The High Court found that a 2013 rear-end collision in Dublin caused a primary school teacher moderate soft-tissue injuries and a profound psychological reaction that led to chronic pain syndrome. It assessed general damages at €55,000 for pain and suffering to date and €30,000 into the future, but deferred the special-damages figure and has not yet made a decree.
The personal injuries action concerned a collision on 5 November 2013 at the junction of Grove Road and Rathmines Road Lower, beside Portobello Bridge. The defendant admitted negligence. The dispute was whether the crash caused injury and, if so, its extent.
The plaintiff said she was stationary at traffic lights when the defendant’s Range Rover struck her Opel Astra from behind. The defendant described the impact as slight. The judge found it was not a substantial collision, but accepted expert evidence that a light impact at under 10 miles per hour could cause injury. The court ultimately found that this collision did cause soft-tissue injuries.
The judge accepted that the plaintiff was a sincere and truthful witness. He found she sustained a moderate degree of musculo-ligamentous injury to her neck, back, left shoulder, left elbow and left wrist. Those physical-injury symptoms would have settled within 24 months. She did not sustain a concussion, the court found. Existing spinal degeneration became symptomatic after the crash.
The court also found that the plaintiff had a profound psychological reaction, associated with moderate depression and vulnerability to stress and anxiety. She developed chronic pain syndrome, for which the prognosis was uncertain. The judge rejected her claim that the defendant was liable for worsening hypertension, finding she had not established on the balance of probabilities that accident-related limits on exercise and stress were the specific causes.
On dental injury, the judge found that involuntary clenching of the plaintiff’s teeth during the collision led to cracks in the roots of several teeth, requiring root canal treatment and crowns. He accepted the lower of two future-treatment estimates, €15,268, taking account of her dental maintenance regime, including use of a night splint.
The court has not concluded the damages assessment. The judge said he would hear the parties on the appropriate special-damages figure in light of his findings before making a decree.