Burn Injuries from Defective Products: Pursuing a Product Liability Claim in California
April 22, 2025- Categories: Defective Products Personal Injury
Burn injuries can be some of the most horrific harms suffered by unsuspecting consumers who are using products they trust and rely on. Manufacturers and designers that advertise new and innovative products have a responsibility to create safe and reliable appliances and products that pose no danger to the consumers who buy them. Sadly, this is not always the case. Whether it’s because of greed, inadequate processes, or failed quality standards, the producers of flawed products put everyone at risk. Burn injuries can range from painful to life-threatening, and they can cause months of recovery, permanent disability, and even death.
Types of burns can include:
- Thermal burns from heat sources
- Electrical burns from electric currents
- Chemical burns from corrosive substances
- Radiological burns from radiation exposure.
If you’ve suffered a burn injury due to a defective product, you could be entitled to file a product liability claim against the manufacturer, distributor, and/or designer. Lawsuits can cite:
- Defective manufacturing due to poorly maintained equipment, process malfunctions, or safety hazards at a factory
- Defective design due to faulty assumptions, mistakes, or poor execution during the design phase
- Defective packaging that fails to warn consumers about potential product dangers.
Depending on the circumstances in your case and the severity of injuries, you could be entitled to significant compensation based on medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering and other losses. These laws are complicated, though, and there are many things to know about pursuing a product liability claim in California. That’s why it’s so important to have a skilled and experienced personal injury attorney fighting for your rights.
Neale & Fhima has a 99% success rate in personal injury cases. To ensure that you have outstanding legal representation, call Neale & Fhima today at 888-407-2955.
Understanding Product Liability in California
Understanding product liability in California can be head-spinning. That’s because the laws are detailed and intricate. To prove a product liability case, your attorney must show:
- The product has a defect.
- The defect made the appliance or item unreasonably dangerous.
- The defect caused your injury.
- You used the product appropriately, as explained in the directions.
Your lawyer will prove your case by gathering documentation, researching similar cases, interviewing witnesses, preserving the defective product that caused the burn, consulting experts, and documenting your injury through medical records, police or emergency responders’ reports (if any), video, photographs, and any other means possible. Your lawyer will also investigate the manufacturer to see if it has a history of recalls, complaints, or quality assurance breaches.
Dangerous Appliances and Household Items
Common Defective Products Causing Burn Injuries
There are several types of household appliances and products that can pose a risk of personal injury. Typically, items that heat up, have a flame, contain batteries, or function on electrical outlets have the greatest potential for burn injuries from defective products. Some of these include:
- Toasters
- Ovens
- Coffee makers
- Air fryers
- Battery-powered devices
- Batteries
- Space heaters
- Electric blankets
- E-cigarettes and vaping devices
- Gas fireplaces
- Hair styling devices like curling irons and hair dryers
- Cleaning chemicals
- Flammable clothing
- Hot water heaters
- Outdoor grills and camping equipment
- Lamps and lighting fixtures.
Burn Injuries from Vaping Devices
E-cigarettes and vaping devices have become widely popular in recent years, and burn injuries caused by these are on the rise. Researchers estimate that thousands of consumers are injured each year. Injuries often involve second-degree (35% of cases) or a combination of second- and third-degree burns (20% of cases). The vast majority of victims of vaping device burns are males (90%), particularly between the ages of 20-29. These burn injuries include facial trauma like lacerations, eye damage, and broken teeth; burned hands and loss of fingers; groin injuries and burns when a device explodes in a pocket; neck trauma; and even brain damage.
Burn Injuries from Airbags
Airbags in vehicles pose a different kind of burn danger, though a serious one nonetheless. Airbag injuries and burns can be thermal burns caused by hot gasses released during rapid inflation; mechanical or friction burns from the high-velocity impact of the airbag; and/or chemical burns from alkaline substances used in the deployment reaction. Also, airbag burns might not show up immediately after a car crash or unanticipated inflation. Instead, these burns sometimes appear a few hours or days later.
Consumers should always read the directions and use products appropriately to avoid severe burns or death. Design flaws, manufacturing errors, and inadequate warnings and instructions can cause catastrophic injuries.
Compensation Burn Victims Can Receive
Types of Damages Recoverable in Burn Injury Cases
If you or a loved one has been seriously burned due to use of a defective product, you could receive substantial compensation, depending on the facts in the case and the severity of your injuries. These damages can include:
Economic
- Medical, hospital, and doctor bills
- The cost of future medical care and rehabilitation
- Lost wages
- Loss of future earning potential
- Property damage
Non-Economic
- Pain and suffering
- Scarring and disfigurement
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Depression, anxiety, PTSD, and other emotional harm
- Loss of consortium (spouse)
- Wrongful death
Punitive
In uncommon and particularly egregious circumstances, a judge can award additional punitive damages if the manufacturer, designer, or distributor was willfully negligent, deceitful, or had a history of ignoring safety standards. Punitive damages are designed to send a warning and have a chilling effect on future wrongdoers.
Trust Neale & Fhima to Fight for Your Rights
The Importance of Seeking Legal Representation
At Neale & Fhima, our experienced burn injury lawyers have an outstanding record of recovering more than $50 million in rightful compensation for personal injury victims throughout Southern California. Our lawyers are tough and unflinching when negotiating with insurance companies. We are committed to getting the maximum payout possible in every case. We will enforce your rights as a claimant and not let insurance companies take advantage of you. To find out what your case could be worth, call us for a free consultation at 888-407-2955.
Attorney Aaron Fhima
Aaron Fhima is a trial attorney who has secured numerous settlements and verdicts against large corporations and some of the largest auto manufacturers in the world. Representing consumers and injury victims throughout the state of California, Aaron’s practice areas include personal injury, and lemon law litigation. Aaron has a long record of success taking on large defense firms; and he doesn’t hesitate to take cases to trial when necessary to enforce his clients’ rights. [ Attorney Bio ]
