Many online tools produce a “range” by asking for inputs like burn location, treatment, and whether you missed work. In real cases, settlement value in California depends on proof and credibility, including:
- Medical documentation that ties the burn to the specific incident
- Treatment intensity (e.g., emergency care, wound care visits, surgery/grafting, therapy)
- Functional impact—how the burn affects work, dressing, driving, sleep, and daily tasks
- Future care and whether your prognosis supports ongoing treatment
A calculator may guess categories, but it cannot:
- determine causation (what actually caused the burn)
- interpret whether symptoms match the burn pattern
- account for complications that can develop later


