Chattanooga Burn Injury Lawyer
Burn injuries are extremely serious, painful, and potentially life threatening. They can also be costly, with victims sometimes requiring expensive medical treatment such as skin grafts and reconstructive surgeries. Burn injury victims also many face physical and emotional scarring, as they move forward with life coping with devastating disfigurements.
If you or a loved one has suffered a serious burn injury that resulted from someone else’s negligence, you need to learn about your right to financial compensation. At Davis Firm LLC, our Chattanooga injury lawyer has helped accident victims understand their rights to compensation, bring forth successful personal injury claims, and recover the damages that they deserve.
Please call us or contact us online today to set up a free consultation with our compassionate burn injury attorneys. There is no charge for us to begin working on your case, and you do not pay any legal fees unless we recover money for you.
Common Causes of Burn Injuries
A burn injury can be caused in a variety of settings and as the result of numerous types of accidents. Some of the common causes of burn injuries include:
- Workplace accidents
- Car accidents
- Truck accidents
- Motorcycle accidents
- Home, apartment, or building fires
- Cooking and kitchen-related accidents
- Spills of boiling liquids
- Radiation exposure
- Chemical exposure
- Steam exposure
- Defective and malfunctioning products
In some cases, burn injuries are the result of another party’s careless or reckless actions. When this happens, victims have a right to demand financial compensation for the damages they have suffered. A skilled burn injury lawyer in Chattanooga can investigate the cause of your accident and determine all potentially liable parties.
Degrees of Burn Injuries
Burns fall into different categories, including thermal burns, chemical burns, electrical burns, and radiation burns. Each burn type has the potential to be serious and leave the victim with life-changing harm or/and disfigurement.
Not only are burns classified by the source of the burn injury, but also by the degree and severity of the injury. The degrees of burn injuries include:
- First-degree burns. First-degree burns are the least severe burn injury types, although these burns can still be very painful. A first-degree burn will only affect the epidermis, which is the outermost layer of skin. Typically, this type of burn will heal on its own with minimal treatment.
- Second-degree burns. Second-degree burn injuries are more serious than first-degree burns, affecting both the epidermis and the dermis. Second-degree burns are very painful, may result in blistering and swelling, and commonly will result in scarring, too.
- Third-degree burns. Third-degree burns are extremely serious, and by some experts’ standards, the most serious burn type. Third-degree burns extend deep, going past the skin and into the fat. While these burns are more serious, they are initially less painful because the nerve endings are destroyed by the burn.
- Fourth-degree burns. Some experts recognize a fourth classification of burn injuries. Fourth-degree burns go through all layers of the skin, underlying tissues, and fat, and they may even affect muscle and bone. Nerve endings are completely destroyed, eliminating feeling and sensation. These burns can be fatal.
Treatment for a Burn Injury
The treatment that a burn injury victim may require depends on the degree of burn, the area of the burn and the amount of surface area affected, and the source of the burn.
Minor burn injuries, such as first-degree and some second-degree burns, can be treated at home or with minimal medical care. Some of the recommended treatment options for minor burn injuries include:
- Cooling the burn using cool water or an ice pack
- Applying a salve to the burn and covering it
- Keeping the burn covered and protected from sun exposure
- Using an over-the-counter medication to manage pain
If a burn injury is more serious, the necessary treatment will be more intensive, too. Some of the treatment options that may be pursued for third-degree burns include:
- Cleaning and debriding, which is the process of removing dead tissues and can be very painful
- Skin grafting
- Reconstruction surgery
- Antibiotic cream application
- Prescription medications, such as pain management drugs and antibiotics to prevent infection
If you have suffered a serious burn injury, your doctor will advise you of your treatment options and the best course of recovery.
A Burn Injury Can Change Your Life
Being involved in an accident that results in a serious burn injury can have life-changing consequences. Not only is a burn injury painful, but it can also be disfiguring. This may leave you with psychological harm, including:
- A lack of confidence
- Depression
- Anxiety
- Post-traumatic stress disorder
Burn injuries are also often disabling, and in some cases, limbs must even be amputated. A disabling burn injury may significantly affect your quality of life and prevent you from being able to return to work in the future or do the things that you love.
There are also numerous complications associated with a burn injury, including:
- Risk of infection
- Fluid loss
- Bone and joint problems
- Muscle and tissue problems
- Complications related to smoke inhalation
These complications may be dangerous or life-threatening, painful, and further diminish your quality of life.
We Pursue Maximum Compensation in Burn Injury Cases
Our Chattanooga personal injury lawyers at Davis Firm LLC are passionate about doing everything we can to help our clients seek the maximum amount of compensation available in a burn injury case. We will advocate for your right to recover compensation for your:
- Medical expenses (past, current, and future)
- Lost wages and diminished earning capacity for the future
- Pain and suffering
- Scarring and disfigurement
- Diminished quality of life
- Property damage expenses
- Any other losses, both economic and noneconomic
If the amount of damages that you have suffered is disputed by an insurance company, we will do everything we can to build a strong case for maximum compensation, whether that comes in the form of a burn injury settlement of a courtroom verdict.
Statute of Limitations for Burn Injury Cases
In Tennessee, personal injury claims must be filed within one year from the date of an accident. Because of this short time limit, it is strongly recommended that you consult with a burn injury lawyer in Chattanooga as soon as possible.
How Our Chattanooga Burn Injury Attorney Can Help You
We work diligently to build your case, identifying how your burn injury occurred and the at-fault party, calculating your damages, working with experts, negotiating with insurance companies, and preparing your case for trial if necessary. When you call a burn injury attorney in Chattanooga from our law office, we will review your case for free and guide you through your options.
We understand how tragic being involved in an accident that leaves you with serious burns is. We want to help. Please reach us today for your free consultation with a qualified attorney from our firm.