Burn injury claims: what they cover, who pays and what to save right now
A burn injury claim asks who caused the burn and what it will cost over your lifetime. No government source publishes an average burn settlement. Get medical care first. MedlinePlus says to call 911 for burns from chemicals or electricity, and for deep burns. Then keep the device or product, and do not hand it to anyone.
Last checked November 9, 2026 · Official sources (36)
What is the average burn injury settlement?
No agency publishes one, and settlement terms often stay private. Burn claims also vary more than most. A scald on a forearm that heals in weeks and a full-thickness burn that needs repeated grafts are barely the same kind of case. Any single average would mislead you.
MedlinePlus sorts burns into three levels. Knowing the name on your chart helps you read your own records and any offer.
| Level on your chart | What it means | What it often means for a claim |
|---|---|---|
| Superficial (first-degree) | Outer skin only; pain, redness, swelling | Often heals without lasting harm, so the claim is usually smaller |
| Partial-thickness (second-degree) | Outer and underlying skin, with blistering | Location matters. Burns on the hands, feet, face, groin, buttocks or over a major joint count as major |
| Full-thickness (third-degree) | Deep layers of skin; white or blackened, may be numb | May bring surgery, grafts, scarring and long-term limits |
Other things move the value: how much of your body was burned, whether your airway was hurt, whether scars tighten across a joint, the job you can still do, and whether a company with real insurance is responsible. MedlinePlus lists scarring after burns as a cause of contracture, a tightening that limits how a joint moves.
When does a burn need emergency care?
This is general information from NIH, not medical advice for your burn. MedlinePlus says to call 911 when a burn is caused by chemicals or electricity. It warns that the most serious burns can be painless, so feeling little pain is no comfort. Breathing in smoke, steam or chemical fumes can burn your airways. Quick care for a major burn can help prevent scarring, disability and deformity.
Afterward, watch for infection. Pus, fever, growing pain or red streaks spreading from the burn are reasons to contact a provider right away. An infection that shows up in your chart is also part of the injury's history, so keep those visits documented.
What should I save after a burn accident?
This is the part most people miss. In a burn case the thing that caused the harm is often the evidence, and it tends to get thrown out, repaired or returned to the store.
- Keep the heater, battery, appliance, pan, chemical container or clothing. Do not clean it or try to fix it.
- Put it somewhere dry and safe, and write down who has had it since the injury.
- Photograph the scene, the product's model plate and the burn itself, each week if you can.
- Save receipts, manuals, packaging and online order records.
- If it was a fire, ask for the fire department's report. If it was at work, ask for the incident report.
- Do not let an insurer, landlord or manufacturer take the item without talking to a lawyer first.
- If a child was hurt, write down who was supervising and exactly what happened, while it is fresh.
Who can be responsible for a burn injury?
| How the burn happened | Who may be responsible | Insurance that may pay |
|---|---|---|
| Faulty heater, furnace or equipment | Maker, seller or the company that serviced it | Product or business liability |
| Scalding tap water in a rental | Landlord or property manager | Property liability |
| Car crash or vehicle fire | Other driver, or a vehicle or parts maker | Auto liability, product liability |
| Restaurant or hotel | The business | General liability |
| Workplace | Employer through comp, plus outside contractors or equipment makers | Workers' comp, third-party liability |
Water temperature is a concrete example. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission says burns can occur with six seconds at 140 degrees or thirty seconds at 130 degrees. If a landlord's water heater was set high, the actual temperature is evidence, and someone can test it. Ask for that before the setting changes.
What can a burn claim cover, now and in the future?
- Emergency care, burn center stays, surgery, grafts and wound care.
- Future surgeries, scar treatment, pressure garments and therapy, when reasonably probable.
- Lost pay and lost earning power, including a job you can no longer do around heat or with damaged hands.
- Pain, disability, disfigurement and anxiety.
- Counseling for trauma after a fire or explosion.
When bad conduct is involved, such as a company ignoring a known hazard, exemplary or punitive damages may come up. Texas requires clear and convincing evidence of fraud, malice or gross negligence. A cap then applies: two times economic damages, plus noneconomic damages up to $750,000, or $200,000 if that is greater. Punitive money is not excluded from income for federal tax purposes.
