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Glossary

Disfigurement

A lasting change to how a person looks, such as scarring from burns, wounds or surgery. Some state laws name it as a type of non-economic damages or as a no-fault threshold.

Last reviewed By the Editorial team 1 min read

General information, not legal advice. Talk to a licensed attorney in your state.

Quick answer

Disfigurement is a lasting change to how a person looks, such as scars from burns, cuts or surgery. In an injury claim, it is usually treated as a kind of Non-economic damages. Losses without a price tag, such as pain, suffering, emotional distress and loss of enjoyment of life. Glossary, separate from the medical bills to treat it.

In a car accident claim#

Some state laws name it directly. Texas defines non-economic damages to include physical pain and suffering, mental or emotional pain or anguish, loss of consortium, disfigurement, physical impairment, loss of companionship and society, inconvenience, loss of enjoyment of life and injury to reputation.

In no-fault states, disfigurement can also decide whether you can sue for pain and suffering at all. New York's "serious injury" threshold includes injuries such as death, dismemberment, significant disfigurement, a fracture, or a permanent or significant limitation of use of a body organ, member, function or system. Michigan allows a non-economic damages claim only for death, serious impairment of body function, or permanent serious disfigurement. These thresholds use words like "significant" and "permanent", so how visible and lasting a scar is can matter.

Evidence usually includes photos taken over time, doctors' notes on whether the change is permanent, and estimates for future treatment, such as scar revision surgery, which counts as an economic loss. Our guides to burn injuries, pain and suffering and types of damages explain how these pieces are valued.

Example#

Questions people ask

Does scarring count as disfigurement?

Often, if it is lasting and visible. How much it counts depends on where it is, how severe it is and state law. Some no-fault thresholds require "significant" or "permanent serious" disfigurement.

Is disfigurement the same as physical impairment?

No. Disfigurement is about appearance, while physical impairment is about how the body works. Texas lists them as separate kinds of non-economic damages.

Sources

  1. Texas Legislature, Civil Practice and Remedies Code chapter 41 — definition of non-economic damages
  2. New York State Senate, Insurance Law § 5102 — definition of serious injury
  3. Michigan Legislature, MCL 500.3135 — the Michigan tort threshold

Last reviewed October 29, 2026 by the Accident Claim Facts editorial team. Found an error? Tell us.

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