In this article 8 sections
The Fourth of July is days away, and in California communities that allow them, the fireworks stands are open. For most families, the holiday ends with nothing worse than a late night and a smoky backyard. For others, it ends in an emergency room with a burned hand, an eye injury, or a child who got too close to a fountain that tipped over.
Burn injuries are different from many other injuries. They can be extremely painful, they can take months to heal, and serious ones can leave permanent scars that change how a person looks and moves. If you or your child was burned by fireworks, a grill, or another holiday hazard, you may be wondering whether anyone is responsible and what your options are.
Here is what California law says about fireworks, how responsibility for burn injuries generally works, and the practical steps that protect both your health and your claim.
How Often Fireworks Hurt People
On June 24, 2026, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) reported that for 2025 it received reports of at least 15 fireworks-related deaths and an estimated 13,000 emergency department-treated injuries linked to fireworks misuse and malfunction nationwide. CPSC estimated 1,300 injuries involved sparklers alone. People aged 15 to 24 accounted for the largest share of injuries, and burns to the hands, fingers, and head were most common.
Sparklers deserve a special note, because many parents think of them as the “safe” option for kids. They are still burning devices, and CPSC’s numbers show they cause a meaningful share of injuries.
California’s Fireworks Law: Safe and Sane vs. Dangerous
California regulates fireworks under the State Fireworks Law, which begins at Health and Safety Code section 12500. The law sorts consumer fireworks into two basic categories.
”Safe and sane” fireworks
Under section 12529, “safe and sane fireworks” are fireworks that have been approved by the CPSC and examined and tested by the State Fire Marshal, who has determined that they meet California’s standards for design, construction, performance, and labeling. Because devices that rise into the air or dart along the ground are classified as dangerous (see below), safe and sane fireworks are generally ground-based items such as fountains.
Even safe and sane fireworks come with limits:
- Sales window. Under section 12599, a retail license allows sales of safe and sane fireworks only from 12 noon on June 28 through 12 noon on July 6.
- Age limits. Section 12689 makes it unlawful for a retailer to sell or transfer safe and sane fireworks to anyone under 16.
- Local bans. Section 12541 states that nothing in the State Fireworks Law authorizes the sale, use, or discharge of fireworks where a city or county otherwise prohibits or regulates it. Many California cities and counties ban all consumer fireworks, so an item that is “safe and sane” under state law may still be illegal where you live.
”Dangerous” fireworks
Section 12505 defines “dangerous fireworks” to include firecrackers; skyrockets and rockets, including any device that rises in the air during discharge; Roman candles; chasers that dart or travel along the ground; sparklers more than 10 inches long or one-fourth of an inch in diameter; and fireworks containing certain prohibited chemicals. Under section 12561, fireworks the State Fire Marshal determines fall within that definition are classified as dangerous.
Section 12677 makes it unlawful to possess dangerous fireworks without a valid permit, and section 12689 prohibits selling, giving, or delivering them to anyone under 18. Violations can be prosecuted as misdemeanors under section 12700, with penalties that increase with the amount of fireworks involved.
Why does this matter for an injury claim? Because when someone sets off illegal fireworks, or uses legal ones where they are banned, that violation can be important evidence that they failed to act with reasonable care.
Who May Be Responsible for a Burn Injury
Every case depends on its facts, but responsibility for fireworks and holiday burn injuries usually falls into a few categories.
The person who lit it
California’s basic negligence rule, Civil Code section 1714(a), makes everyone responsible for injuries caused by their “want of ordinary care or skill.” Someone who aims a fountain toward a crowd, lights fireworks near children, or sets off illegal aerial devices in a neighborhood may be liable to the people they injure. In many cases, those claims are paid through the person’s homeowner’s or renter’s liability coverage, although policies vary and some exclude certain conduct.
The host or property owner
A person who hosts a gathering, or who controls the property where it happens, generally has a duty to use reasonable care to keep guests reasonably safe. That can include not allowing dangerous fireworks, keeping children at a safe distance, having water nearby, and supervising grills and fire pits. Whether a host is responsible for someone else’s conduct is a fact-specific question, especially when the host did not light the fireworks.
