Have you ever wondered what scald injury compensation you could be eligible for? Did you suffer a scald burn in an accident at work, in public, or during a road traffic accident that wasn’t your fault? This article aims to explain the process of starting a personal injury claim against a liable party, and we use an example case study to illustrate this.
In this guide, we pay close attention to how a claim will be driven by negligence, eligibility and evidence. We look at;
- How a claim is valued,
- Establish who had a duty of care if anyone,
- Examine the laws that support your claim and
- Finally, explain the two types of damages that when combined, can significantly improve your final scald injury compensation amount.
Starting a personal injury case can seem daunting, and you may worry about the cost of using a solicitor to represent your case. We seek to explain the process and show you how using a No Win No Fee solicitor to handle your case can help ease those concerns. Speak to us on 0800 408 7825 at any point if you have questions, or you can write to us at Public Interest Lawyers where our friendly team is available 24/7 to discuss your claim.
Scald injury compensation
Select a Section
- What Is A Scald Injury And Can I Claim Compensation?
- Can Scald Injuries Cause Financial Loss?
- Accidents That Can Lead To Scald Injuries
- Claim For Care After Suffering A Scald Injury
- What Can A Compensation Payout For A Scald Injury Include?
- Case Study: £11,000 Compensation Payout For Scald Injuries
- Examples Of Compensation Payouts For Scald Injuries
- No Win No Fee Agreements And Scald Injury Claims
- Make A Personal Injury Claim Today
- Extra Materials On Scald Injuryy Claims
What Is A Scald Injury And Can I Claim Compensation?
Any contact with boiling water or steam can cause scald burns and depending on the severity of contact, can cause serious injuries. Water at 60 degrees centigrade can scald naked skin in under 3 seconds. When boiling water touches our skin, it causes blistering, and nerve damage, and can leave severe scars or disfigurement.
You can read more information on the NHS website here. If you came into contact with boiling water or steam at work or in public and it resulted in injury, you could have grounds to start a personal injury claim. However, negligence would need to be proven first.
Supporting Legislation
The following contains legislation that could be used to support a personal injury claim. The Health And Safety At Work, etc. Act 1957 outlines every employer’s duty to provide as safe a working environment as possible. Proper training, information, and on-site maintenance may help to establish this. Our example case study involves an accident in the workplace. Please read this guide on how to report your injury correctly.
Anyone who operates a private business or is in charge of an area that is accessible to the general public has a duty of care to safety under The Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957. This law also obliges local authorities to ensure that any street or pavement, leisure centre, library, or other public facility is as safe for us to use as possible. Claims against the council may fall under this piece of legislation.
The Highway Code is a set of guidelines that urges all road users to show a duty of care to each other. Regardless of age or experience, this guide asks that motorists even drive with the knowledge that some other road users may not demonstrate the standard level of requisite skill and anticipate it.
Acting together, these laws seek to create as safe an environment as possible. If as a result, you suffered an injury that you believe would not have happened if a duty of care had been fully adhered to, speak to our team today about identifying who was to blame.
Can Scald Injuries Cause Financial Loss?
A scald injury has all the similar pain and discomfort issues to a fire burn. If you were unlucky enough to be badly scalded, you might be significantly unable to function as usual for a while.
In fact, during this incapacitation period, you may notice the accident and injury have adversely affected your ability to work. This may mean you lose out on income. The costs of handling your situation can soon spiral and add to the suffering you are already under the injuries.
A No Win No Fee lawyer can help. Seeking something called ‘special damages,’ your lawyer will be able to advise on how to keep track of these out-of-pocket expenses. These financial losses or expenses could be included as part of your damage claim. Therefore it is vital that you keep proof of any expenses and losses in the form of receipts, bank slips and wage slips
Accidents That Can Lead To Scald Injuries
If an adequate duty of care is missing, anywhere can become an accident hot spot. Government statistics show that during 2019/20 a staggering 693,000 people reported an injury in the workplace alone, and the roads have a similar shocking prevalence. Situations where you could be exposed to a scalding injury;
- Accidents in kitchens or canteens
- Faulty high-pressure valves or machinery
- During a road traffic accident
- Chemical canister or storage area malfunction
- As part of an assault or crime.
If you came into contact with something that scalded you, speak to our team today to discuss your eligibility for scald injury compensation. If you’re sure the accident resulting in your injury shouldn’t have happened, meaning someone is liable, you could be owed.
Claim For Care After Suffering A Scald Injury
Whilst you recover from your injuries, you may still need help to attend to basic daily tasks. Family and friends might be able to help. In fact, the value of the time spent helping you would be based on an hourly rate.
However, if you do not have the option to rely on family or friends, you may need to consider paying for a professional carer to come into your home to help out. This can be costly. If your recovery takes a long time, they could quickly erode your savings, or worse, push you into debt.
