The Circuit Civil Court has approved a €21,000 settlement of compensation for an injury in a hotel pool made by the father of an injured six-year-old girl.
Emma Olteanu was just four years of age when she went swimming at the Clarion Hotel in Clondalkin in October 2014 with her father, Marius. Emma was wearing special swimming socks to prevent her from slipping by the pool, but despite this precaution against the risk of injury, Emma tripped on the raised edge of a pool mat and hit her chin against the side of the pool.
Emma was taken by her father to the A&E Department at the Adelaide and Meath Hospital in Tallaght, where the cut on her chin was cleaned and stitched. However, as a consequence of the cut, Emma has a two-centimetre scar on her chin of which she is very conscious according to her parents.
Marius – from Lucan in County Dublin – claimed compensation for an injury in a hotel pool on behalf of his daughter against Kingsoak Taverns Ltd. trading as Clarion Hotels – claiming that the pool mat over which Emma had tripped was worn and presented a hazard. Liability was admitted by Kingsoak Taverns Ltd., and a €21,000 settlement of compensation for an injury in a hotel pool was negotiated.
As the compensation claim had been made on behalf of a minor, the €21,000 negotiated settlement had to be approved by a judge to ensure it was in Emma´s best interests. Consequently, the case was brought before Mr Justice Raymond Groarke at the Circuit Civil Court, who was told the circumstances of Emma´s accident and about the visible scar she had as a result.
Judge Groarke approved the settlement of compensation for an injury in a hotel pool and the compensation will now be paid into court. The funds will remain in an interest-bearing account until Emma reaches the age of eighteen unless an application is made to the court to release some of the money for Emma´s education or for medical reasons.