The manufacturer or seller of a defective product
Sometimes the problem is the product itself: a fountain that explodes instead of spraying, a fuse that burns too fast, a grill that leaks gas, or a lithium-ion battery in an e-bike or scooter that overheats and catches fire. California law allows strict product liability claims against those who manufacture, distribute, or sell a product that contained a manufacturing defect, was defectively designed, or lacked sufficient instructions or warnings, as described in California’s civil jury instruction on strict liability (CACI No. 1200). Product cases often depend on preserving the device or its remains, so do not throw anything away. Our burn injury page explains more about how we approach these cases.
Your own conduct
California follows comparative fault, reflected in Civil Code section 1714(a). If your own lack of care contributed to your injury, your recovery may be reduced, but in many cases it is not eliminated.
Understanding Burn Injuries
Doctors classify burns by depth. According to MedlinePlus, from the National Library of Medicine:
- Superficial burns (formerly called first-degree) affect only the outer layer of skin and cause pain, redness, and swelling.
- Partial-thickness burns (formerly called second-degree) affect the outer and underlying layers of skin and cause pain, redness, swelling, and blistering.
- Full-thickness burns (formerly called third-degree) affect the deep layers of skin, can leave the skin white or blackened, and may be numb.
MedlinePlus also notes that burns on the face, hands, feet, and genitals can be particularly serious, that children under 5 and adults over 55 face a higher chance of complications from severe burns, and that severe burns affecting joints can cause contractures that limit movement. The American Burn Association explains that full-thickness burns need medical care and possibly skin grafts, and that recovery can involve scar treatment such as pressure garments and silicone sheets, along with physical and occupational therapy.
Before he became a lawyer, John Reardon spent nearly two decades treating injured patients as a chiropractor. That experience shapes how we look at burn cases: the bill from the first emergency visit is rarely the whole story. Grafts, therapy, scar management, and the emotional toll of a visible injury can stretch over months or years, and a fair claim has to account for them.
Scarring, Disfigurement, and Damages
California’s civil jury instruction on noneconomic damages, CACI No. 3905A, lists the kinds of harm a jury may consider, including physical pain, mental suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, disfigurement, physical impairment, inconvenience, grief, anxiety, humiliation, and emotional distress. The instruction tells jurors there is no fixed standard for these amounts and that they must use their judgment based on the evidence. Future harms can be included when they are reasonably certain to occur.
For burn survivors, disfigurement and its emotional effects are often a central part of the case, alongside economic losses like medical bills, future surgeries, and lost earnings.
What to Do After a Fireworks or Burn Injury
- Get medical care. MedlinePlus advises calling 911 for serious burns and, for minor burns with unbroken skin, running cool (not ice) water over the area. If you are unsure how serious a burn is, treat it as a major burn.
- Photograph everything. Take photos of the injury as it looks now and as it heals, plus the scene and the device.
- Keep the product. Save the fireworks packaging, the remains of the device, the grill part, or the battery. Do not let anyone discard them.
- Get names. Write down who lit the fireworks, who owned the property, and who saw it happen.
- Be careful with insurers. Before you accept any quick offer, read our post on the insurance company’s first settlement offer.
Deadlines
In California, most personal injury claims must be filed within two years under Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1. When the injured person is a child, Code of Civil Procedure section 352 generally pauses that deadline until the child turns 18, though it does not apply to claims that must first be presented to a public entity. Those government claims generally must be presented within six months. Waiting is risky either way, because evidence like a damaged device or witness memories disappears quickly.
Enjoy the Holiday, and Call If Something Goes Wrong
We hope your Fourth of July is safe and uneventful. If it isn’t, you don’t have to sort out the medical bills and the insurance questions alone. And if your holiday plans include the water, our post on boating accidents in California covers those rules too.
If you or your child suffered a burn injury, contact us for a free consultation. We will listen, explain your options, and you pay nothing unless we recover compensation for you.