How Much Compensation Can I Claim For A Burn Injury?

By Stephen Hudson. Last Updated 19th September 2024. Burn injuries can vary widely in severity and occur in a variety of different circumstances. As well the physical scarring, burns can also cause significant psychological effects. This guide examines when you may be eligible to make a burn injury claim in more detail.

You will see information on the duties of care owed by different third parties, and how breaches of these duties can result in an accident. We have also provided a burn injury compensation table with an explanation of how these figures are calculated to aid your understanding.

Towards the bottom of this guide we look at how one of our highly experienced personal injury solicitors could help you claim compensation for burns with a specific type of No Win No Fee contract.

For more information on how to claim compensation for burns or a free assessment of your eligibility to begin a claim, contact our advisors today using the following contact information:

• Call 0800 073 8804
• Fill out our ‘claim online’ form for a call back.
• Ask your question in our live webchat.

Select a Section

1. How Much Is My Burn Claim Worth?
2. Can I Make A Burn Injury Claim?
3. Do I Need Evidence To Make A Burn Compensation Claim?
4. How Could You Suffer A Burn Injury?
5. Burn In jury Claims With A No Win No Fee Solicitor

How Much Is My Burn Claim Worth?

Depending on how badly you were affected, you could receive significant burn injury compensation. A payout can be split into two heads of loss to address different effects of the injuries.

The main head is called general damages. This considers any physical pain and mental suffering you experienced as a result of your burn accident. Those responsible for working out compensation for burns will look at medical evidence and consider the severity and lasting effects of the injuries you’ve suffered.

They can get further assistance from the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG), a collection of brackets suggesting guideline compensation for various injuries.

We’ve used some of these brackets to form the table below, but remember that all burn injury claims are different, so this is just intended as a guide. The top line is the only one not from the JCG.

What Are Special Damages?

You may have found that the impact on your life is just as significant as your burn injuries yourselves, if not more. For example, you might have paid for corrective cosmetic surgery or been unable to go back to work.

A second head of loss called special damages can contribute to your burn compensation payout. If the accident that caused your burns has also directly led to you suffering financially, you could recoup damages for the likes of:

• Lost earnings from missing work or job opportunities.
• Medical fees.
• Travel costs.
• Home healthcare bills.

Retain any evidence of these losses so you can potentially seek a payment under this head of loss. For example, you could gather payslips from before and after the accident or present your bank statement.

You can ask one of our advisors, ‘How much is my burn claim worth?’ and get a detailed rundown of what you can claim for. All you have to do is call our free helpline or open the live chat tab below.

Can I Include The Cost Of Private Medical Treatment In My Burn Injury Claim?

Yes, even if your treatment is available on the NHS, you can include the cost of private treatment in your burn injury claim.

For example, if you need surgeries to treat your burns, you might be put on an NHS waiting list. In this case, your claim can cover the cost of having these surgeries privately, as well as any extra treatments or prescriptions you need to recover.

Our team of advisors can give you more information on the kinds of costs that could be covered by your burn injury claim. Get in touch today to start your free consultation, or keep reading to learn more about how we could help.

Can I Make A Burn Injury Claim?

You are owed a duty of care in various situations. These include:

• If you go to a public place, the organisation or individual in control of that space owes you a duty of care. This is set under the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957 and means that they must ensure your reasonable safety while you are in that space.
• Your employer must take all reasonably practicable steps to ensure the health, safety and welfare at work of their employees. This is their duty of care as set out in the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 (HASAWA).
• While using the roads, all road users must navigate in a way that prevents damage and injury from occurring to themselves and to others. This is their duty of care. Road users should also comply with the Road Traffic Act 1988 and the Highway Code to uphold their duty of care.

All burn injury claims need to satisfy the eligibility requirements. This means that in order to have good grounds to make a personal injury claim, you must prove that:

• A liable party owed you a duty of care.
• There was a breach in this duty.
• You suffered injuries because of this breach.

If you have any questions such as ‘How much is my burn claim worth?’, speak with one of the advisors from our team. They can also assess whether you may  be eligible to make a claim for burn compensation.

