I’m David Holub, an attorney focusing on personal injury law in northwest Indiana.

Welcome to Personal Injury Primer, where we break down the law into simple terms, provide legal tips, and discuss personal injury law topics.

Today’s question comes from a caller who says she was renovating her house and a plumbing subcontractor installed an oil-fired boiler to heat and supply hot water to her home, but that the water caused 2nd degree burns to a family member after reaching temperatures above 170 degrees Fahrenheit.

The injured party required hospitalization, debridement procedures, and tissue grafts, and has resulted in permanent scarring.

Since the burn injuries were very serious she wanted to know the family’s legal options.

The first option we mentioned to the caller is the option to sue the plumbing contractor who installed the boiler for negligently installing it without a tempering valve. A tempering valve mixes hot and cold water to create water at the perfect temperature to distribute to sinks and showers.

Another option might be to sue the manufacturer of the boiler for failing to warn of the need to install a tempering valve. This of course presumes that no warnings were given. If a warning was provided, but the plumber disregarded the warning, it may be difficult to hold the manufacturer at fault.

Depending on the contractual arrangements between the general contractor and the plumbing subcontractor, another option might be to sue the general contractor under vicarious liability theory for the subcontractor’s negligence.

I hope you found this information helpful. If you are a victim of someone’s carelessness, substandard medical care, product defect, work injury, or another personal injury, please call (219) 736-9700 with your questions. You can also learn more about us by visiting our website at DavidHolubLaw.com – while there, make sure you request a copy of our book “Fighting for Truth.”