If you or a loved one sustained a serious burn injury, a Detroit burn injury attorney can help. A burn injury is one of the most severe injuries an accident victim can endure. Even a fairly minor scald can be incredibly painful and lead to infection and permanent scarring. More extreme burn injuries almost always require surgery and lengthy hospitalization.
If your burn injury was the result of someone else’s negligence, you could have a valid compensation claim. The personal injury process is complex and can be difficult to navigate without the aid of an experienced lawyer. When you partner with an experienced Detroit burn injury attorney from the Law Offices of Christopher Trainor & Associates, you will get the help you need to seek full and fair financial compensation while you concentrate on getting better.
The most common and obvious cause of burn injuries is exposure to flame. Although burn injuries can happen when someone is trapped in a wrecked vehicle or during a house fire, the most common burn injuries occur in circumstances that are far more mundane, such as:
A report published by the Cleveland Clinic indicates that thermal burns are the most common. A thermal burn occurs when skin makes contact with hot metal, flames, steam, or scalding liquids. Thermal burns can occur in a variety of situations, such as car accidents, house fires, electric malfunctions, and household accidents.
The majority of these injuries are caused by reckless or careless conduct and are almost always preventable. In many cases, a victim sustains a serious burn injury simply because a business did not have appropriate safety measures in place. In one recent year, burn injuries and fires were responsible for almost 23% of all recorded, preventable deaths in the United States.
The American Burn Association reported that an estimated 486,000 victims are treated for burn injuries each year. Many different types of accidents lead to the types of burn injuries listed above, not all of which are attributable to a negligent second party. When it comes to personal injury claims, however, certain accident types are frequently the cause of these potentially life-threatening injuries, such as:
Burn injuries are grouped into levels based on their severity: superficial (first-degree), partial thickness (second-degree), and full thickness (third-degree).
First-degree burns, also known as superficial burns, cause minor damage to the outermost layer of the skin. Symptoms include pain, redness, swelling, and skin that peels or feels dry once the burn starts to heal. First-degree burns affect the epidermis and typically heal completely with no visible scarring in a week to 10 days. Although these burns are considered minor, if it is larger than about three inches, or is located on a major joint, such as your elbow, hip, or face, you should seek medical attention. Other than that, most superficial burns can be treated at home.
Second-degree burns are somewhat more serious since the damage reaches past the top layer of skin. Partial thickness burns are usually very sore and red and often blister. Given their delicate nature, keeping the wound and its wrappings clean is essential to staving off potential infections.
Second-degree burns often require three or more weeks to fully heal, but usually do so without any permanent scarring. They can, however, cause the skin’s pigment to change over the affected area. Depending on how badly the skin blisters, the victim may require a skin graft.
A third-degree burn is the second most extensive type of burn injury. The damage inflicted by a full-thickness burn affects every layer of skin. In many cases, third-degree burn injury victims do not feel any pain due to the extensive damage done to their nerve endings.
Based on the cause of the burn, it can appear white or waxy in appearance, dark brown, charred, leathery, or raised in texture, and blisters might not be present. If surgical measures to repair the burn are not taken, severe and permanent scarring will almost certainly occur. Full-thickness burns should only be treated by a medical professional, never with home remedies.
Fourth-degree burn injuries are those that penetrate not only every single layer of a victim’s skin and fatty tissue but the muscle and bone beneath as well. Due to the extensive nerve damage they cause, fourth-degree burn victims do not feel any pain.
Roughly 75% of burns take place at home, with the kitchen being the room in which they most often occur. The next most common place that burn injuries happen is in the workplace.
Burn injury cases are held to the same standard as any other type of personal injury case. For a lawsuit to be successful, the plaintiff will have to show that another party’s actions, or failure to act, caused their injuries. For instance, a waitress who spills hot coffee on a customer could be considered negligent. A company that manufactured a defective product that explodes when used could also be considered negligent. In order to win your burn injury case, you will have to prove that the opposing party committed negligence and that their negligence was the direct cause of your burn injury.
As your Detroit burn injury lawyer will tell you, liability in a burn injury case can center around a hazardous condition, failure to follow safety protocols, and even failure to supervise a senior citizen or child properly. The majority of burn injuries can be avoided by simply exercising appropriate care and caution.
Catastrophic burn injuries trigger a response from your immune system that has the potential to compromise important parts of your body, such as vital organs. Besides the injury itself, this immune response and other serious health complications can lead to a wide range of damages, such as:
Burn victims often endure numerous pain and suffering damages, also known in Michigan as non-economic damages. Although every case is different, these damages typically include:
The Detroit burn injury attorneys at the Law Firm of Christopher Trainor & Associates will work closely with mental health professionals when calculating damages for your pain and suffering.
