Biloxi Burn Injury Lawyer
A burn suffered on a Harrison County job site is rarely just a medical problem. Between shipyard welding, casino kitchens, Gulf-facing refineries and offshore support work, the people who get burned at work along the Coast often face skin grafts, months of wound care and a long recovery before they can touch a tool again. Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC is a workers’ compensation firm that represents injured workers across Mississippi and Louisiana, and a Biloxi burn injury lawyer from our team handles the claims where the injury is severe and the insurer is already looking for a reason to pay less.
Burn claims are different from a strained back or a sprained wrist. The treatment is specialized, the scarring can be permanent, and the question of how much a worker can still do after healing is often contested. The paperwork that gets filed in the first few weeks can shape the entire claim.
Below is what matters most when a burn happens on the job along the Mississippi Gulf Coast: what benefits exist, where claims go wrong, what to do now, and how a third-party claim can sit alongside workers’ compensation.
Why Choose Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC for Burn Injury Claims
Our attorneys bring more than 75 years of combined experience to claims that have been denied, delayed or cut off, and the firm has recovered more than $100 million in settlements for clients. We serve injured workers from Biloxi and Harrison County across the Gulf Coast and the rest of Mississippi, and in Louisiana as well. Consultations are free, we advance the costs of the case, and we are paid only if we recover benefits or a settlement for you. Our phones are answered 24 hours a day, and Hablamos espanol.
Burn cases reward lawyers who have handled severe industrial injuries. The firm secured a $221,000 settlement for a land-based oil rig worker with severe burns to the lower extremities, and has resolved much larger back and orthopedic claims, including $685,000 for a surgical tech with a lower back injury, $600,000 for a construction worker with a complex back injury, and $385,000 for a project manager injured after being struck in his work vehicle. Those results matter here because a serious burn often comes with other injuries: a fall while escaping, a back injury from a blast, lasting limits on lifting and gripping.
Rob Lunsford, Founding Partner, has spent his entire legal career representing injured workers. Brad Baskin and Jennifer Priebe, both Partners, have been recognized by Best Lawyers, Super Lawyers and The National Trial Lawyers, and the firm was ranked by Best Law Firms for Workers’ Compensation Law, Claimants, in Jackson. Andrew Rueff has tried dozens of jury and bench trials to verdict and regularly appears before the Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission. The team also includes Keaton Belk and Erin Heimlicher. Clients describe the same things in their reviews: attorneys who listen, who stay with the case, and who stand up to the insurance company.
Burn Injury Claims We Handle on the Mississippi Coast
- Thermal and Flame Burns: Fires and flash events in plants, fabrication yards and kitchens cause deep partial-thickness and full-thickness burns that require debridement, grafting and long-term wound care. These claims often involve surgery, repeated procedures and permanent scarring.
- Chemical Burns: Workers at industrial facilities, cleaning operations and treatment plants can be burned by acids, caustics and solvents. Insurers sometimes argue the worker ignored safety protocol, so we gather the exposure records and safety data that show what actually happened.
- Electrical Burns: Lineworkers, electricians and maintenance crews can suffer entry and exit wounds that look minor on the surface but involve deep tissue, nerve and cardiac damage. These injuries can surface symptoms weeks later, which is where delayed-treatment arguments begin.
- Steam and Hot Liquid Scalds: Kitchen staff at casino and resort properties, plant operators around pressurized lines, and shipyard crews face scald risks. Hand, forearm and facial burns raise real questions about grip, dexterity and appearance.
- Offshore and Oil Field Burns: Rig and platform work carries fire and explosion risk, and the right benefits system can depend on the nature of the work and where it happened. We sort out whether the claim belongs under state comp or another framework before the insurer does it for you.
- Welding and Hot Work Injuries: Sparks, slag and flash burns are common in shipbuilding and repair along the Gulf. Eye injuries and burns to the hands and legs frequently come together.
- Explosion and Blast Injuries: Burns in these events often come with fractures, hearing loss, lung injury and back damage. Each condition needs its own medical documentation tied to the same event.
- Firefighter and First Responder Injuries: Burns, smoke inhalation and job-related illnesses affect firefighters and first responders, and we handle those claims as well.
What to Do After a Workplace Burn in Biloxi
Get medical care first, and tell every provider that the burn happened at work. That one statement keeps the injury connected to your employer’s compensation coverage and prevents the bill from being routed to your health insurer. Burn patients are often sent to regional burn or wound care specialists, and your records from those visits become the backbone of the claim.
Report the injury to your employer in writing as soon as you can. Mississippi requires notice to the employer within 30 days of the accident, and Louisiana uses the same 30-day notice period. Do not wait to see whether the burn heals. Workers who delay reporting hand the insurer its first argument.
Mississippi workers are covered from the first day on the job, with no waiting period. If benefits are denied or stop, the claim is filed with the Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission through a Petition to Controvert. The general deadline is two years from the date of the injury or from the last compensation payment, so a claim that starts out being paid can still lose its footing later if no one tracks the dates. Cases are heard by an Administrative Judge, and a decision can be reviewed by the Full Commission on the existing record; it is not a new trial. A final Commission award can then be appealed to the Mississippi Supreme Court within 30 days of its filing and notice to the parties, and that court often sends the case to the Mississippi Court of Appeals. If you were burned in Louisiana, a claim generally has to be filed within one year of the accident, and that period can stretch to three years from the last payment when benefits have been paid.
Photograph the wound at every stage, keep every discharge paper and prescription, and write down who was present, what equipment failed and what the supervisor said. Save the work clothing and protective gear you were wearing, and do not clean or discard anything tied to the incident. Do not give a recorded statement to the insurance adjuster before you have spoken with a lawyer. Adjusters ask questions designed to narrow the story, and burn victims on pain medication are poor witnesses for themselves in those first days.
