Scalding burn injuries from tap water are all too common and often result in serious and permanent injuries ot the burn victim. These burns can result from a defective hot water heater or a hot water heater with the temperature setting too high for human contact. Hot water heaters often have settings up to 150 degrees Farenheit, but a temperature of 110 degrees is oten the tolerable level for a person. The Consumer Product Safety Commission suggests that a hot water heater be set no higher than 120 degrees.
The most common victims are young children and the elderly who do not "test" the water before getting into a bathtub or shower. The unsuspecting victim has no idea that they are about to encounter a water temperature that can cause third degree burns. Many times, a baby sitter or caretaker will set the temperature too high without regard to the safety of the person going into the bath or shower.
A scalding burn injury victim from hot tap water does have legal rights to be compensated for his or her injuries. These burn injuries are extremely painful, result in permanent scarring and disfigurement, and require extensive and expensive medical care and treatment. Our Michigan burn injury lawyers are experts at proving damages in these cases.
Lawsuits for hot water heater and hot tap water burn injury cases can be filed against landlords, property owners, management companies, and even baby sitters and caregivers who are negligent for exposing a person to unsafe water temperatures. It is important to contact our office as soon as possible after a burn injury so that we can begin our investigation of the case before the negligent person changes tampers with the evidence, like changing temperatures on the hot water heater or by replacing defective parts.
