A weekend cookout or a night around a fire pit can end in a serious burn. When a propane tank, a grill, or someone else's carelessness turns time outdoors into an injury, we help people in Golden figure out who may be responsible, working from our office in Denver.
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You lit the camp stove the way you always do, and a hiss at the hose fitting turned into a fireball across your hands and face. Or maybe a friend splashed lighter fluid onto a campfire that was already going.
Afterward, a Golden burn injury lawyer can help you sort out whether a product maker, a property owner, or another person may owe you for what followed.
To talk it over with CGH Injury Lawyers, use (303) 209-9395. Our contact page is another way to send us the basics.
The equipment, the property, and the people around the fire can each bring in a different part of Colorado law.
A leaking hose, a cracked regulator, a canister that vents when it shouldn't, or a grill valve that sticks open can turn an ordinary cookout into a flash fire. In Colorado, a product liability claim can be brought on more than one theory, negligence and strict liability included (C.R.S. 13-21-401(2)). In a strict liability claim, the focus narrows to two questions: was the product defective, and did that defect cause the burn?
A fire pit built too close to a deck, a patio heater with a known gas leak or faulty outdoor wiring at a rental cabin or a friend's house can lead to serious burns. Colorado's premises statute, C.R.S. 13-21-115, puts duties on the "landowner," a term that covers a person legally responsible for a property's condition, so a cabin's landlord or a backyard host may owe you something. What they owed depends on a status the court assigns. An invitee can generally recover for dangers the owner knew about or should have known about. A social guest counts as a licensee, and a licensee generally needs to show the owner actually knew.
A crash on a drive home can rupture a fuel tank or ignite an RV's propane system. A crash burn can be part of a claim against a driver whose negligence caused the crash.
Outdoor guides, cooks at an event, landscapers running burn piles and gas technicians can all be burned at work. Colorado's workers' compensation law, C.R.S. 8-41-102, makes it generally the only claim against your employer.
A burner manufacturer or a property owner who isn't your employer is in a different position. If one of them caused the burn, section 8-41-203(1)(a) allows a claim for damages beyond the workers' compensation benefits.
After an outdoor burn, the other side may argue it was your fault: you stood close to the fire, or you hooked up the propane tank yourself. In a negligence claim, a jury assigns percentages; if yours is lower than the other party's, you recover with your percentage subtracted, and the defendant gets the judgment when yours is equal to or greater than theirs.
Take a guest; a jury finds 40 percent at fault for standing too close to a patio heater, with the host 60 percent at fault for ignoring a gas leak the host knew about. That guest's damages would be reduced by 40 percent.
Deadlines depend on how the burn happened and who may be responsible. Get yours confirmed by a lawyer.
A restaurant patio, a paid campsite and a friend's backyard can each put you in a different legal category. The statute's top category is the invitee: someone who comes to do business that both sides are interested in, or who comes because the landowner indicated that the public was welcome.
When a landowner unreasonably fails to use reasonable care, an invitee can recover for dangers it actually knew about or should have known about.
Social guests are treated differently. A social guest counts as a licensee, and licensees generally need proof that the landowner actually knew of the danger (C.R.S. 13-21-115(4)(b)). Invitees on land classified for property tax purposes as agricultural or vacant need that same proof (C.R.S. 13-21-115(4)(c)(II)). Trespassers make up the third category. The court matches the facts to these definitions.
A flash burn to the face and hands can involve pain, months of therapy and scars, and Colorado's damages statute treats those losses differently.
Pain, emotional stress, and impaired quality of life are non-economic losses, capped at $1.5 million for claims arising on or after January 1, 2025. Medical malpractice and wrongful death follow different rules, and the cap is adjusted for inflation starting January 1, 2028.
The noneconomic limit applies to only some damages. Therapy bills and lost earnings are economic damages outside it (C.R.S. 13-21-102.5(3)). Subsection (5) takes compensatory damages for physical impairment or disfigurement out from under the section's limit, and scarring may be compensated as disfigurement.
Courthouse
Golden is in Jefferson County, which is part of the 1st Judicial District, along with Gilpin County. The Jefferson Combined Court is in Golden, at 100 Jefferson County Parkway, Golden, CO 80401. Where a lawsuit is filed depends on the facts.
Trauma facilities
Lutheran Hospital, at 12911 West 40th Avenue, is listed by Colorado's health department as a Level II trauma facility. The same state list shows St. Anthony Hospital, at 11600 West 2nd Place in Lakewood, as a Level I trauma facility. Ask each provider for complete records, including any photos in your chart.
Fire department
The Golden Fire Department describes itself as a blend of staff and volunteers and responds to fire emergencies, medical incidents, and swift water rescues.
The department dates to 1879 and divides its calls between two response districts, one in the north and one in the south. If firefighters came to the scene, their records may help show how the fire started.
Our office
CGH Injury Lawyers works with Golden clients out of 2701 Lawrence St., Suite 201, Denver, CO 80205.
Burn claims are valued based on specifics: burn depth, the percentage of the body involved, location on the body, and the effect on your work and daily life. For that reason, we don't publish burn settlement figures.