How do insurers and companies dispute burn claims?
| What they say | What can answer it |
|---|---|
| You misused the product | The manual, the packaging, and how an ordinary person would use it |
| The item is gone, so nothing can be proved | Why you keep it. Photos and purchase records help if it was already lost |
| The burn healed well | Photos over time, and doctor notes on tightness, itching and heat sensitivity |
| Scar surgery is cosmetic | A surgeon explaining that it restores movement or function, when that is true |
| Future care is a guess | A written care plan from your burn team with expected procedures and timing |
| You were partly at fault | Facts about warnings and hazards. In Texas, more than 50 percent blame ends the claim |
What are the burn injury rules in Arizona and Texas?
| Issue | Arizona | Texas |
|---|---|---|
| General filing deadline | 2 years | 2 years |
| Child who was burned | Time under 18 does not count | Time as a minor is not included |
| Burned on public property or by a public employee | 180-day notice; 1 year to sue | 6-month notice; a city may have its own period |
| Cap on damages | Amount recovered not subject to statutory limit | Exemplary damages capped |
| Burn at work | Arizona comp rules apply; a schedule covers some losses of body parts | Not every employer has comp. Lifetime income benefits can apply to severe burns |
| Hospital bills | Hospitals can claim a lien | Lien if admitted within 72 hours |
A word on children: even when the deadline pauses, proof does not. Photos, products and witnesses still disappear, so act early.
How long does a burn injury claim take?
No official timeline exists, and burn cases rarely move fast. Doctors may need months to see how grafts and scars settle before anyone can price future care. Product cases add experts and testing. Jury cases in 2005 government data averaged 27 months from filing, and that was across all civil cases. Serious burns can take longer. Filing suit can protect your deadline even while treatment continues.
Mistakes that hurt burn claims:
- Throwing away the device, or returning it for a refund.
- Accepting a quick offer before grafts and scars have settled.
- Skipping pressure garments or therapy without telling your care team why.
- Missing a 180-day or 6-month government notice because you were still in the hospital.
Questions
How much is a burn injury worth?
There is no official figure. It depends on depth, location, how much of the body was burned, surgeries, scars, work you lost, who is responsible and what insurance exists.
Who pays if a burn happened at a restaurant or hotel?
Usually the business's general liability insurer, if the business was careless. Report it, ask for a copy of the incident report, and photograph the hazard.
Can I sue if a heater or battery caused my burn?
Possibly. Makers and sellers can be responsible for defective products. The product itself is the main evidence, so keep it as it is.
What if my child was burned?
Both Arizona and Texas pause the general deadline while a person is a minor. Government claims can have different rules, so ask a lawyer early.
Do I have to pay taxes on a burn settlement?
The IRS says proceeds for a physical injury are non-taxable if you did not deduct those medical costs earlier. Punitive damages are treated differently.
Burn injury? See if you are owed money.
A free case review. $0 upfront. No fee unless you win.
See if I’m owed moneySources (36)
- MedlinePlus (NIH), checked 2026-11-09. “The burn is caused by chemicals or electricity.”
- MedlinePlus (NIH), checked 2026-11-09. “The most serious burns can be painless.”
- Arizona Constitution, art. 2, § 31, checked 2026-11-09. “No law shall be enacted in this state limiting the amount of damages to be recovered for causing the death or injury of any person”
- Texas Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 41.008, checked 2026-11-09. “Exemplary damages awarded against a defendant may not exceed an amount equal to the greater of”
- Texas Labor Code § 408.161, checked 2026-11-09. “third degree burns that cover at least 40 percent of the body and require grafting”
- U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics, Civil Bench and Jury Trials in State Courts, 2005, checked 2026-11-09. “The terms of settlement agreements and other key information for civil cases resolved prior to trial may not be reported to the court or may not be publicly available.”
- MedlinePlus (NIH), checked 2026-11-09. “Partial-thickness burns (formerly known as second-degree burns) affect both the outer and underlying layer of skin.”
