Texas law gives burn victims the right to full compensation: medical bills, lost income and earning capacity, as well as damages for pain, scarring, and disfigurement. Most claims must be filed within two years. We have won some of the largest burn injury results in American history, including a $222 million verdict. Call (888) 493-1629 for a free review. You pay nothing unless we win.
Texas Burn Injury Claims at a Glance
The rules that decide your claim, before you talk to any insurer.
2 years to file
Most Texas burn injury lawsuits must be filed within two years of the injury (Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.003).
The 51% rule
Texas reduces your recovery by your share of fault, and bars it entirely if you were more than 50% responsible.
Damages go beyond medical bills
Texas law allows recovery for lost earning capacity, pain, mental anguish, and scarring and disfigurement.
Evidence gets lost fast
Fire scenes get cleaned up, equipment gets repaired, and incident reports get written by the company.
You pay nothing unless we win
We take burn cases on contingency and carry all litigation costs.
Serious burns cause more than immediate pain. They mean surgeries, skin grafts, months of rehabilitation, and often permanent changes to how you look, work, and live. They happen from high heat, chemicals, electrocution, explosions, and fires, and in Houston they happen disproportionately to industrial workers. If you or a loved one has suffered a serious burn, talk to a Houston burn attorney before you talk to the insurance company. The consultation is free.
We have recovered over $25 billion for clients nationwide, including record-setting burn verdicts and settlements against oil companies, chemical manufacturers, and pipeline operators. We prepare every case as if it is going to trial, because that is what makes defendants pay what is fair before trial. Our attorneys are recognized by Best Lawyers, Super Lawyers, Forbes, and The National Association of Distinguished Counsel, and our founding partners are members of The Inner Circle of Advocates. You pay nothing unless we win.
Texas Burn Injury Law: The Two Rules That Decide Your Claim
Two rules of Texas law shape every burn injury claim.
First, the deadline: most burn lawsuits must be filed within two years of the injury under Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.003. Limited exceptions exist, for example when an injury was not immediately discoverable, but waiting is how strong claims die. Second, fault: Texas applies modified comparative negligence under § 33.001. Your compensation is reduced by your percentage of fault, and if you are found more than 50% responsible, you recover nothing.
That 51% bar is not a technicality. It is the defense strategy. Companies and insurers work to push blame onto the injured worker, because every percentage point saves them money and crossing 50% erases the claim entirely. Beating that strategy takes evidence: maintenance records, safety violations, witness accounts, and expert analysis of what actually caused the fire or explosion. That is the case we build from day one.
What Is a Burn Injury Case Worth in Texas?
There is no meaningful “average” burn settlement. The value of a burn case is driven by the severity and permanence of the injury, the cost of past and future care, lost earning capacity, and the strength of the liability evidence. Serious burn cases are routinely worth far more than victims expect, because the largest damages are the ones insurers never volunteer: decades of future treatment, diminished earnings, and compensation for pain, mental anguish, and permanent disfigurement. Before you accept any insurance offer, have a burn lawyer value the claim properly.
Who Can Be Held Liable for a Burn Injury?
Liability follows the cause, and serious burns usually have more than one. A plant operator that skipped maintenance. An equipment manufacturer whose valve or wiring failed. A contractor that ignored safety procedures. A property owner that tolerated fire hazards. A chemical supplier that failed to warn. In industrial burn cases, several of these often share responsibility, and Texas law lets us pursue each one for its share.
One more thing many Texas workers don’t know: Texas does not require most private employers to carry workers’ compensation. If your employer is a non-subscriber, you can sue them directly for negligence, and they lose key defenses when they opt out. Even where workers’ compensation applies, third parties like manufacturers and contractors can still be held fully liable. We investigate every company in the chain and hold each one accountable.
How a Burn Injury Claim Works in Texas
The Five Stages of a Burn Injury Claim
From first call to jury verdict, if the defendant makes it go that far.
1
Free consultation
We hear what happened, answer your questions, and tell you honestly what your strongest options are.
2
Investigation
Preservation letters go out, experts examine the scene and equipment, and we find what the company knew. Our investigations regularly uncover safety violations that were never disclosed.
3
Filing suit
We file in the right court, based on where the accident happened and who the defendants are.
4
Trial preparation
Many firms prepare for settlement talks. We prepare to tell your story to a jury.
5
Trial
Few firms actually try cases. We do, and defendants know it.
Houston’s High-Risk Areas for Burn Injuries
Houston’s concentration of refineries, chemical plants, and heavy industry makes it one of the highest-risk cities in America for severe burns. The OSHA offices in Texas regularly investigate safety violations at these facilities after catastrophic fires and explosions, and when serious fires occur, the Harris County Fire Marshal’s Office investigates the cause. We know these facilities, these hazards, and these defendants.
Houston Ship Channel & Petrochemical Plants
The Ship Channel corridor holds some of the largest petrochemical complexes in the country, run by companies like ExxonMobil, Shell, and LyondellBasell. These plants handle enormous volumes of flammable material, and their fires and explosions have caused catastrophic injuries.
