The High Court dismissed Kevin Boland’s personal injury claim against Dublin City Council, Bord Gais Eireann and Enterprised Managed Services Limited after finding that he fell while attempting to jump an erected barrier at a roadworks site on Lower Sheriff Street, Dublin.
Boland was 17 when he suffered a serious fracture to his right elbow on 14 May 2008. He said he tripped over heavy plastic barriers lying on the pavement, where he claimed pedestrians had no way around them. The defendants disputed that account, pleading that he tried to jump an erected barrier and was responsible for his fall.
The central issue was whether the incident described by Tom Carroll, a JCB operator at the site, was the one in which Boland was injured. Carroll said he saw two men approach during the lunch break, move a barrier, cross an excavated area and then saw one try to jump another erected barrier and fall. He placed the incident between 1pm and 2pm, probably about 1.30pm. Boland said he was injured at about 3.30pm, after finishing work and walking home with Gerard Meehan.
Meehan supported Boland’s account of their route and said he saw barriers lying on the ground, but acknowledged he was ahead of Boland and did not see the fall itself. The site foreman, Gareth Byrne, said the footpath and archway were cordoned off. He testified that Carroll reported the fall after Byrne returned from collecting materials, and that Byrne found a barrier on the ground and put it back in place.
Justice Michael Peart said he was completely satisfied Carroll was truthful and reliable. He found Carroll had seen Boland fall during the lunch break and noted that no other similar incident was reported that day. The judge also considered the serious elbow fracture consistent with a fall from a height while jumping a barrier.
The judgment separately rejected Boland’s claim for €25,000 in lost earnings from a window-fitting job said to have begun three days before the accident. The judge found the claimed year of work was unsupported by employment or payment records and described the loss-of-earnings claim as fabricated. He said this affected Boland’s overall credibility, while distinguishing it from credibility about how the injury happened.
The court found Boland had attempted to jump an erected barrier and had given a false account of the accident. It dismissed his claim. The judgment does not award damages to Boland.