Personal Injury Burn Injury Compensation Claims
If you’ve been injured in an accident that wasn’t your fault, the expert personal injury lawyers at Hodge Jones & Allen are waiting to help.
Burns, scalding and scarring injuries can be hugely distressing for you and your family, especially if the cause wasn’t your fault. The after-effects of injuries like these can be long lasting, causing pain and discomfort for an extended period, as well as impacting your ability to work and lead a normal life. At Hodge Jones & Allen, we can help you seek the compensation you deserve for your injury.
Our specialist personal injury solicitors have over 40 years of experience in dealing with burns and scalding injuries. They have helped our clients to obtain compensation they deserved, as well as necessary treatment for their injury, sometimes not available on the NHS.
“Hodge Jones & Allen is a well known and popular claimant law firm, with a reputation for taking on complex cases that require excellent legal knowledge and courage.” – Legal 500, 2023
Our Personal Injury team has been ranked in the Chambers & Partners 2024 legal directory. The team was described as “very attentive in every regard“ and were praised for providing “solid advice tailored to each request.”
Burns, scalding & scarring
Approximately 130,000 people visit A&E departments each year suffering with burns. Some of the most common injuries include:
- Scalded/burnt flesh
- Facial and eye burns
- Respiratory burns
- Tendon, ligament or muscle damage
- Permanent scarring
- Psychological effects from the burn
It’s important to know the difference between different types of injury before you you’re your claim. Burns are most commonly caused by heat, however, they can also be caused by intense cold and chemicals. Scalds are caused by hot liquids or steam.
Burns fall into four different categories, too. These are:
- First degree – Primarily a surface-level injury that impacts mainly the skin. Also known as superficial burns, these last between five and ten days.
- Second degree – Extending deeper into the dermis level of the skin and classified into two levels – either superficial partial thickness or deep partial thickness. These typically heal in between two and eight weeks, depending on severity.
- Third degree – Also known as full thickness, these burns extend through the full dermis and can take a long time, often multiple months, to heal.
- Fourth degree – The most serious burns, these extend through the whole skin and into underlying fat, muscle and bone. These can take a long time to heal and often need a degree of excision to help the healing process.
Scarring
If you’ve been involved in an accident, caused by another’s negligence, which has resulted in scarring to any part of your body you may be entitled to compensation. Scars can be a distressing reminder of an injury, and can also lead to insecurities and mental health problems long term. We know the impact this can have on you, which is why we’re here to help you get the compensation you deserve.
The amount of compensation you can claim for scarring will depend on the severity and location of your scars. Scars on your face are more visible and therefore attract more compensation.
Common causes of suffering burns or scalds
In a majority of cases, burns and scalding happens at work. Some of the main causes for these injuries include:
- Hot surfaces being exposed
- Unsafe electrical equipment
- Handling hot liquids without the correct protection
- How to make a claim
- Seek medical advice
Burns and scalds are relatively common injuries for those working in environments where extreme heat, machinery and chemicals are present. They are often caused as a result of negligence, and in many cases could be prevented through effective safety procedures and the provision of the right equipment.
If you have suffered burns or scalding at work make sure you seek immediate medical advice from your GP or a hospital. The accident should also be recorded in your company’s accident book immediately, or as soon after your injury as possible.
It’s also important to instruct a personal injury lawyer as soon as you can, so they can start to gather the relevant information to help your case.
"YOUR KINDNESS, EMPATHY AND PROFESSIONALISM HAS MADE A TRAUMATIC CASE LESS ONEROUS AND WE ARE ALL RELIEVED THAT IT HAS BEEN QUICKLY SETTLED."
How to make a burns, scalding or scarring claim
If you’ve suffered a burn or scald as a result of an accident that wasn’t your fault, the most important thing is to contact us as soon as possible. To get the ball rolling on a compensation claim you should:
Get legal advice
Our specialist personal injury solicitors have been representing people who have suffered workplace accidents over the last 40 years and are experienced at dealing with negligent employers. Your employer has a duty to protect you. They are required by law to hold a valid Employers Liability insurance cover to protect you and your co-workers from workplace accidents. Get in touch as soon as you can after the injury to allow us to collect information and start building your case.
Seek medical advice
Make sure you seek immediate medical advice from your GP or a hospital. The accident should also be recorded in your company’s accident book immediately, or as soon after your injury as possible.
Compensation
When an employer has been found to have acted negligently, or is in breach of health and safety regulations, their insurer will be required to pay compensation.
How much can I claim?
As every injury is personal, the amount you can potentially claim for a burn or scalding injury will be personal to you, depending on the cause and the severity of your injuries.
To see an estimate of how much compensation you may be able to claim for your injury, please see our personal injury compensation calculator.
For personal and confidential advice call our specialist personal injury solicitors today on 0330 822 3451 and they will look into making a claim for you.
"I WAS PARTICULARLY IMPRESSED WITH THE PERSONAL SERVICE YOU PROVIDED, AND OF COURSE, YOU WINNING MY CLAIM!"
Time limit to make a claim in burns cases
Any claim for compensation for a burn must be submitted to the court within three years of the date you suffered an injury, or three years of you being aware that you have suffered an injury. There is an exception for children under the age of 18 years who have until they reach their 21st birthday to submit their claim to court.
Why choose Hodge Jones & Allen?
Our specialist personal injury solicitors have been representing people who have suffered workplace accidents for more than four decades. That means we have the experience and knowledge you need to help you make a claim.
The majority of our cases are funded by way of a conditional fee agreement, more commonly known as a No Win No Fee agreement. This means there is no financial risk to you if you choose to make a claim.
"THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL YOUR HELP. IT'S BEEN A PLEASURE WITH YOU ON MY SIDE. I AM VERY HAPPY WITH THE OUTCOME. I WOULD NOT HESITATE TO USE YOU AGAIN SHOULD THE NEED ARISE."
Successful Cases
Should I take photographs of my burns/scars?
Yes it is sensible to take some good quality colour photographs of the scarring injury both at the outset of the injury and throughout the healing process. It is also advised to mark these with the dates that they were taken and ask someone to take some photographs from a conversational distance.
How will my burns/scars be valued?
Each case will be valued based on the individual injuries sustained and where the scar/burn is on the body. The injury will be valued using case law (considering cases in which people have sustained similar injuries) and also Judicial College Guidelines which are guidelines by a panel of Judges.
In combination with this, good quality colour photographs will help to assist valuing the claim and taking into account how conscious the injured party is of the scar/burn, sensitivity to the area and whether future treatment will be required/permanency of the injury and any psychological impact this has caused.
To see how much compensation you may be able to claim for your injury, please see our personal injury compensation calculator.
What evidence should I keep?
Depending on how the injury occurred, it is important to have a record of how the accident happened, for example if it took place at work, then it is essential to have the injury recorded in an accident book at work. If the accident has taken place in a restaurant or shop for example then again it is important that the accident is recorded in an accident book.
When you seek medical attention, the hospital or GP surgery will also make a record of how the accident happened and the nature of the burn/scar injury and what treatment has taken place. Copies of medical records can therefore be obtained.