A No Win No Fee lawyer can reclaim these costs for you by including them under the special damages heading of your case. These damages could be recovered but only if the case is successful.
What Can A Compensation Payout For A Scald Injury Include?
When your No Win No Fee lawyer starts to calculate your potential settlement amount, they will consider two heads of loss:
- General damages are potential awards that attempt to give a monetary figure to the pain and suffering your injuries have caused you. The Judicial College provide guidelines for various injuries. A medical assessment may be required to validate the injuries. This will confirm that they resulted from the accident you describe, not an initial or long-standing condition. This is essential evidence in your case and underpins your eligibility. It’s also a chance for you to discuss recovery, prognosis, and any long-term implications of what happened
- Special damages are designed to reimburse you for all the tangible and ‘concrete’ expenses that your injuries have caused you. Along with this anything that can be proved to have resulted in lost money because of your injuries could be included. As well as that loss of earnings and carer costs, travel expenses to hospital visits, and missed future work opportunities can be considered. If you’re not sure that a payment could be included, speak to our team. You might be surprised.
Compensation amounts are never guaranteed, and every case differs. Nonetheless, when you discuss your case with a No Win No Fee solicitor rather than an online compensation calculator, you will receive a much more accurate figure.
Case Study: £11,000 Compensation Payout For Scald Injuries
Miss Adams was reasonably new in her job at the coffee shop. She had been thrown in at the deep end, serving customers and learning how to use the appliances as quickly as she could. Miss Adams did not receive any initial training,
While making a steaming coffee, her colleague was distracted and left the steamer valve in the open position where it sprayed 200-degree steam straight across Miss Adams’s neck, causing a serious scald.
Miss Adams had to have treatment at the hospital. In addition, she was unable to work during this time and lost out on holiday she had planned. Her mum had to take time off work to check in on her and help with basic tasks, and the medications and hospital visits became expensive.
She replayed what happened that day over and over in her mind. Her colleague had acted in a negligent manner. The accident was avoidable and her injury preventable. Finally, after mulling things over Miss Adams decided to make a compensation claim.
After speaking to a No Win No Fee lawyer about her incident, it became clear that she had grounds to launch a liability case against the employer. She started to gather all the evidence of her out-of-pocket expenses. The case was settled out of court, resulting in Miss Adamas receiving £11,000 in scald injury compensation. The payout included both special and general damages.
This case is merely an example. If you have any doubts or confusion about your case’s specifics, please call for a no-obligation chat about your options.
Examples Of Compensation Payouts For Scald Injuries
As we have previously explained compensation settlements are made up of general and special damages. Therefore to get the full picture of what can be claimed for we advise speaking with a solicitor. Our table explains a typical breakdown of special damages:
| Special damages |
|---|
| Miss Adams’s mother needed to care for her daughter and lost a week of work – £250 |
| Miss Adams was unable to work for two weeks – £1,250 |
| She lost the deposit of a missed weekend break – £250 |
| She paid out for travel costs to hospital and skin medications – £250 |
Speak to our team today. By calling our accident claim team you will receive a free consultation. There is no obligation to proceed. If our advisors feel you have a valid case they will transfer you to a solicitor on our panel. Therefore you have nothing to lose.
No Win No Fee Agreements And Scald Injury Claims
No Win No Fee or CFA (Conditional Fee Agreements) are useful for people if they lack the immediate funds to hire a solicitor. Understandably you may be apprehensive about using a personal injury solicitor, however, there are many benefits to a CFA, such as:
- There are no upfront fees to pay
- Also, no fees to pay while your case is ongoing
- If your case is unsuccessful, there’s nothing to pay your lawyers
- Finally, if your case wins, a small ‘success fee’ is payable to the lawyer who is capped by law to remain low and ensure the bulk of the money goes to you
- Also, this fee is not payable until you have received your payout
- You receive expert legal advice and support throughout your case.
Make A Personal Injury Claim Today
To find quality or top personal injury lawyers you could use reviews to narrow down your search. Understandably you may not have the time required to do this. You could call our advisors to discuss your case and if they feel your claims are valid they could refer you to our panel of solicitors.
Thanks to the internet, the precise location of your No Win No Fee lawyer is no longer crucially important. Therefore, you can use a solicitor no matter where they are based. Our panel of personal injury solicitors handles cases remotely. Speak to our team, and benefit from this nationwide service.
- Call us direct on 0800 408 7825
- Write to us at Public Interest Lawyers
- Use our Live Chat function, bottom right
To conclude we hope that this article has helped in your decision to launch a negligence case and seek scald injury compensation. If you would like to discuss a case like this or any other injury that you suffered due to the carelessness of others, please get in touch today.
Extra Materials On Scald Injury Claims
Reading on claims against the council, please read here
More information about accident hot spots, please read here
For further details about accidents on public transport, please read here
For information on the treatment of scalds, please read here