- MedlinePlus (NIH), checked 2026-11-09. “Second-degree burns on the hands, feet, face, groin, buttocks, or over a major joint”
- MedlinePlus (NIH), checked 2026-11-09. “Full-thickness burns (formerly known as third-degree burns) affect the deep layers of skin.”
- MedlinePlus (NIH), checked 2026-11-09. “Scarring after traumatic injury or burns”
- MedlinePlus (NIH), checked 2026-11-09. “You can also burn your airways if you breathe in smoke, steam, superheated air, or chemical fumes”
- MedlinePlus (NIH), checked 2026-11-09. “Major burns need urgent medical care. This can help prevent scarring, disability, and deformity.”
- MedlinePlus (NIH), checked 2026-11-09. “Red streaks spreading from the burn”
- MedlinePlus (NIH), checked 2026-11-09. “Faulty space heaters, furnaces, or industrial equipment”
- U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, checked 2026-11-09. “Burns will also occur with a six-second exposure to 140 degree water or with a thirty second exposure to 130 degree water.”
- Revised Arizona Jury Instructions (Civil), Personal Injury Damages 1, checked 2026-11-09. “Reasonable expenses for necessary medical care, treatment, and services already incurred and reasonably probable to be incurred in the future.”
- Revised Arizona Jury Instructions (Civil), Personal Injury Damages 1, checked 2026-11-09. “Lost earnings to date, and any decrease in earning power or capacity in the future.”
- Revised Arizona Jury Instructions (Civil), Personal Injury Damages 1, checked 2026-11-09. “The pain, discomfort, suffering, disability, disfigurement, and anxiety already experienced, and reasonably probable to be experienced in the future.”
- Texas Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 41.003, checked 2026-11-09. “exemplary damages may be awarded only if the claimant proves by clear and convincing evidence”
- Texas Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 41.008, checked 2026-11-09. “two times the amount of economic damages; plus (B) an amount equal to any noneconomic damages found by the jury, not to exceed $750,000; or (2) $200,000”
- Internal Revenue Service, checked 2026-11-09. “are excludable from gross income with the exception of punitive damages”
- Texas Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 33.001, checked 2026-11-09. “a claimant may not recover damages if his percentage of responsibility is greater than 50 percent”
- A.R.S. § 12-542, checked 2026-11-09. “there shall be commenced and prosecuted within two years after the cause of action accrues”
- Texas Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.003, checked 2026-11-09. “not later than two years after the day the cause of action accrues”
- A.R.S. § 12-502, checked 2026-11-09. “the period of such disability shall not be deemed a portion of the period limited for commencement of the action”
- Texas Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.001, checked 2026-11-09. “the time of the disability is not included in a limitations period”
- A.R.S. § 12-821.01, checked 2026-11-09. “within one hundred eighty days after the cause of action accrues”
- A.R.S. § 12-821, checked 2026-11-09. “All actions against any public entity or public employee shall be brought within one year after the cause of action accrues and not afterward.”
- Texas Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 101.101, checked 2026-11-09. “not later than six months after the day that the incident giving rise to the claim occurred”
- Texas Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 101.101, checked 2026-11-09. “A city's charter and ordinance provisions requiring notice within a charter period permitted by law are ratified”
- Arizona Constitution, art. 18, § 6, checked 2026-11-09. “the amount recovered shall not be subject to any statutory limitation”
- Texas Department of Insurance, Division of Workers' Compensation, checked 2026-11-09. “Not all Texas employers provide workers' compensation insurance, but most do.”
- A.R.S. § 33-931, checked 2026-11-09. “is entitled to a lien for the care and treatment or transportation of an injured person”
- Texas Property Code § 55.002, checked 2026-11-09. “must be admitted to a hospital not later than 72 hours after the accident”
- U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics, Civil Bench and Jury Trials in State Courts, 2005, checked 2026-11-09. “the processing of a case required an additional half year for a jury trial (27 months), compared to a bench trial (21 months)”
- IRS Publication 4345, checked 2026-11-09. “did not take an itemized deduction for medical expenses related to the injury or sickness in prior years, the full amount is non-taxable”