A judge at the Limerick Circuit Court has awarded multiple compensation settlements for an SUV accident in which a driver and three passengers were injured.
Mary O´Reilly was driving her husband´s SUV from Charleville in County Cork to Rathkeale on 18th October 2011, when the vehicle was rear-ended by a rental van driver by Rathkeale resident Jeremiah O´Brien. Several days after the accident, Mary and her three female passengers started to experience pain from soft tissue injuries they had sustained in the accident.
The four women claimed injury compensation from the driver of the rental van, the company from which it had been hired – Enterprise Rent a Car – and the Motor Insurers Bureau of Ireland (MIBI). Mary´s husband – William O´Reilly – also claimed compensation for the property damage to his SUV –
Enterprise Rent-a-Car and MIBI contested the claim on the grounds that the circumstances of the accident did not stand up to scrutiny. The defendants alleged that Jeremiah O´Brien and William O´Reilly were known to each other, and that when the Gardai attended the scene of the accident, no property damage was recorded.
As consent for the Injuries Board to assess the compensation settlements for an SUV accident was denied, the case went to Limerick Circuit Court, where it was heard by Judge Karen Fergus. Judge Fergus was told that, although William O´Reilly´s parents had lived near Jeremiah O´Brien´s parents, the two men had only met once before.
Judge Fergus also heard about the various injuries that had been sustained by Mary and her passengers, and that one of the passengers – Lisa O´Reilly had already settled her claim out of court. The judge awarded multiple compensation settlements for an SUV accident to Mary O´Reilly (€7,500), Caitriona McDonagh (€10,000) and Breda McCarthy (€12,000). William O´Reilly was also awarded €4,800 for the property damage to his SUV.