Chemical Burn At Work Claims – How To Claim Compensation
Last Updated 5th December 2025. Working with chemicals can be extremely dangerous. As with all jobs, your employer is required to take reasonable measures to ensure your safety. Therefore, your employer could be responsible if you suffered a chemical burn at work if they have not taken such measures. You should never have to cope with a burn caused by your employer’s negligent actions, but there are steps you can take to get compensation for your pain and financial losses.
Contact an advisor today to check whether you can make an accident at work claim. You may already be under a lot of stress due to your injuries, which is why they provide straightforward answers, free of charge. Why not enquire about the No Win No Fee services offered by our panel of solicitors? You may benefit from their expert guidance if you choose to proceed.
Your Questions Answered
- How can my employer limit the risk of chemical burns? They should provide you with the appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE), such as safety gloves and goggles, as well as training to ensure you know safety procedures.
- What are the different degrees of burns? There are 4 different burn degrees based on the severity of your burn, in particular how deep the burn has penetrated.
- Can I claim compensation for a private skin graft? Yes, the cost of private medical treatment can be added to your personal injury claim under special damages, on the condition that you can prove your expenses.
- What burn injuries are common to this type of claim? Many experience burns, scarring and blindness due to chemical accidents.
- How long do I have to claim chemical burn at work compensation? Most claimants need to start their case within 3 years of the accident, although there are various exceptions to this.
Don’t hesitate to speak with our team if you have any questions.
Jump To A Section
- How To Claim For Injuries Caused By A Chemical Burn At Work
- How Long Do You Have To Claim For A Chemical Burn At Work?
- Types Of Injuries Caused By Chemical Burns
- How To Prove You Were Injured In The Workplace
- What Could You Claim For A Chemical Burn At Work?
- Can No Win No Fee Solicitors Help You Claim For An Injury In The Workplace?
- Further Guidance On Claiming For A Chemical Burn At Work
How To Claim For Injuries Caused By A Chemical Burn At Work
Under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, employees are owed a duty of care by their employer. Employers must prevent their employees from becoming injured at work by taking reasonable and practical steps. Some of the steps they could take to uphold this duty include:
- Providing the correct training so employees can complete their tasks safely.
- Providing necessary Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), such as gloves and eye protection.
- Carrying out risk assessments regularly and implementing measures to address the risk posed by hazards that cannot be removed.
More specifically, the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 (COSHH) states that the exposure to materials in the workplace that cause ill health need to be adequately controlled.
Additionally, COSHH states how hazardous substances should be stored, disposed of, and used.
If your employer fails to uphold their duty of care, and this causes you to sustain a chemical burn at work, you might wonder whether you could make a workplace accident claim.
To do so, you need to meet the personal injury claims eligibility criteria by showing:
- Your employer owed you a duty of care.
- Your employer breached their duty of care.
- This breach caused you to be injured.
How Long Do You Have To Claim For A Chemical Burn At Work?
Most claimants have 3 years to make a chemical burn at work claim, starting from the date on which you were harmed. This is outlined by the Limitation Act 1980.
There are certain circumstances where this time limit differs, due to the fact that some people are unable to handle the decision making process themselves. For example, those below the age of 18 or mentally incapacitated adults.
Such individuals can have the time limit for their case frozen. During this period, another person can represent them as a litigation friend. You can apply to act in this role, or the court may appoint you.
Alternatively, the affected individual can claim within 3 years of their 18th birthday or the date on which they recover mental capacity, at which point the limitation period is unfrozen.
Speak to our advisory team today to confirm how long you have to start your workplace accident claim. There is no pressure to proceed if you simply want to discuss your options with them.
Types Of Injuries Caused By Chemical Burns
A chemical burn injury is usually sustained when a hazardous substance comes into contact with your skin. The severity of chemical burns can range from redness and blisters on the outer layer of the skin to extreme tissue and nerve damage.
Examples of accidents at work that can lead to chemical burn injuries include:
- You are an employee in a warehouse that works with hazardous substances. Your employer does not provide you with the appropriate PPE, such as splash-proof safety goggles or gloves. As a result, the chemicals come into contact with your hands and arms causing severe burns. Additionally, the chemicals splash in your eyes and cause partial blindness.
- As a cleaner in an office building, you are not trained by your employer on how to use products safely. As a result, you mix bleach with ammonia since you are unaware of its effects, meaning you experience severe internal burns to your respiratory system when breathing in toxic fumes.
- Your employer at a leisure centre does not store the pool chlorinator correctly. The chemical is left on its side to leak on the floor of the storage cupboard. As a result, you slip and fall landing in the chemical spill causing you to experience superficial burns to your arms and face.
Please note that not all instances of a chemical burn at work will form the basis of a valid personal injury claim. You would need to prove that your employer’s breach of duty led to you experiencing harm.
Discuss your specific accident at work by getting in touch with an advisor on the number above.