ExxonMobil Baytown Complex
One of the largest refining complexes in the U.S., Baytown has experienced multiple industrial accidents. Burn injuries there often trace to equipment failures, deferred maintenance, and safety lapses.
Port of Houston
Workers at the nation’s busiest port by tonnage handle hazardous cargo daily. Improperly stored materials, fuel leaks, and chemical reactions cause fires, and shipyard and warehouse workers are especially exposed.
Energy Corridor & Chemical Manufacturing
The Energy Corridor concentrates oil and gas operations and chemical manufacturing, where workers face burn risks from flammable materials and high-energy processes every shift.
Construction Sites
Houston’s constant development exposes construction workers to welding flash burns, faulty wiring, and gas line ruptures.
Common causes across all of them: industrial accidents involving heated metals and exposed electricity, refinery fires and explosions, chemical burns from caustic substances, and work accidents involving hot machinery, liquids, and unsafe equipment. Employers, property owners, and manufacturers all have legal duties to prevent these injuries. When they cut corners instead, we hold them accountable.
The Cost of Serious Burn Injuries in Texas
Severe burns are among the most expensive injuries in American medicine. Treatment demands rare specialist care: the American Burn Association verifies only around 80 burn centers in the entire country, and federal HCUP data shows burn-related hospital stays carry exceptionally high costs compared with other injury care.
Where Houston Burn Patients Get Treated
The John S. Dunn Burn Center at Memorial Hermann in Houston leads emergency burn care in the region. Shriners Children’s Texas in Galveston specializes in pediatric burns, and UTMB’s Blocker Burn Unit offers advanced surgical care. The medical records these centers create become the backbone of your claim.
The costs start at hospitalization and never stop there. We fight to recover every one of them: initial hospitalization, corrective surgeries and skin grafts, physical rehabilitation, long-term loss of earning capacity, home and vehicle accommodations, caregiving costs, therapy for emotional trauma, and reduced quality of life. Combined, these routinely reach millions of dollars over a lifetime. The insurance company’s first offer will not reflect that. Get the claim valued before you sign anything.
Scarring & Disfigurement: Compensation Beyond the Medical Bills
Texas law recognizes what burn survivors know: the injury doesn’t end when the wound closes. A burn lawsuit can recover the cost of reconstructive and plastic surgery, and it can compensate the permanent harm no surgery fully fixes. Scarring and disfigurement damages exist precisely because a changed face or body changes a life. Emotional trauma is often as debilitating as the physical injury, and claims routinely include compensation for anxiety, depression, and reduced quality of life.
A Burn Survivor’s Story: How Arnold & Itkin Helped After Tragedy
One of the most devastating cases we’ve handled involved a pipeline worker severely burned during a pigging operation. A sudden fire erupted from the pipe, killing his coworker and engulfing him in flames. He had to leap a fence to escape, then run to the highway, on fire, before strangers rushed him to the nearest burn unit.
“I stayed there for 18 days. I was in so much pain that I couldn’t even sleep at night. My girlfriend had to help me bathe every day until I was able to bathe myself. I mean, I didn’t know which direction to turn after this.”
Like many burn victims, he quickly realized the company responsible wasn’t going to step up.
That’s when he called Arnold & Itkin.
“Anytime that I called or needed anything, it wasn’t a hesitation. Whatever I needed, they gave it to me, they made sure I had it. Just one call.”
We encourage you to listen to his story below.
Call (888) 493-1629 to Talk to Experienced Houston Burn Injury Lawyers
The company’s insurer started working your claim the day of the fire. You should have someone working for you just as fast. At Arnold & Itkin, our Houston burn attorneys have recovered billions for our clients and handle more serious injury claims each year than most attorneys see in a career. Whether you were burned on the job, in a plant explosion, or in a vehicle accident, we are ready to fight for everything you are owed.
How Long Do I Have to File a Burn Injury Lawsuit in Texas?
Two years from the date of injury for most claims, under Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.003. Limited exceptions exist, such as injuries that were not immediately discoverable, but evidence disappears long before the deadline arrives. Talk to a lawyer as early as you can.
Can I Sue My Employer for a Burn Injury in Texas?
Often, yes. Texas does not require most private employers to carry workers’ compensation. If your employer is a non-subscriber, you can sue them directly for negligence, and the law strips them of key defenses. Even when workers’ comp applies, third parties like equipment manufacturers, contractors, and property owners can be held fully liable.
What If I Was Partly at Fault for the Fire?
You can still recover as long as you were not more than 50% responsible. Texas reduces your compensation by your percentage of fault under the modified comparative negligence rule. Expect the defense to inflate your share; countering that argument with evidence is a core part of how we build burn cases.
What Compensation Can Burn Victims Recover?
Medical bills past and future, corrective surgeries, rehabilitation, lost wages and earning capacity, home and vehicle accommodations, caregiving costs, and non-economic damages for pain, mental anguish, and scarring and disfigurement. In serious cases the future costs dwarf the bills you have already received.
How Much Does a Burn Injury Lawyer Cost?
Nothing up front. We handle burn cases on contingency: we advance all litigation costs, and you pay nothing unless we recover a verdict or settlement for you.
