Injury Compensation News

Four children, who were passengers in a car accident when the vehicle driven by their mother was in collision with a Garda patrol car, have been awarded a total of 26,000 Euros in personal injury damages.

Dean McEvoy (15) and his three sisters, Lauren (13), Cody (11) and Megan (10), were travelling with their mother – Lorraine McEvoy of Crumlin, Dublin – when the accident occurred on the Tallaght bypass in November 2005.

Circuit Civil Court President, Mr Justice Matthew Deery, heard that the Garda patrol car that struck the McEvoy car was being driven “at some degree of urgency”, but without its siren or warning lights on.  Lorraine McEvoy and her four children all sustained soft tissue injuries as a result of the impact.

Mr Justice Matthew Deery also heard that the State had accepted liability for the accident only after a lengthy dispute was settled in the High Court and he was asked to approve agreed settlements of 6,000 Euros for Megan and Lauren, 6,500 Euros for Dean and 7,500 Euros for Cody who had been the worse injured of the child passengers in car accident.

The family of a mother and child, who were both tragically killed in a road traffic accident which occurred in 2006, have been awarded more than 100,000 Euros in a joint compensation agreement. Both Yvonne Mahoney (24) and her daughter, Bobbi-Ann (2), were killed when a car driven by Yvonne’s partner John Maloney (33) was struck by another car as it exited the crossroads junction at Lodge Cross, County Galway on July 9 2006. Mr Maloney also died in the accident.
In an action brought by Yvonne´s widowed mother, Mary (56) of Loughrea, County Galway, it was alleged that Galway County Council had failed to maintain clear vision at the junction by not cutting down, pruning or trimming the trees and hedges on the side of the road. It was also claimed that they had failed to erect yield or stop signs.
Mrs Mahoney also sued the estate of John Maloney, claiming that Mr. Maloney had been negligent on the day of the accident by way of his driving. It was claimed that the deceased driver had caused Mrs Maloney and her eight other children to suffer mental distress. In the High Court in Galway, Judge Mr. Justice Moriarty heard that the issue of liability had been withdrawn, and awarded Mrs Mahoney and the family of Yvonne and Bobbi-Ann a compensation settlement of 100,439 Euros plus costs.

A teenage girl, who suffered psychological injuries after her mother was knocked unconscious in a car collision, has had a compensation award of 21,000 Euros approved in the Circuit Court.
Charmaine Fitzgerald (14) of Clondalkin, County Dublin, was just 10 years of age when she and her mother were violently rear-ended while sitting in the family car close to Charmaine’s school. The force of the impact was so great that Charmaine’s mother, Lisa, was thrown from the car and lost consciousness.
In the Circuit Court, Mr. Justice Matthew Deery heard that Charmaine – who was just 10 years old at the time of the accident in March 2007 – had feared her mother had died, and was psychologically traumatized by the event – suffering headaches and nightmares for a prolonged period after the accident.
In the action brought through her mother, the court also heard that Charmaine’s condition deteriorated so much that she visualised the crash each time she was driven close to the scene, and had to change schools as a result.
Judge Mr. Matthew Deery approved the settlement offer of 21,000 Euros made by the defendant – Paul Mullins of Palmerstown, Dublin.

Circuit Court President Justice Matthew Deery approved an award of 56,000 Euros for whiplash injuries suffered by three siblings, after hearing how their mother´s car had been rear-ended in an accident which occurred in January 2007.

Rachael Hopkins (9) and her brothers Daniel (10) and Thomas (7) from Broadford, County Kildare, had been passengers in a car driven by their mother Jennifer, when it was hit from behind by Ms Monica Carney of Lucan, County Dublin.

In an action brought through the children´s father, Thomas Hopkins, the court heard how the children had received treatment for recurrent and protracted symptoms of their injuries from the family GP and a specialist consultant.

The injuries had been more problematic for the two brothers, Daniel and Thomas, who were each approved a settlement of 20,000 Euros. A settlement of 16,000 Euros was approved for Rachael Hopkins, and the compensation award will remain invested in court funds until they are 18 years of age.

In the High Court, Mr Justice John Quirke claimed that he was unhappy with the system of compensation settlements when awarding more than 5 million Euros to Caroline Bogue of Belturbet, County Cavan, following an agreement between the claimant and the joint defendants – her cousin Ciaran Bogue and the Motor Insurance Board of Ireland (MIBI).

Stating that the money would be gone within 10 years, he criticised the lack of staged payments for awards of personal injury compensation and commented that the value of the settlement represented just 60% of what the claim was worth. His comments follow the case of Caroline, who suffered severe brain damage when an uninsured car, driven by the defendants brother, crashed into a tree just outside of her home town of Belturbet in May 2003. Despite wearing a seatbelt, Caroline – who was aged just 17 at the time of the accident – was admitted to Cavan Hospital where a CT scan of her brain showed she had suffered major haemorrhaging.
Now 24, Caroline needs assistance for daily living and feeding herself due to the consequences of her accident. She also experiences difficulty sleeping, has poor short-term memory and slow speech. Caroline will need permanent care throughout the rest of her life, and Mr Justice John Quirke is concerned that the settlement is insufficient for her lifetime and that she will become reliant on the State.

