Despite Burnley knowing their relegation fate was already as good as sealed, they started on the front foot, putting the ball in the back of the net inside the opening 10 minutes, when Jaidon Anthony arrowed a left-footed effort into the far corner.
However, an incredibly tight VAR check adjudged a small part of his shoulder to have strayed offside.
That was one of few openings for the Clarets, who soon found themselves in their usual position of defending for dear life, but aside from a Yankuba Minteh mishit from inside the area, they looked largely unthreatened.
That was at least until Danny Welbeck – who was chasing the goal he needed to equal the club record for most Premier League goals in a single campaign – finally tested Martin Dubravka. But his strike was straight at the Burnley stopper, with an effort that was somewhat symptomatic of the struggles both sides were facing.
However, the Seagulls’ inevitable breakthrough arrived on the stroke of half-time, as some statuesque Burnley defending allowed Mats Wieffer to ghost into the area and sweep home Pascal Gross' delivery.
Scott Parker’s men at least came out with a renewed belief after the break, and once more had joy snuffed out by officialdom, when Bashir Humphreys had strayed offside after Bart Verbruggen had fumbled James Ward-Prowse’s free-kick straight into his path.
And the tide soon turned back in Brighton’s favour, as Dubravka produced a fine one-handed save to turn away Jack Hinshelwood’s curling effort.
Overall, it wasn’t particularly for a want of trying that Burnley couldn’t get back into the game, more a lack of quality, and even throwing another striker on in the closing stages in Armando Broja had little material impact on their attacking shortcomings.
In turn, Brighton were relatively untroubled in hanging on to secure three points which provisionally moved them up to eighth and three points behind sixth, adding a second in the dying moments through Wieffer who swept home from just outside the area.
Defeat won’t change the seasonal outcome for Burnley, which will almost certainly now be relegation unless they win every game between now and the end of the season.