Your skin is the largest organ of your body. It is not only the elastic covering that protects the inner components of your body, it is your first line of defense against infection. When you suffer a burn, this layer of defense is compromised, which could lead you to a host of complications. If you have been injured due to a burn that has occurred to the negligence of others, you may be entitled to compensation for your injuries. Exactly how much compensation will be dependent on several factors. Here are a few of them.
Who Is Liable?
One of the first things that your burn injury attorney will do is to establish exactly who is liable for, or who caused, your injury. This may be more than one person or entity. For example, if you were burned in an automobile accident due to a faulty piece of equipment, the driver who caused the accident may be liable, the manufacturer of the airbag may be liable, and the automotive maker may be liable.
What Type Of Settlement Money Is Available?
Many times settlements are dictated by the amount of money that is available through a third party insurer, although this is not always the case. This is one of the reasons that settlements against large companies who have much high liability insurance limits are often settled for more than a case against another individual who has limited assets. Although a judge may order settlement amounts greater than the available insurance money, many times they go unpaid. Unfortunately, you are unable to get what is not there.
How Severe Is Your Injury?
The severity of your injury will also impact how much you are able to recover in your settlement. The more severe the burn often equates to the more pain and suffering you have had to endure, as well how your body may be affected in the future.
Burns are described in three different degrees. These terms indicate the amount of level of skin that is affected. These are:
- First-degree burns
- Second-degree burns
- Third-degree burns
How Much Has The Injury Cost You?
It is often very difficult to calculate how much an injury has cost you in terms of pain and suffering, but your burn injury attorney will definitely be able to get you reimbursed for any money you have had to pay out of your pocket. This could include medical treatments, medications, physical therapy, and even mileage that you have had to pay to go back and forth to your appointments. You will also be eligible to recoup any cost that are associated with time you missed from work, even if you had enough sick time or vacation time to cover the time you were out.
If you have been injured by a burn, it is not fair that you should have to bear the blunt of the expense in addition to the pain of the injury. Contact a burn injury attorney today, like Salley Law Firm PA, and allow them to review your case, so that your settlement can be on its way.