How Long Do I Have To Make A Burn Injury Compensation Claim?

We know from the Limitation Act 1980 that the general time limit is 3 years from the date of the injury. However, there are two exceptions to this:

• Injured children – For any injured parties under 18, their time limit only begins on their 18^th birthday. Whilst a claim can be made before this time, it cannot be made by the child themselves. Instead, a litigation friend must be appointed to claim on their behalf.
• Those who lack the mental capacity to claim – Injured parties in this category also must have a litigation friend appointed in order to claim and their time limit is suspended. Should the injured party ever be deemed capable of making their own claim, then the 3-year time limit would begin.

Reach out today if you have any questions on burn injury compensation claims and their time limits.

Do I Need Evidence To Make A Burn Compensation Claim?

In order to form the basis of a valid burn compensation claim, it’s up to you to prove that your injuries were caused by a relevant third party’s negligent actions. To do this, you must ensure that you have the right evidence to build a strong case.

Evidence can help prove the extent of your burn injuries, as well as how they occurred and who is liable. Some examples of evidence that you could use to build your case include:

• Photographs: Photographs of the accident site as well as your injuries can help support your case by illustrating the extent of the harm you have suffered.
• CCTV footage: CCTV footage of the accident can help demonstrate how you were burned, and who is responsible.
• Medical records: Medical records can help illustrate the severity of your injuries and the treatment you required.
• Witness contact details: Taking the contact details of potential witnesses means that their statements can be taken by a professional at a later date.

When you choose to work with a solicitor on your burn claim, you can ask them to assist with gathering evidence and help ensure that all areas of your case are covered. To find out if you could be eligible to work with one of our solicitors, contact our team.

How Could You Suffer A Burn Injury?

There are many different ways that a burn injury could occur. For example, you could experience a burn injury:

• At work: Part of your job duties involve you handling dangerous chemicals. However, your employer failed to provide you with sufficient personal protective equipment (PPE), and as a result, you suffered a chemical burn injury.
• On the roads: Another driver fails to come to a stop at a red light, causing them to crash into your car. This causes you to suffer a burn injury to your face when the airbag deploys.
• In a public place: A hotel failed to regularly maintain a radiator in a hotel room or install a heat-protection guard over the radiator. Due to this, you suffer a burn injury to your arm when you go to turn the radiator down. 
• Beauty Treatments: You could suffer the likes of a laser hair removal burn injury which could cause blistering and scarring.

These are only a few examples of how you could suffer burns. To learn more about burn injury claims, contact our team of expert advisors. They can offer more information and can help you get started with making a burn injury compensation claim.

Burn Injury Claims With A No Win No Fee Solicitor

If you meet the eligibility criteria to make a personal injury claim for burn injury compensation, one of our No Win No Fee solicitors could assist you. Our solicitors have experience in handling a wide range of cases including burn injury claims. They could offer to work on your claim under a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA).

When claiming under a CFA, you do not have to pay your solicitor for their work upfront or throughout the claim. Furthermore, if your claim does not succeed, then you would normally not have to pay your solicitor for their services.

If your claim does succeed, you will pay your solicitor a success fee. Your solicitor will take a small, legally capped percentage of the compensation that has been awarded to cover this payment. The legal cap is in place to ensure you get to keep most of your compensation.

Contact our advisors today to see if one of our No Win No Fee solicitors can help you with your burn compensation claim. Our advisors can answer any questions you may have about claiming, such as whether you can have an example of skin burn at work claims payouts. To speak with an advisor today, you can:

• Call 0800 073 8804
• Contact us using our online contact form
• Or you can use our 24/7 live chat service

More Helpful Guides

• • Get detailed guidance on how to claim compensation and the help an expert solicitor can give.
  • How to claim compensation for a slip, trip or fall injury.
  • I cut myself on barbed wire, can I claim compensation?
  • Hairdressing compensation claims – this guide explains the process of making a personal injury claim for a hairdresser injury
  • If you’ve been injured in an accident in the gym, this guide explains how to prove a claim.
  • Care home negligence claims guide.