Nursing Home Scald and Burn Injury Lawyer

By Michael Shemtoub, trial attorney, Beverly Law. Updated November 2026.

For more on abuse and neglect in Los Angeles County facilities, including inspection records, see Beverly Law’s nursing home abuse section. For burn treatment and damages in general, see our burn injury lawyer page.

How long it takes bath water to cause a full-thickness burn

The American Burn Association’s scald table shows how quickly water causes a third-degree burn in adult skin (ABA scald guide):

The ABA notes that its figures come from a normal adult model and that scald standards have never been adjusted for the thinner skin of older adults. The same guide says older adults’ thinner skin lets hot liquids cause deeper burns with even brief exposure, and that some medical conditions or medications reduce their ability to feel heat. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission warns that even 120°F water can cause third-degree burns with five minutes of exposure (CPSC), which is why a resident left alone in a tub is at risk even when the water heater is set correctly.

Hot water rules for nursing homes and assisted living

The Texas rule above applies to the division of the code for facilities licensed in that window (26 TAC 554.340 applicability); other Texas facilities fall under companion divisions. In every one of these settings, the questions in a scald case are the same: what temperature the water reached at the tap, whether the mixing valve or water heater had been checked, and whether a staff member was with the resident.

California: the Elder Abuse Act

California’s Elder Abuse and Dependent Adult Civil Protection Act defines neglect to include the “failure to protect from health and safety hazards” (Welf. & Inst. Code 15610.57(b)(3)). Water hot enough to scald, or a resident left alone in a bath when the care plan called for help, can fit that definition. The Act protects an elder, meaning a California resident 65 or older (15610.27), and a dependent adult, which includes people 18 to 64 with physical or mental limitations (15610.23).

What the Act adds to a regular injury case

When it is proven by clear and convincing evidence that the facility is liable for neglect and acted with recklessness, oppression, fraud or malice, Welf. & Inst. Code 15657 adds remedies that an ordinary negligence claim does not have:

• The court awards reasonable attorney’s fees and costs.
• If the resident has died, the claim for the pain and suffering the resident endured before death survives, up to the amount set in Civil Code 3333.2(b).

Against a facility, as an employer, these remedies also require meeting the standard Civil Code 3294 sets for holding an employer liable for punitive damages based on an employee’s acts. A claim against a health care provider based on professional negligence stays under the laws that govern professional negligence (Welf. & Inst. Code 15657.2).

The 2026 change: AB 251 and evidence destruction

Assembly Bill 251 was chaptered on Oct. 7, 2025 as Chapter 433 of the Statutes of 2025 (AB 251). It amended section 15657, adding abandonment to the conduct that triggers its remedies, and added a new section 15657.02, in effect since Jan. 1, 2026.

Under 15657.02, a court may apply the lower preponderance-of-the-evidence standard to the 15657 remedies when the plaintiff wins a discovery motion over the defendant’s spoliation of evidence, or when a judge or arbitrator finds spoliation at any point. Spoliation means intentionally and improperly altering, concealing or destroying evidence to keep it from being produced, causing material prejudice, and the evidence must be material and specifically required to be kept. The section applies to claims against residential care facilities for the elderly, adult community care facilities and skilled nursing facilities.

In a scald case, the water temperature logs, mixing valve records, shower sheets and incident reports are the records most likely to go missing. Asking for them early, in writing, sets up the 15657.02 argument if they do.

California deadlines can be short. If the claim is treated as professional negligence against a health care provider, the deadline is three years from the injury or one year after discovery, whichever comes first (CCP 340.5). Call early.

Washington: RCW 74.34.200

Washington gives a vulnerable adult who has been subjected to abandonment, abuse, financial exploitation or neglect while residing in a facility “a cause of action for damages on account of his or her injuries, pain and suffering” (RCW 74.34.200). Anyone admitted to a facility such as a nursing home or assisted living facility counts as a vulnerable adult (RCW 74.34.020). A plaintiff who prevails is awarded actual damages plus costs and reasonable attorneys’ fees under subsection (3).

Fee shifting matters in Washington because punitive damages are generally not available there without a statute that authorizes them (Dailey v. North Coast Life).

Texas: nursing home burns are health care liability claims

Texas defines a “health care institution” to include a nursing home and a licensed assisted living facility (CPRC 74.001), so a scald claim against one is usually a health care liability claim under chapter 74. That brings strict steps:

Texas cases are handled by the firm’s Texas-licensed attorneys, Joyce Ondich and John Efstathiou.

Who can be responsible for a scald

• The licensee that runs the facility, and the chain or management company that sets staffing and maintenance budgets
• The aide or nurse who ran the bath or left the resident alone
• A plumbing or maintenance contractor that installed or adjusted the mixing valve or water heater
• The maker of a mixing valve, water heater or bathing system that failed (our defective product burn page explains those claims)

Our Cal Health Find guide explains how to read California inspection records, and our Los Angeles County assisted living pages name the operator behind each facility.

What families should do

1. Make sure the burn is treated, and ask whether it should be seen at a burn center.
2. Photograph the burn and the bathroom, including the tap and any posted warning sign.
3. Ask the facility in writing to preserve the incident report, water temperature logs, mixing valve and water heater records, shower or bath sheets, the care plan and staffing records for that shift.
4. In California, report the injury to the Long-Term Care Ombudsman, whose line is open 24 hours a day at 1-800-231-4024 (California Department of Aging).
5. Do not sign anything from the facility or its insurer before you talk with a lawyer.

Families in Los Angeles can also read our Los Angeles nursing home abuse lawyer page. Burns from cosmetic lasers are covered on our med spa laser burn page.

Questions families ask about nursing home scalds

Is a scald in a nursing home elder abuse?

It can be. California defines neglect to include failing to protect an elder from health and safety hazards, and Washington gives vulnerable adults in facilities a claim for neglect under RCW 74.34.200. Whether the added remedies apply depends on the proof of how the burn happened and what the facility knew about the risk.

How hot is bath water allowed to be in a nursing home?

It depends on the state and the type of facility. California and Washington assisted living rules set 105°F to 120°F, Washington nursing homes must keep fixtures at 110°F plus or minus 10°F, and Texas nursing facilities licensed between Sept. 11, 2003 and April 1, 2018 must be designed for resident-use hot water of no more than 110°F at the fixture, with 100°F to 115°F acceptable in operation.

What changed in California elder abuse law in 2026?

Since Jan. 1, 2026, Welfare and Institutions Code 15657.02 lets a court use the lower preponderance standard for the Elder Abuse Act’s added remedies when a nursing home, assisted living facility or adult care facility is found to have destroyed or hidden evidence. AB 251 also added abandonment to section 15657.

Can we recover attorney’s fees?

Often, yes. California’s Elder Abuse Act awards fees and costs when its heightened standard is met, and Washington awards costs and reasonable attorneys’ fees to a vulnerable adult who prevails under RCW 74.34.200.

Talk to a nursing home burn lawyer

If your loved one was scalded or burned in a nursing home or assisted living facility in California, Texas or Washington, call Beverly Law at (310) 552-6959. We will ask for the water logs and care records right away and look at who owns and runs the facility. You owe no fees or costs unless we win.

Related pages

Burn Injury Lawyer

Important: This page is general information, not legal or medical advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Every case is different; talk to a lawyer about yours. Texas cases are handled by the firm’s Texas-licensed attorneys, Joyce Ondich and John Efstathiou. Last reviewed: November 6, 2026.