Settling a personal injury case gets you damages faster than going all the way to trial. However, you should never settle for a value that’s too low. You can only get damages once, and settling for a low value means missing out on damages you should have been entitled to.
In a burn injury, your damages could be very high. A good settlement would cover all medical costs, now and into the future, plus lost wages and pain and suffering. Calculating these damages usually means working with an experienced lawyer, as it can be difficult to put a price on intangible harms like pain and emotional distress.
For help, call Rice Law’s Maryland burn injury lawyers at (410) 694-7291 today.
What Damages Can You Claim?
In a burn injury case, you may be entitled to any of these damages that are relevant to your case.
Medical Bills
Burns often require intensive medical care. The cost of this treatment can be incredibly expensive, especially if you need to spend a long time in the hospital, require skin grafts, and need ongoing physical therapy to deal with permanent injuries and motor skill issues from the burns.
Lost Wages
Burns can keep you in the hospital for a long time, or result in physical disabilities. For example, serious burns to the hands may make you unable to perform your job ever again.
Even if the injuries were completely unrelated to your work, the fact that they limit your ability to work means the defendant should pay you for those wages you lose.
Past and Future Damages
You need damages as soon as you can get them, which likely means settling your case before you have received all of the medical care you need. On top of that, some care will be ongoing, and your inability to work might last for the rest of your life.
This means that settlements need to include the past damages you already suffered, plus the reasonable cost of expected future damages. Projecting these costs often means consulting actuarial tables and working with medical and economic experts our Maryland burn injury attorneys can consult with on your case.
Property Damage
Depending on how the accident happened, you may have suffered expensive property damage costs, too. For example, the damage to your car might be quite expensive. Compared to your injuries and pain and suffering, this might be a drop in the bucket, but it is important to get all costs repaid in a good settlement.
Home Care Needs
The cost of ongoing replacement services at your home or even home nursing care should also be included as a consequence of the accident that injured you.
Other Economic Damages
Additionally, any other costs or expenses tied to the accident/injury should also be paid by the party responsible for causing it.
Non-Economic Damages (Pain and Suffering)
There are plenty of damages that have no clear price or economic effect. These “non-economic” damages are often called “pain and suffering,” but they account for
- Lost ability
- Disfigurement and visible, obvious injuries
- Shame and embarrassment
- Feelings of loss
- Amputation and lost function
- Emotional distress
- Physical pain
- And more.
Severity of Injury
Pain and suffering damages, and the general cost of your case, are affected greatly by the severity of your injuries. These are usually rated in a few areas when it comes to burn injuries.
Burn Degree/Stage
More serious burn injuries are generally more “severe” injuries. Burn “degrees” are usually based on how many layers of skin are affected, with first-degree burns affecting only the outer layer and third-degree burns penetrating the dermis, epidermis, and underlying tissue (e.g., muscle).
Although third-degree burns might not “hurt” physically because the nerve endings are often completely destroyed, this injury is still more “severe,” overall. The incredible, permanent damage means higher “pain and suffering” damages, even if it doesn’t cause as much literal physical pain as lower degree burns.
Total Body Area
The total area of your burns will be a clear factor we can point to to say a burn is more serious or severe. Obviously, burns affecting 100% of your body would be far worse in anyone’s mind than a burn on only 1-2% of your body.
This is a clear way we can describe a burn as serious to an insurance company, a judge, or a jury.
Lost Function/Amputation
If you can no longer use parts of your body because of the serious burns, this is an incredible level of severity. Many burns also cause or require amputation, which is considered at least as severe as total lost function, if not worse.
Calculating Pain and Suffering
Once we have a general gauge of the severity, we can translate that into non-economic damages through these possible calculation methods.
Multiplier Method
Based on the injury’s severity, we can choose a number from 1.5 to 5. This is a general rating of the severity, but we use it as a multiplier to apply to the economic damages in your case.
For example, if your total economic damages are $500,000 and your injury is a 4 out of 5 in severity, we multiply the $500,000 by 4 and claim $2 million in pain and suffering alone ($2.5 million total).
However, see the discussion on caps/limits below.
Per Diem Method
Alternatively, we can factor in the severity of your injury to choose a per-day/per diem value for your pain and suffering. This usually starts with your daily wage, then increases or decreases from there.
Then we estimate how many days you will face pain and suffering for, now and into the future. For example, if you generally work for $50,000 a year, that’s around $190 per day. If we say your severe injury is worth a bit over twice that, we might claim around $400 per day.
This often arrives at a different result than the multiplier method, and we can use each option in negotiations.
Pain and Suffering Limits
“Non-economic damages,” including pain and suffering, are capped in Maryland. Until October 1, 2026, that cap is $965,000. From October 1, 2026, to October 1, 2027, the cap is $980,000.
That means that is the maximum we can get under Maryland law, even if our calculations show higher pain and suffering. Economic damages are not capped.
Call Our Burn Injury Attorneys in Maryland Today
For a free review of your case, call Rice Law at (410) 694-7291 to speak with our Maryland personal injury attorneys.