The Texas Burn Injury Guide was created by Chavez Law Firm to help injured El Paso residents recover the rightful compensation they deserve after a serious injury.
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Burn injuries can change your life in a very serious way. You may have very obvious and permanent disfigurement that might negatively affect your life. If you are here, you have likely been seriously injured in a burn accident. Our El Paso burn injury attorneys are here to help you get the compensation that you deserve.
After you have read about your burn injury case below, please do not hesitate to call Chavez Law Firm and set up a free initial consultation to go over the details of your case and discuss what your legal options are.
What You Can Be Compensated for in a Burn Injury Case
The compensatory damages that you are permitted to collect in an El Paso burn accident include:
- Past and future medical bills
- Accident-related expenses
- Past and future lost wages/lost earning capacity
- Past and future pain and suffering
In the case of a fire that was caused by illegal, malicious, or nefarious activity, there are special circumstances that may allow you to seek out punitive damages.. If there was an intent to harm (such as arson), then there may be a cause for punitive damages in your case. You would have to prove that there was negligence and malice to get punitive damages.
In cases involving the loss of a loved one in a fire or accident, you may be eligible for a wrongful death case from which you can receive compensation on behalf of your family and those your loved one left behind. There are pain and suffering damages and wrongful death damages that you may be able to collect. Texas law dictates that the people who can typically bring those cases include spouses, any minor children, or parents.
Most Common El Paso Burn Injury Accidents
The most common types of burn injury accidents include:
- Fires that get out of control
- Lack of proper safety precautions
- Non-compliant fire cords
- Improper electric work
- Smoke detectors that do not work
In the instances where someone is injured in a burn accident, there are several kinds of burns that can happen. Your skin has two layers and there are three degrees of burns that you may be suffering from.
A first degree burn affects the top layer of your skin, a second degree burn affects both layers of your skin, and a third degree burn affects both layers of your skin and the tissue underneath.
A third degree burn can be so bad that it causes damage down to the bone. There are instances in which you will need a skin graft to treat the burn. When you have a higher degree of burn, you are likely to have significant scarring. This can be an expensive recovery and can take a while to recover from.
Important First Steps After an El Paso Burn Injury
In order to have a successful case, there are a few things that you should understand:
- You are bringing a personal injury case against a liable party for your burn
- You need to be able to prove that the liable party had a duty to keep you safe
- You need to be able to prove that the liable party was negligent
- You need to be able to prove that the liable party’s negligence caused your burn
- You need to show that your injuries affected your life
Once you have this established, you should be able to have a successful case with the help of an El Paso burn injury attorney.
Obstacles You May Have to Overcome for a Successful Case
When you go to an El Paso burn injury attorney to discuss your case, you may be wondering how much you can get for your damages and injuries. Unfortunately, that information will not be available to you right away. It takes time to understand the impact that the burn has had on your life. Only when you are done with the treatment for your burn can we know how much your case is worth. There are complications with your burn that may affect your life. You may not be able to be in the sun at the beach, you may not be allowed to take a bath or a shower without hinderances, and you may have to change your employment if your injuries are aggravated by it. All of that also needs to be taken into account to determine what your compensation award will look like.
Frequently Asked Burn Injury Questions
How Do I Find the Right Burn Injury Attorney?
Catastrophic injuries are horribly painful, burn injuries can cause lifelong scarring and impairment. If you have suffered a burn injury and are looking for a burn injury attorney, it is crucial that you look for an attorney with trial experience and experience in this area of the law. An attorney with the right experience and who is a trial lawyer will know how to guide you through everything, from getting the correct medical treatment and care to receiving full and fair compensation from the insurance companies of those responsible for your burn injuries.
Here at the Chavez Law Firm, we stand ready to answer your questions and give you the information you need when deciding who to hire for your burn injury attorney.
What Are Common Mistakes After a Burn Injury?
When people get burn injuries, one mistake they make is not seeking immediate medical attention. If they have sought out emergency medical treatment, the next big mistake they make is not hiring a trial attorney with experience in this area of the law. Another common mistake is providing a statement to the insurance adjuster or the representative of those who are responsible for the burn injuries, which our firm never recommends.
If you hire an attorney who has trial experience and experience with burn injuries, they can help you not only to get the medical treatment that you deserve, but also guide you through the complexities of the legal process. We at the Chavez Law Firm stand ready to give you the information that you deserve and need to make the decisions that you need to make and to answer your questions.
Should I Be Giving a Recorded Statement After a Burn Injury?
After you have a burn injury, our firm advises that you should never speak with an insurance company representative or the representative of the negligent defendant. It’s been our experience that these representatives or insurance adjusters are not in the business of getting the full story. Their goal is to get you on record saying something that absolves their insurance company or their negligent defendant from liability so that they don’t have to compensate you full and fairly for the injuries they caused.
We know this at the Chavez Law Firm, and if you have questions or you need information about your burn injury case or claim, give us a call and we will be happy to sit down with you and answer your questions.
What is the Timeline for a Burn Injury Case?
Burn injury cases are catastrophic injury cases that often result in lifelong scarring and disfigurement. They can also result in long term pain and suffering due to not just one but multiple skin graft procedures. Because of the nature of these types of cases, it may take a little longer to resolve burn cases.
The other thing that adds to how long it takes to resolve a case is whether or not the insurance companies of those responsible for the burn injuries negotiate in good faith. When insurance companies and defendants do not negotiate in good faith, those cases often go to trial. We know this at the Chavez Law Firm, and we stand ready to provide you all the information you need, in terms of how long your burn injury case will take, and we stand ready to answer your questions.
Contact Our El Paso Burn Injury Attorneys Today for a Free Case Evaluation
If you are suffering severe injuries from a burn accident, you have every right to a personal injury case to seek full compensation. Please do not hesitate to contact Chavez Law Firm to set up your free initial consultation with our El Paso burn injury attorneys to get the results you deserve.
Download Our Free Burn Injury Guide