If your burn injury caused you to miss work or left you unable to perform the job you held before you were injured, you could be eligible to collect damages for:
If your injuries caused a permanent disability or forced you to take indefinite leave, this will also be accounted for in your total compensation demand.
If you were hospitalized for medical conditions associated with your burn injuries, including the burn itself, our skilled attorneys will include those expenses in your damages. If you have additional hospital bills for other medical services relating to your injury, those will be included in your settlement demand as well.
According to the Mayo Clinic, surgery is one of the most common, and most expensive, medical treatments for severe burn injuries. Victims often require skin grafts or other types of surgery for various cosmetic and health reasons. An experienced attorney will work hard to ensure that the liable party covers the expense of any burn-related operations.
In order to properly diagnose the severity of a burn injury, many patients require emergency medical treatment that includes numerous diagnostic tests. The expense of these tests can and will be included in your total damages.
It wasn’t all that long ago that burn injuries covering at least 50% of the body were almost certainly going to be fatal. Now, with advanced research and improvements to modern treatment methods, burn victims are able to survive burn injuries covering as much as 90% of their bodies. A report issued by the American Burn Association shows that, now, more than 95% of severe burn victims survive their injuries. Today, the majority of deaths resulting from fires are due to the inhalation of noxious gases and/or smoke.
Despite these advances in modern medicine, some victims still succumb to burn injuries. If you lost a member of your family to a burn injury that was caused by another person’s negligence, you could be entitled to bring a claim of wrongful death on behalf of the deceased and collect financial compensation for your tragic loss.
Depending on the severity, extent, and nature of the burn, treatments can vary widely. Recovering from a burn injury requires ongoing and frequent therapies as well as extensive rehabilitation, which can have serious consequences on the victim’s mental health. This means they often have need of additional resources, such as counseling and supportive care.
In order to heal properly, burn injuries also require intense isolation. Since burns leave the body’s interior exposed, victims are extremely prone to potentially life-threatening infections which can further complicate their recovery. Sterile wound coverings are used to keep the victim’s core body temperature up and prevent infections. Healthcare workers should also administer pain medication and antibiotics, and make sure that the victim remains hydrated and administer antibiotics and pain-relieving medications.
Some resources for victims of Detroit burn injuries are:
The compassionate Detroit burn injury attorneys at the Law Offices of Christopher Trainor & Associates understand the enormous burden carried by both burn injury victims and their families.
During a free consultation, we will listen to your story and get a thorough account of the incident. If you decide to take legal action, we will conduct a complete investigation of your accident, identify any potentially responsible parties, and collect evidence that supports your injury claim. We will also confer with physicians, professionals, and anyone else whose expertise will help to strengthen your case. You won’t have to deal with the insurance adjuster or anyone else from the insurance company. Our skilled attorneys will handle all filings, paperwork, negotiations, and communications on your behalf. When you receive a settlement offer, we will go through it with you and determine whether or not it is in your best interests to accept it. If the insurance company tries to lowball you, we will take your case to court and fight for the compensation you need and deserve.
Based on the circumstances of your accident, multiple parties could be liable, which is not unusual in burn injury cases. A knowledgeable Detroit burn injury lawyer will know how to pinpoint everyone who shares in liability for your accident and subsequent burn injuries. Examples of parties who are commonly found negligent in burn injury cases include:
Bear in mind that Michigan imposes a three-year statute of limitations, barring some exceptions, on personal injury cases, including burn injury cases. Identifying the liable person or persons and proving their negligence takes a considerable amount of time. So, it is essential to reach out to an experienced Detroit burn injury lawyer as soon as you possibly can after your accident. If you wait until the week before the statute expires to meet with a lawyer, it will most likely be too late to investigate your accident, identify the party responsible, assemble all relevant evidence, and file the necessary paperwork on time. If this happens, and the statute of limitations runs out before you can file your claim, you will lose any right to collect financial compensation from the at-fault party and the task of covering all your medical bills and dealing with your lost wages will fall to you.
If you or a member of your family were involved in an accident that resulted in a serious burn injury, your focus should only be on rehabilitation and healing. When you partner with a reputable Detroit burn injury attorney from the Law Offices of Christopher Trainor & Associates, we will take care of any communications involving the negligent party or parties and their insurers.
If a representative from an insurance company contacts you before you have had a chance to speak with a lawyer, keep in mind that:
The Detroit burn injury attorneys at the Law Offices of Christopher Trainor & Associates have the experience, skill, and resources you need to obtain the maximum settlement amount for your damages. Contact us right away at (248) 886-8650 or fill out the contact form on our website to schedule a free, no-obligation consultation.
