An artist and painter, whose hair fell out following a hair colouring treatment at a Galway hair salon, has won her claim for personal injury compensation at the High Court in Dublin.
Aileen Dunleavy (40) from Salthill, County Galway, sued Hair Republic of Galway for negligence and breach of care of duty towards her after her hair started falling out following a treatment in the salon in March 2007.
Aileen claimed in her action that she had not been warned that the colouring treatment could have an adverse effect on her hair, and that the treatment itself was applied by a stylist who was both inexperienced and insufficiently skilled.
Mr Justice Iarfhlaith O´Neill heard at the High Court how Aileen had become socially withdrawn due to the sense of embarrassment she suffered as a result of what happened to her hair and had been unable to paint in a meaningful way.
Finding in favour of the claimant, Mr Justice Iarfhlaith O´Neill awarded Aileen 45,000 Euros in compensation and described what had happened to her as “a disaster”. The judge stated that he had no doubt that the hairdressing salon was wholly responsible for Aileen’s trauma.