A woman, who allegedly broke her nose in an accident with an automatic door at a wedding reception, has settled her personal injury claim against the hotel and the company who fitted the automatic doors for an undisclosed sum.
Martina Fivey (41) of Mullingar, County Westmeath, had been attending her sister´s wedding reception at the Mullingar Park Hotel in February 2008 when the accident occurred. Martina had been stood in an open automatic doorway waiting for her husband to join her for a cigarette when one of the doors suddenly closed on her, striking her on the face and breaking her nose.
Judge Jacqueline Linnane heard at Dublin Circuit Civil Court that Martina has a history of nasal problems dating back to 2005 and she had to have the fracture manipulated back into place while under general anaesthetic. The court heard that for several weeks after, Martina´s face was black and blue from both the accident and the surgery and she had to apply a considerable amount of make-up to hide the evidence of her injury.
The two defendants in the case – Euro Plaza Hotels Ltd trading as Mullingar Park Hotel and Boon Edam Ireland Ltd – both denied the personal injury claim but, after hearing Martina´s testimony, Judge Jacqueline Linnane was told that the two parties had reached an undisclosed settlement and that the case could be struck out.