incident, the law says that they are liable for providing compensation to cover your losses.
A Houston burn injury lawyer is prepared to help you to demand these payments, prove fault for an incident, and protect your case from aggressive insurance companies. Reach out to our personal injury law firm today to learn more.
