After a burn injury resulting in serious injury or the death of a loved one, victims and their families may have many questions. Who is going to pay for medical expenses? How should you handle communications with the insurance company? What about lost earnings? Without an experienced attorney it may be difficult, if not impossible, to obtain full and fair compensation for your injuries or the death of a family member. Before you make a recorded statement to the insurance company, or accept a settlement offer, talk to an experienced California burn injury lawyer and get an unbiased opinion of the value of your case. You may be entitled to far more compensation than the insurance company will initially offer you.
Causes of Burn Injuries
Burn injuries are a common injury in car accidents, motorcycle accidents, truck accidents, and SUV rollovers. Some other possible causes of burn injuries include:
- Industrial accidents
- Construction accidents
- Electrical accidents
- Gas tank explosions
- Building fires
- Motor vehicle fires
- Flammable liquids
- Hot liquids/scalding
- Radiation exposure
Smoke Inhalation Injuries
More than half of people who die in fires die not from contact burn injuries, but from inhalation injuries. For victims of indoor fires, smoke inhalation is the primary cause of death. Fires burning with insufficient oxygen may produce toxic chemical compounds, including carbon monoxide, which may quickly cause loss of consciousness, and hydrogen cyanide. Inhaling smoke can also cause suffocation (simple asphyxiation) from lack of oxygen. Symptoms of smoke inhalation include coughing, shortness of breath, headaches, and loss of consciousness.
Compensation for Burn Injuries
When burn injuries are the result of another person or party’s negligent actions (i.e., leaving a candle burning that causes an apartment fire, or causing an accident that ignites a car on fire), victims may be entitled to compensation from whoever is responsible for their injuries. Compensation awarded in a burn injury claim can include damages for:
- ALL medical expenses
- Future medical care costs
- Skin grafting
- Plastic surgery
- Lost earnings
- Loss of earning capacity
- Therapy and rehabilitation
- Emotional pain and suffering
- Compensation for disfigurement and scarring
In order to recover monetary damages in a personal injury claim, the injured victim (the plaintiff) must be able to prove that the at-fault party (the defendant) caused their injuries. From more than 70 years of collective experience representing burn injury victims, the lawyers at Estey Bomberger are familiar with how to establish liability in accidents caused by negligent motorists, negligent supervision of children, dangerous and defective products, and dangerous premises.
Experienced Burn Injury Lawyers
Many personal injury attorneys can win burn injury cases. However, not all attorneys can get maximum, full and fair compensation for a burn injury claim. Because burn injuries cause not just physical pain but lifelong scarring and disfigurement, it is important to choose an attorney who can recover damages to fully compensate you for your injury. The California burn injury attorneys at Estey Bomberger have a proven record of obtaining maximum settlements and verdicts in burn injury cases. If we cannot obtain a fair settlement in a reasonable amount of time, we will promptly take a case to trial.
Protecting Your Rights After a Burn Injury
At Estey Bomberger, our experienced California burn injury attorneys are fully committed to protecting the rights of burn injury victims. We offer a free and comprehensive consultation to review your situation, answer your questions, and give you an honest opinion of your potential case. Because a statute limits the amount of time you have to bring a claim for your injuries, do not waste any time in contacting an experienced burn injury lawyer. The attorneys at Estey Bomberger are available to discuss your case and answer your questions 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
