A young girl, who was suffered severe physical and emotional trauma due to a crash in which her sister and best friend died, has been awarded €200,000 compensation for her injuries in the car accident.
Faith Varden-Carberry (12) who now lives in Tuam, County Galway, was just seven years of age when her mother Mary Carberry (36) crashed the car she was driving into a clay embankment outside Edgeworthstown, County Longford, in November 2007.
In the accident, Faith´s sister Ava (6) and her best friend Michaela Logan were both killed, and Faith´s injuries were so bad that she had underwent emergency treatment at the scene before being transferred to Our Lady´s Childrens Hospital in Crumlin – where she remained in a spinal cast for two months.
Faith´s mother – who was banned from driving at the time because of a previous accident – was found to be in excess of the legal alcohol limit, was arrested and sentenced to six years imprisonment for her part in the crash.
Faith went to live with her step-sister in Tuam when she was released from hospital, and made a claim for compensation for injuries in a car accident through her grand-father Anthony Carberry against both her mother and father – Thomas Varden – who was the legal owner of the car.
The claim against Thomas Varden was later dropped, , and – as Mrs Carberry was uninsured herself and banned from driving – the claim for compensation for injuries in a car accident was transferred to the Motor Insurers´ Bureau of Ireland (MIBI).
At the High Court, Mr Justice Peter Charleton was told that a settlement of compensation for injuries in a car accident had been agreed amounting to €200,000 and that the case was before him for approval of damages only.
Mr Justice Peter Charleton approved the settlement, and also allowed €2,000 to be instantly withdrawn from it in order to allow Faith to have a new computer to assist her with her schoolwork.