How To Prove You Were Injured In The Workplace
The evidence you gather for your workplace injury claim should show how your employer is liable for the harm you sustained and how any injuries have affected you. Such evidence that is useful to have includes:
- CCTV footage of the incident taking place.
- Photographs of your burn.
- A copy of the log of your accident in the workplace’s report book.
- Copies of your medical records that give details on the treatment you received and what types of burns you had.
- A diary with recordings of your symptoms and well-being following the accident.
- Contact details from other employees if they were witnesses to the accident.
If you are connected to one of the solicitors from our panel, they can help you gather the proof you need for your claim.
To learn whether you could be eligible to instruct an experienced solicitor, don’t hesitate to reach out to an advisor today. After assessing your case and determining your eligibility to seek compensation, they could connect you with a solicitor who has experience handling accident at work claims.
What Could You Claim For A Chemical Burn At Work?
There are up to two heads of claim that can make up a compensation payout awarded following a successful personal injury claim for a chemical burn at work injury.
The first head of claim, general damages, compensate you for the psychological and physical effects of your burn injury. Factors considered when valuing this aspect of your settlement include:
- The severity of the burn.
- The change in your quality of life.
- Any psychological impact.
Your solicitor can work out the value of general damages by using the results from an independent medical assessment, often arranged as part of the claims process, and the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). The JCG is a document that has different guideline compensation brackets depending on the type of injury.
Injuries Table
The compensation table above contains figures from the JCG that accompany different injuries. Please note that all the figures are guidelines only. The top entry does not come from the JCG.
| Injury | Guideline Compensation Bracket | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Multiple Serious Injuries + Special Damages | Up to £200,000+ | Multiple serious injuries combined with financial losses, such as lost earnings and pension contributions. |
| Scarring to other parts of the body | Likely to exceed £127,930 | Serious burns that cover at least 40% of the body. |
| Scarring to other parts of the body | £9,560 to £27,740 | A singular disfiguring or multiple noticeable laceration scars to the legs, arms, hands, chest or back. |
| Facial disfigurement - Very Severe Scarring | £36,340 to £118,790 | Very severe scarring in young people, leaving a severe psychological effect and a very disfiguring cosmetic effect. |
| Facial disfigurement - Less Severe Scarring | £21,920 to £59,090 | Less severe scarring causing substantial disfigurement and a significant psychological reaction. |
| Facial disfigurement - Significant Scarring | £11,120 to £36,720 | Significant scarring that plastic surgery can greatly reduce the worst effects of, and the psychological effect has improved. |
| Lung disease | £38,210 to £66,920 | Difficulties with breathing where a smoky environment cannot be tolerated. |
| Lung disease | £25,380 to £38,210 | Bronchitis and wheezing but no serious symptoms. |
| Injuries affecting sight | £4,820 to £10,660 | Minor eye injury caused by being splashed by liquid or exposed to fumes. |
Check What Special Damages You Could Claim
The second head of claim, special damages, can only be awarded if you receive general damages. Special damages compensate you for the past and future monetary expenses you have incurred as a result of your chemical burn injury, such as:
- Loss of earnings.
- Medical costs.
- Travel expenses.
Keep hold of any receipts, invoices, payslips, and bank statements as proof of your injury’s financial losses.
You can find out more about what factors go into determining compensation awards for successful personal injury claims by contacting our team on the number above.
We are here to help you
Here at UKlaw our expert advisors are on hand 24 hours a day 7 days a week to assess your compensation claim. Should you require free legal advice we can connect you to a specialist solicitor.
Can No Win No Fee Solicitors Help You Claim For An Injury In The Workplace?
You should choose a solicitor from our panel to represent you and help you with your chemical burn at work injury claim, if you are eligible. They offer all of their claimants a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA), which is a No Win No Fee contract.
When working under a CFA, you do not pay any charges for the work your solicitor does if your claim ends up unsuccessful. You are also not expected to pay these fees for your solicitor’s services before or during the claims process.
Your solicitor will take a percentage of your compensation, known as their success fee, following a successful claim. Legally, there is a maximum percentage solicitors can take as their success fee to ensure you get the most out of your award.
Contact Us
Contact our team today so you can see whether you have a valid workplace injury claim and to receive support strengthening your case. To get in touch, you can:
- Call 020 3870 4868.
- Fill out our ‘Claim Online’ form.
- Use our live chat box.
Further Guidance On Claiming For A Chemical Burn At Work
More of our guides:
- Learn how to prove loss of earnings if you need time off work to recover for your injury.
- Read about how to claim compensation if you have had a serious accident at work.
- Find out what your employer’s responsibilities are after an accident at work.
External resources:
- NHS – A guide on acid and chemical burns.
- Health and Safety Executive (HSE) – Information on what substances are hazardous to health.
- GOV.UK – See if you can claim Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) if you need time off work due to your burn injury.
Thank you for reading our guide on how to make a chemical burn at work claim.
If you have any questions or require any further guidance, please contact an advisor on the number above.
