A seven-year-old girl, who had a tooth removed after an accident at the Craggaunowen Living Past Experience, has had the settlement of her compensation claim for a personal injury on a bouncy castle approved in court.
Aimee Turner from Kilmore, County Limerick, was just four-and-a-half years of age when she visited the award-winning attraction in County Clare in April 2010. As she was playing on the bouncy castle, Aimee´s upper left central baby incisor tooth was damaged when the left side of her face was struck.
Aimee´s mother – Rachel Cross – took Aimee to her local dentist when the tooth became discoloured after three days and Aimee was referred to consultant maxillofacial surgeon Michael Kilbride, who extracted the damaged tooth.
A later examination by the dentist revealed that the discolouration of the tooth had been caused by bleeding into the crown following the accident, but Aimee would be unlikely to suffer any permanent injury despite the tooth being removed eighteen months earlier than it would have dropped out naturally.
Through her mother, Aimee made a claim for a personal injury on a bouncy castle against the owners of the Craggaunowen Living Past Experience, as the bouncy castle had been unsupervised at the time of Aimee´s accident.
Liability was acknowledged for Aimee´s injury by the Craggaunowen Living Past Experience, and the Injuries Board assessed the value of Aimee´s injury at €5,000 plus special damages of €1,624 for the costs incurred by Aimee´s mother.
At the Circuit Civil Court, Mr Justice Raymond Groarke approved the settlement of compensation for a personal injury on a bouncy castle, commenting “What always astonishes me is having seen children on these bouncy castles, they are terrifying. How they don’t come out with broken noses and broken teeth and everything else – it is quite astonishing.”