As it was alleged by the defence that Caroline knew that the car in which she was travelling was uninsured, Mr Justice John Quirke accepted that there was a risk that the claimant might be awarded less if the case went to a full hearing, and was guided by Caroline´s counsel. However, he commented that he was unhappy that he had to approve “a settlement so utterly speculative and imprecise from Caroline’s point of view”. A new system, which is due to be introduced in about 18 months time, will provide for continual payments over the period of the victim’s life.

Caroline Bogue of Belturbet, County Cavan, has obtained a settlement of over €5 million in a High Court settlement after an uninsured car in which she was travelling as a passenger crashed into a tree, resulting in severe injuries. Caroline Bogue suffered brain damage and will require assistance for the rest of her life.
The accident occured on May 1st, 2003, when Caroline Bogue was 17 years old.
The case was taken against the car driver Declan Brogue, the car ower Ciaran Bogue, and the Motor Insurance Bureau of Ireland. Liability was denied in the case on the grounds that Caroline Bogue was aware that car was not insured and was allegedly taken without the permission of the owner. The settlement was made without admitting liability.
Mr Justice John Quirke said that the case highlighted the need for a new system of staged payments in personal injuries cases.

The family of Bridget O’Reilly of Ballybeg, Waterford, has been awarded €506,000 in damages at the High Court following her death while a passenger in a car accident with a drunk driver. Mrs O’Reilly was aged 42 when she was killed, leaving behind a husband and nine children, the youngest of which was only 3 years old.

The case was taken by Mrs O’Reilly’s husband, Edward O’Reilly, against the drunken driver of the car, Frank Prendergast of Tallaght, County Dublin, and the Motor Insurers’ Bureau of Ireland. The car crash happened at Powerstown, County Carlow in July 2002 and Mrs O’Reilly died a few weeks later in hospital.

Mrs O’Reilly’s sister, who has her own large family, has been caring for the children left behind by the tragedy.

It should be noted that Irish law is rather lenient on drunk drivers.  In this particular case, the court heard that the drunk driver was travelling at speed when he lost control and crossed over to the wrong side of the road before crashing head-on into an another car. In some legal jurisdictions, such as under the California Vehicle Code, causing bodily injury to another person  while drunk driving is a specific criminal offense. Such road traffic accidents are only accidents in the sense that there are not planned, but they are not accidents in the sense that they are unforeseen. Anyone who drinks alcohol and then decides to drive a motor vehicle is clearly putting other people at risk and accidents are predictable.

Publicans Concepta and Seamus Kelly have defended themselves in the High Court last week in a lawsuit taken by the estate of a man killed in a car crash after consuming excessive alcohol in their pub.  The case was taken by the estate of John Connolly who caused a fatal car accident when driving three times over the legal limit for driving.
The car accident happened in the late afternoon after Mr Connolly had been drinking since 11.30 am in the Diamond Bar in Tullaghan, Leitrim.  Mr Connolly’s car collided with a car carrying a mother, Mary Flanagan, and daughter, Anne McSorley, resulting in injuries to the mother and the death of the daughter.  Mrs Flanagan has already settled an injury compensation case for the car crash for €275,000.
The current contributory negligence case in the High Court is between the estate of Mr Connolly and the owners of the pub that served him alcohol, Concepta and Seamus Kelly, who have defended themselves against allegations that they acted negligently and in breach of their duty of care in serving excessive alcohol to Mr. Connolly.  Perhaps crucially, it was alleged that they knew or ought to have known that he would drive on a public road.
Concepta Kelly defended herself in court saying “It is up to the individual themselves to know their own body. There are people who can drink and drive with three or four pints and people who cannot drive with one” Mr Justice Kevin Feeney has adjourned the case for one month.

Twelve Irish organisations have signed  the European Road Safety Charter in Dublin today. The European Union statistics for 2008 show that there were 1.3 million road traffic accidents, 39,000 road deaths, and 1.6 million injuries. It is estimated that road traffic injuries cost about 2% of European GDP.
The charter focuses on reducing the number of road traffic accidents in Europe with measures that improve vehicle safety, road infrastructure safety, and driver behaviour.
The twelve new Irish signatories of the European Road Safety Charter are Cavan Area Rural Transport, Community Transport Association of Ireland, Dún Laoghaire – Rathdown County Council, ECO Unesco, Headway Ireland, Irish Medical Organisation, Irish Road Haulage Association, Metroplex Ireland, Shell, The Irish Insurance Federation, Vantastic, and World Rally Team Ireland.

Ben McHale, now four years old of Fethard Road, Clonmel, Co Tipperary, had a settlement of €2.9 million approved by Mr Justice John Quirke in the High Court for suffering blindness and brain injuries in a car accident.  The car was driven by the child’s mother, Disislave McHale, who was driving the car without insurance.  The case was taken against the Motor Insurers’ Bureau of Ireland since the car was not insured. As the plaintiff was underage, the case was taken by his uncle William McHale, acting as the “next friend” guardian.