In a propane or grill fire, the stove, hose, regulator or canister can be important evidence. So can the box it came in, the manual, the fuel canister's label, and the store receipt. When a fault is disputed, we use maintenance records, fire origin analysis, and expert testimony.
A flash from a stove or grill can reach the face and hands. On that point, MedlinePlus notes, "Burns on the face, hands, feet, and genitals can be particularly serious." It also sizes a burn by the share of total body surface area it covers.
Grafts, scar care, therapy, and lost work can continue long after an emergency visit. With medical economists, burn surgeons, and vocational experts, we develop a Life Care Plan that documents those future needs.
Managing Partner Kevin Cheney is a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA). CGH Injury Lawyers, formerly Cheney Galluzzi & Howard, was founded in Denver in 2016 and prepares each case as if it will be tried.
If the law or the facts are against you, we'll tell you so.
Spanish speakers can reach us at (303) 835-9177.
MedlinePlus says "Major burns need urgent medical care" and that "The most serious burns can be painless." Call 911 in an emergency.
Once it's safe, shut the valve and keep the stove, grill, tank, hose, and packaging. Don't return it to a store, trade in the tank at an exchange cage, or throw anything away, and don't try to fix a leaking fitting yourself.
Photograph the setup, the fire pit or grill location, the weather conditions if relevant, and your injuries as they change.
Keep receipts, product manuals, serial numbers, and any rental or reservation agreements.
Write down who was there, who lit the fire or connected the tank, who brought the equipment, and who owns or rents the property. If a campground host, event organizer, or restaurant manager came over afterward, note that name too.
Before you give a recorded statement to an insurance company, you can ask to speak with a lawyer first. Our number is (303) 209-9395.
What's available depends on the facts.
The damages statute's own text, in its subsection (5), says that section doesn't cap compensatory damages for physical impairment or disfigurement (C.R.S. 13-21-102.5).
Different limits apply to claims against government bodies, which have their own maximum amounts, recalculated by the Colorado Secretary of State on a four-year cycle (C.R.S. 24-10-114).
An insurer may argue that an open flame is a clear risk. In a negligence claim, such as one against a host who ignored a gas leak, your percentage of fault comes off the award, and a share equal to or greater than the other side's bars recovery (C.R.S. 13-21-111).
Strict liability asks whether the stove had a defect and whether that defect caused the flash. Expert examination of the stove, hose, and regulator can bear on that question.
A social guest counts as a licensee under the Premises Liability Act, and a licensee may still recover for dangers the landowner actually knew about. The court decides your status.
Generally, yes. Colorado law says tort claims arising out of the use or operation of a motor vehicle generally have three years (C.R.S. 13-80-101(1)(n)). If your claim is instead about a defective part, such as a fuel line that failed, that strict liability claim generally stays at two years (C.R.S. 13-80-101(1)(n)(II), 13-80-102(1)(b)). Ask a lawyer to confirm your date.
Golden is in Jefferson County, part of the 1st Judicial District. The Jefferson Combined Court sits in Golden at 100 Jefferson County Parkway. Where a lawsuit is filed depends on the facts.
You may. Picture a jury splitting the blame for a fire pit accident 30 percent to you and 70 percent to the host: your damages would drop by 30 percent. That's how Colorado's comparative negligence statute works in a negligence claim, and it has a limit. If your share is equal to or greater than the other party's, C.R.S. 13-21-111 bars recovery.
No. Our office is at 2701 Lawrence St., Suite 201, Denver, CO 80205. Call (303) 209-9395.
Possibly. Colorado generally limits product liability claims against a seller who didn't make the product (C.R.S. 13-21-402). Exceptions include a seller that knew about the defect and a principal distributor or seller when a court can't get jurisdiction over the manufacturer (C.R.S. 13-21-401(1), 13-21-402). The manufacturer is a possible defendant.
It can be. Colorado has separate rules that can change how a deadline runs when the injured person is a child (C.R.S. 13-81-103). Because those rules depend on the circumstances, a lawyer should confirm your child's deadline.
The business may be responsible if a condition on its property caused the burn, such as a patio heater that leaked gas or a grease fire from a poorly kept hood.
A paying customer can be an invitee under the Premises Liability Act, and invitees can generally recover for hazards the business actually knew about or should have known about (C.R.S. 13-21-115). The court determines your status based on the facts. If a product caused the burn, its maker may also be responsible.
That depends on how the burn happened. Workers' compensation may pay benefits for a burn at work. After a crash with a driver who had little or no insurance, coverage you carry for uninsured or underinsured drivers may help. A property owner's or landlord's liability insurance may respond when a property condition caused the burn. Save every bill, and remember future care belongs in the claim as well.
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If a burn has upended your plans, your work, or your family's routine, we're ready to listen. Call (303) 209-9395 or go to our contact page. Tell us what happened, and we'll explain how Colorado law may apply and share our candid view.
Learn more on our Golden personal injury lawyers page. For statewide information, visit our Colorado burn injury attorney page.
Our Golden premises liability lawyer page covers property hazards, and our Golden car accident lawyer page covers crashes. We're located at 2701 Lawrence St., Suite 201, Denver, CO 80205.
CGH Injury Lawyers · 2701 Lawrence St., Suite 201, Denver, CO 80205
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