Personal Injury-Burns
Brien Roche

There are a number of causes or scenarios of burn injuries.  The most common is household fires. A handy fire extinquisher or water source can help control the extent of injury.   

That is to say you should probably have access to such around a number of common household products that are causes of serious burn injuries. Many of them are items we pay little attention to. They include but are not limited to the following:

  • Cigarette lighters
  • Stoves
  • Electric or electronic toys
  • household furniture
  • mattresses or mattress pads
  • lighters

Things To Review In Investigating A Fire

There are several things you must review:

  • The source of certain standards. The National Institute of Standards and Technology is a U.S. agency. The U. S. Fire Administration and the Consumer Product Safety Commission are both U.S. agencies.  The National Fire Protection Association and the National Association of State Fire Marshalls are both private agencies. They both have done a great deal of testing relating to fires.
  • Recall notices for the object causing the fire is proof of a defect and may be admitted at trial on the theory that it shows that a defect was present when the product was in the manufacturer’s hands.
  • Is the plaintiff an intended user?  The intended use of a product includes any use that is to be reasonably foreseen by the seller.  A use may be foreseeable even if the precise manner in which the injury occurred was not.
  • The burning of the product must be fully explained by showing the rate of heat release and the heat at various places in the product. Also you must show the way in which smoke, carbon monoxide and other by-products are produced and the rate at which oxygen is burned.

Personal Injury-Burns from Foam

Many household items contain polyurethane foam.  This is a oil product that has a high degree of flammability.  In addition this type of product consumes a great deal of oxygen as it burns. It thereby poses a danger to anyone who is in the room where such a fire is burning.

It is possible to make furniture that does not have this type of fast burning feature.   In addition there are products that are designed to act as a bar between the highly flammable foam and the fabric that may surround it.  In addition there are a number of products that retard burning. They reduce the chance of burn injury.
Fire barrier materials that are designed to go between the fabric and the foam have been produced for decades.

Manufacturers are on notice that there are a number of different fire sources or fire prods that exist around the house.  Those who are making these household items should design their products with these expected uses in mind.
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Personal Injury-Burns and Standards

There are a number of federal rules that apply to household products such as mattresses, mattress pads, electronic toys and lighters.

These products are all subject to U.S. rules.  Those rules may be the source of standards to set the bar of how parties are to perform.

Clothing Fires

This is a industry that is regulated by the federal government and subject to intense industry lobbying. As a result the bar is set very high for liability claims.

Personal Injury-Burns and Smoke Detectors

Smoke detector defects can lead to the death or injury of all of the persons in a residence. This is the type of product defect claim that should never arise. Smoke detectors fall into groups of either ionization or photoelectric smoke detectors.  Most are ionization detectors.  These detectors emit a beam of  ions in a chamber and when the smoke enters the chamber the smoke obstructs the flow of ions thereby causing a lowered current flow and thereby causing the alarm to sound.

Photoelectric detectors emit a beam of light into a chamber and when the smoke enters the chamber and blocks the beam the alarm sounds.

Ionization detectors respond more quickly to the presence of small particles of smoke such as those produced by a flaming or fast fire.  On the other hand photoelectric detectors respond more quickly to larger particles such as those produced by a slower spreading fire.

Rate Of Alarm

The time frame between the alarm of a photoelectric detector and the alarm of an ionization detector can be lengthy.  The photoelectric detectors tend to give an sooner warning.

In any fire case that involves a faulty smoke detector the detector itself must be found or at least its security must be maintained.

The thrust of any such case is that a timely warning from a  well designed and functioning detector would have prevented injury or at least kept the injury to something minor.

Personal Injury-Burns Requiring Legal Attention

For more case results that Brien Roche has handled, see our Verdicts and Settlements and Reported Cases. All case results are specific to the facts of that case and no conclusion can be drawn as to how your case may turn out based upon the results of another case. Not sure if you have a case? Contact Brien Roche today for a Free Phone Consultation.

Also for more information see the burn injury pages on Wikipedia.

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Brien Roche

Brien A. Roche has been an attorney since 1976. Mr. Roche is admitted to practice in Virginia, the District of Columbia, and Maryland. In addition to his busy law practice, Mr. Roche is also a published author of several books & articles relating to the practice of law.

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