Unfortunate hothead had unfortunate lapses (7)
I believe the answer is:
hapless
'unfortunate' is the definition.
(similar in meaning)
'hothead had unfortunate lapses' is the wordplay.
'hothead' becomes 'h' (head letter of 'hot').
'had' says to put letters next to each other.
'unfortunate' indicates anagramming the letters.
'lapses' with letters rearranged gives 'apless'.
'h'+'apless'='HAPLESS'
(Other definitions for hapless that I've seen before include "Unlucky, unfortunate" , "He slaps (anag) - unlucky" , "Unfortunate, wretched" , "Ill-fated" , "Pathetic" .)