Might just be me, but I've only noticed being actually hit by NPCs burst a handful of times (maybe 7) since I started to play.
And my dodges really do suck, so it isn't that .
In fact, Bursts are the only specials I've been hit by at all from NPCs...
PC based specially pretty much always hit regardless of skill. Wouldn't think too much either way if I was never hit by Burst, but the sporadic behavior concerns me a bit.