Motorcycle Accident Burn Injury Claims in Texas

You were riding home on I-35 near Round Rock when a driver drifted into your lane and clipped your bike. You went down hard, slid across the pavement, and felt heat from the spilled fuel before help arrived. Now, you’re facing skin grafts, weeks of wound care, and bills that keep piling up while you’re out of work.

Three Types of Burns from Motorcycle Crashes

Motorcycle crashes commonly produce three burn categories:

1. Thermal burns from post-crash fires or hot engine contact
2. Friction burns (also known as “road rash”) from sliding across pavement
3. Chemical burns from gasoline, oil, or battery acid exposure

Each is recognized under Texas personal injury law and can support a damages claim when another party’s negligence caused the crash.

Thermal burns happen fast. Contact with burning fuel can produce severe burns in seconds, and hot exhaust pipes can leave deep wounds on contact.

Friction burns are often misunderstood. At highway speed, road rash strips skin in the same way a deep burn does, and the infection risk mirrors a third-degree burn. Riders sometimes leave the ER thinking they have a scrape when the wound is far more serious.

Chemical burns can be the most deceptive. Gasoline and brake fluid keep damaging tissue layers as long as the liquid remains in contact with your skin. A burn that looks minor at the scene of the crash can deepen over the next several hours.

Riders face higher burn exposure than people in passenger vehicles because there is no metal cage or airbags, and protective motorcycle gear rarely covers every inch of your skin. Federal crash data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s motorcycle safety research confirms that riders are much more likely than passengers in cars to suffer injuries from impact and fire exposure. For a better look at the injury patterns that these crashes produce, see common injuries in Texas motorcycle accidents.

How Burn Severity Affects Medical Treatment

Burn severity is graded by how deep the injury reaches:

• First-degree burns affect only the outer skin layer.
• Second-degree burns penetrate the layer of skin underneath (also known as the “dermis”).
• Third- and fourth-degree burns destroy all skin layers and underlying tissue, and they almost always require hospitalization at a burn center, surgery to remove damaged tissue, and one or more skin graft procedures.

Skin grafting is its own ordeal. Surgeons harvest healthy skin from another part of your body and transplant it to the burned area. Large surface area burns often require several grafting surgeries, each with its own recovery period and risk of complications.

Road rash that exposes tissue beneath the skin is treated the same way as a serious burn because the infection and scarring risks are the same, even though no heat caused the wounds.

Chemical burns demand immediate medical attention to stop ongoing tissue damage, and severe cases require surgery and grafting, just like other burns.

Rehabilitation after a severe burn is long and may include several components:

• Physical therapy works to restore range of motion.
• Occupational therapy retrains hand and limb function.
• Compression garments help manage scarring.
• Psychological support helps burn survivors handle trauma and changes in appearance.

Our blog on Texas motorcycle accident claims covers the full range of treatment costs tied to burn recovery.

Texas Liability Rules for Burn Injuries

In most motorcycle burn cases, the at-fault driver is the primary defendant. Liability is established by showing that the driver’s reckless behavior caused the crash and the burns.

When a defective fuel system, faulty fuel line, or other motorcycle component contributed to ignition, you may also be able to file a product liability claim against the manufacturer.

Texas uses proportionate responsibility to determine fault. This means that under the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code (CPRC) § 33.001, a rider found partially at fault can still recover compensation, as long as their share of fault does not exceed 50 percent. Recovery is reduced by the rider’s percentage of fault. A rider found 51 percent or more at fault cannot recover any compensation at all.

Punitive damages may also be on the table. When burns result from a defective product, fraud, malice, or gross negligence, CPRC § 41.003 allows exemplary damages, as long as there is clear and convincing evidence to prove it.

A rider dealing with a crash that involves both a negligent driver and a defective part may have claims against more than one defendant, and our blog on how Texas motorcycle accident settlements are calculated can help clarify what that means for total recovery.

Recoverable Damages for Burn Injuries

Texas burn injury claims include two damages categories:

1. Economic damages, which are financial losses that can be measured (such as medical bills or lost wages)
2. Non-economic damages, which compensate for harm that does not have a fixed dollar amount (such as pain and suffering or emotional distress)

Both apply in serious burn cases, but there are important differences in the evidence required to prove your claim.

Economic Damages

Economic damages cover what you can document on paper. Ambulance rides, trauma center admission, burn center hospitalization, and ICU stays are all recoverable medical expenses, and therefore they are covered under economic damages.

Skin grafting surgeries, donor-site recovery, follow-up procedures, and specialist fees are also major economic damages that can be recovered in a severe burn case. Future medical costs (such as anticipated surgeries, ongoing wound care, compression therapy, physical and occupational therapy, and psychological treatment) are also recoverable when an estimate is provided by expert medical testimony.

Lost wages during hospitalization and recovery are also recoverable as economic damages. If your burn severity causes permanent disability or reduces your future earning capacity, these projected losses are recoverable, too. So are out-of-pocket costs, like home health aides, adaptive equipment, and transportation to medical appointments.

Non-Economic Damages

Non-economic damages cover harm that doesn’t show up on a bill:

• Physical pain and suffering includes pain from your burns and chronic pain from healing, scar tissue, and repeated surgeries.
• Disfigurement from permanent scarring is a standalone damages category that often raises the value of your claim significantly, especially when your burns affect your face, hands, or other visible areas.
• Mental anguish from trauma, anxiety about future procedures, and the psychological weight of long-term disability are also recoverable as non-economic damages. These are supported by testimony from your mental health provider.
• Loss of enjoyment of life reflects how burn injuries have limited your ability to do the things you did before the crash.

Riders with multiple skin grafts or permanent scarring may be entitled to substantial non-economic damages, as evidenced by our case results. Past results do not guarantee future outcomes.

Filing Deadlines & How to Protect Your Claim

Texas gives you a two-year deadline to file a personal injury lawsuit after a motorcycle accident under Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 16.003. Missing this deadline ends your right to recover damages in court, no matter how severe your burns are. The clock typically starts counting down on the date of the crash, with limited exceptions for chemical burn damage that was not apparent at the time of the crash.

Preserving evidence early is critical. Photograph your burns at each stage of treatment, document the accident scene, save any damaged motorcycle gear, and keep records of the vehicle’s condition. When combined, these pieces of evidence show how the injury happened and how severe the damages were.

Medical records are the backbone of a burn damages claim. Request and preserve them in order, from the ER visit through every surgery and rehab session.

Product defect cases need to be investigated quickly because physical evidence on the motorcycle can deteriorate or get lost during repair or salvage. An attorney can send a legal notice (called a “spoliation hold”) to keep the bike and its components intact.

Be careful with insurance adjusters. Any statements you make before you have legal counsel can be used to reduce your claim. Remember, the at-fault driver’s insurer is not on your side.

Talk to an Attorney About Your Burn Injury Claim

Burn injuries from a motorcycle crash feature some of the longest recoveries and highest medical costs in personal injury law. Angel Reyes & Associates has over 30 years of experience helping Texas riders pursue full recovery for serious injuries, including more than $1 billion recovered for clients.

We work on contingency, which means you pay no fee unless we win, and we offer free initial consultations in English and Spanish. If a loved one died from burn injuries after a crash, talk to us about filing a wrongful death claim. Contact us today to talk through what happened and what your case may be worth.

Past results do not guarantee future outcomes.