Avoid signing a return-to-work release before your treating physician clears you. Burn patients sometimes feel pressured to come back in a light-duty role that still exposes healing skin to heat, friction or chemicals.
How Burn Claims Get Valued and Where Insurers Push Back
Mississippi wage-loss benefits are generally two-thirds of your average weekly wage, up to a statutory weekly maximum, and temporary and permanent total disability benefits are capped at 450 weeks. Permanent partial disability in non-scheduled cases is also limited to 450 weeks. Medical care for the work injury is covered, which includes surgery, grafting, wound care, therapy and medication.
The fights in a burn case usually come down to three things. The first is permanency: how much of your earning ability the scarring, contracture, nerve damage or loss of hand function actually takes away. The second is causation for secondary conditions, such as chronic pain, infection complications or psychological effects after a traumatic event. The third is whether the insurer will keep authorizing the specialist care your doctors recommend.
Our job is to build the medical record that answers those fights. That means working with the treating physicians to get clear opinions on restrictions and permanency, tracking your wage history so the weekly rate is calculated correctly, and pushing back when an adjuster tries to move you to a doctor chosen by the carrier. If a settlement is on the table, we evaluate it against your future medical needs, not just the lost paycheck.
When Someone Other Than Your Employer Caused the Burn
Workers’ compensation does not usually allow a lawsuit against your employer, but it does not stop you from pursuing others. A defective heater or pressure vessel, a subcontractor who left a hazard in place, a property owner who ignored a known danger, or a driver whose crash set off a fire can all give rise to a separate personal injury claim. That claim can include pain and suffering and disfigurement damages that comp does not pay.
The two claims have to be coordinated. The comp carrier may have a right to be reimbursed from a third-party recovery, and a careless settlement on one side can damage the other. Our firm handles both workers’ compensation and personal injury claims, so the strategy is built as one plan.
Burn Injury Lawyer Questions from Gulf Coast Workers
Do I need a lawyer for a workplace burn claim?
Not every claim requires one, but a serious burn almost always justifies one. Treatment is long and expensive, the insurer will scrutinize every bill, and permanency disputes can reduce what you recover by a wide margin if the medical evidence is thin.
What does it cost to hire your firm?
Nothing up front. Consultations are free, we advance case costs, and we are paid only if we recover benefits or a settlement. Attorney fees in workers’ compensation cases are limited and approved under state law.
How soon do I have to report a burn to my employer?
Within 30 days of the accident in Mississippi, and the same 30-day notice rule applies in Louisiana. Report in writing, and report right away.
How long do I have to file a claim in Mississippi?
Generally two years from the date of injury or from the date of the last compensation payment, filed with the Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission. Do not rely on the insurer paying you as proof that your deadline is safe.
Will workers’ compensation pay for skin grafts and scar treatment?
Reasonable and necessary medical treatment for the work injury is covered, which can include surgery, grafting, wound care, therapy and related care. Disputes arise over what is considered necessary, and that is where documentation from your treating physicians matters.
What if the insurance company says my burn was my own fault?
Workers’ compensation is generally a no-fault system, so carelessness on your part usually does not erase a valid claim. Insurers do raise safety-rule and intoxication arguments, and we review the facts to see whether any defense actually applies.
Can I still collect if I was burned by a coworker or a contractor?
Yes. You can generally receive comp benefits from your employer’s carrier regardless of who caused the accident, and a negligent outside party can also be pursued through a separate injury claim.
Is scarring or disfigurement compensated separately?
Comp benefits focus on medical care and wage loss, including permanent disability tied to what the injury does to your ability to work. Pain, suffering and disfigurement damages are generally available only through a third-party claim, which is why identifying other responsible parties early matters.
What if the burn caused anxiety or PTSD?
Psychological conditions that grow out of a serious workplace injury can be raised as part of the claim, but they require clear medical support linking the condition to the work event. We make sure treating providers address it in their records.
What happens if my claim is denied?
You can file a Petition to Controvert with the Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission and ask for a hearing before an Administrative Judge. If the result is unfavorable, the Full Commission can review the record, and a final award can be appealed to the Mississippi Supreme Court. We handle each of those stages.
Can my employer fire me for filing a burn claim?
Both Mississippi and Louisiana protect workers from retaliation for filing a comp claim. If you were let go or punished after reporting your injury, tell us so we can review your options.
Serving Biloxi and Harrison County Burn Injury Clients Across the Coast
We represent injured workers in Biloxi and throughout Harrison County, including Gulfport, D’Iberville, Long Beach, Pass Christian and Diamondhead, and across the Gulf Coast communities of Ocean Springs, Gautier, Pascagoula, Moss Point, Bay St. Louis, Waveland and Picayune. Shipyard, port, casino, hospitality and industrial workers in those areas come to us after serious burns, and so do workers from Hattiesburg, Madison, Jackson, Southaven and the Delta, as well as north Mississippi.
Our work extends into Louisiana, where we represent workers across South Louisiana, from New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Lafayette and Lake Charles to Shreveport and north Louisiana. If you were burned on a job along the Coast or on a project that took you across the state line, we can sort out which state’s rules apply and carry the claim forward.
Talk to a Biloxi Burn Injury Attorney Today
If you were burned at work, the insurance company already has people working on its side of the claim. A Biloxi burn injury attorney at Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC can take over the communication, press for the specialist care you need and build the case for the wage benefits you are owed. Call us any hour. Consultations are free, and you pay no fee unless we recover benefits for you.
