A woman from Dublin has been awarded €17,500 compensation for a back injury due to falling from a broken chair in one of the capital´s Chinese restaurants.
The woman suffered her injury in May 2014 while dining at the China Kitchen Restaurant in Beaumont. She told Judge Jacqueline Linnane that she had been dining with friends when a leg became detached from the chair she was sitting on, causing it to collapse.
The woman – a thirty-four year old cleaner from Finglas – jolted to her right side to avoid falling onto the floor but, due to her sudden movement, twisted her lower back. Feeling immediate pain, she visited her GP the following day who prescribed painkillers.
As she continued to experience pain in her lower back after working or sitting for a long time, the woman underwent a course of physiotherapy sessions. Although the sessions had some effect, she still continues to suffer intermittent pain across her lumbar region.
The woman claimed compensation for a back injury due to falling from a broken chair against Xwfx Ltd – the registered owner of the China Kitchen Restaurant – alleging that the restaurant had been negligent in providing her with a faulty chair and that the waiter that had come to her assistance after her accident had tried to repair the chair rather than replace it.
Xwfx Limited failed to answer a request from the Injuries Board for the restaurant´s consent to conduct an assessment of the woman´s claim, and subsequently failed to attend a court hearing after the woman had taken her case to court. The case was found in the woman´s favour in default of appearance and proceeded to the Circuit Civil Court for an assessment of damages only.
After hearing the details of the case, how the accident had occurred, and the consequences of the injury to the woman´s quality of life, Judge Linnane awarded her €17,500 compensation for a back injury due to falling from a broken chair.