How Is the Value of a Burn Injury Established?
As with any personal injury, it’s challenging to make an accurate prediction of the value of a burn injury case. It’s better to understand what goes into determining the value of a claim rather than trying to predict on your own. The biggest factors examined are the severity of the injury, the intentions of the person who caused the burns, and the extent to which the defendant can pay a settlement or verdict. Burn injuries tend to be of higher value because of the pain and potential of permanent scarring.
Suffering a burn injury for any reason can be traumatic, but knowing that it could have been prevented can heighten the feeling of trauma and frustration. The burn injury attorneys at Mintz Law Firm are committed to being there for our clients throughout the entire process. We know how challenging it is to recover fair compensation and go the extra mile to provide our clients with the legal support they need to secure favorable results.
What Factors Determine the Value of a Burn Injury?
Personal injury values are dictated by the specifics of the individual and the impact that the injury has on them. The same applies to burn injury cases. However, three main factors play a critical role in determining the value of a burn injury.
Where and How Did the Burn Injury Happen?
When reaching a settlement, both sides negotiate based on what they believe the victim should be awarded. The “how” and “where” the burn injury occurred are important because the degree of the at-fault party’s liability affects how much a jury is willing to award the victim at trial. In other words, how bad the situation looks is crucial to the value of a burn injury case. Burn injuries can happen in numerous ways, including:
- Workplace injuries
- Faulty consumer product
- Arson or another intentional burning
- Car accidents
- Truck accidents
For instance, if the burn injury is an accidental work-related injury, regardless of whether it was preventable or not, the perceived value of the case is likely to be much lower than if the injury was the result of a third party’s failure to follow safety regulations. The lower the perceived value is, the lower the settlement amount will be.
Punitive Damages
If the at-fault party’s actions were intentional or grossly negligent, the burn victim might be able to recover punitive damages. These damages are sometimes referred to as exemplary damages, as they are designed to punish the at-fault party to set an example and discourage others from committing similar acts. Punitive damages are recoverable when the at-fault party acted in an egregious or reprehensible manner. A party that intentionally burns a victim is almost always responsible for paying punitive damages.
Physical and Emotional Pain and Suffering
Compensation in burn injury cases involves the same type of damages available in other personal injury cases. However, burn injuries in particular can be incredibly painful and can lead to permanent and severe disfigurement.
Liable parties must not only compensate the victim for the physical pain the burn caused but will continue to cause both physically and emotionally. Emotional and physical pain and suffering take into account the extent and nature of the disfigurement because it will likely lead to negative feelings such as depression. The more pain and emotional suffering the burn injury cases, the higher the value of the case.
Contact an Experienced Burn Injury Lawyer at Mintz Law Firm
Any kind of burn injury has the potential to be incredibly harmful physically, emotionally, and financially. However, there’s an extra level of trauma added when the injury could have been prevented. Mintz Law Firm is a personal injury firm that believes victims who suffered at the hands of another person’s careless, reckless, and even malicious actions deserve to be fairly compensated.
Regardless of the severity of your injury, you deserve to have an attorney at your side who will aggressively pursue maximum compensation. At Mintz Law Firm, our attorneys have extensive experience in numerous personal injury accidents and have the skills, resources, and dedication necessary to help our clients secure the best possible outcomes. Contact our firm today to schedule a consultation through our contact form or call (303) 462-2999.