The High Court found both drivers negligent over a 2014 collision at Rassan, Hackballscross, County Louth, assigning 75% of the fault to plaintiff Alan Kelly and 25% to defendant Bernard Meegan. It assessed damages at €101,575 before applying those apportionments, but said the final orders would be discussed with counsel.
In a judgment delivered on 2 December 2020, Mr Justice Bernard J Barton accepted that Mr Kelly’s van crossed from the hard shoulder into Mr Meegan’s path on the Castleblaney-bound carriageway shortly before a junction. The judge found the move created an emergency and that Mr Kelly gave no timely warning, failed to keep a proper lookout and failed to yield to traffic.
The collision happened shortly after 3.30pm on 6 May 2014. Mr Kelly had made a U-turn and was travelling back towards a lane he intended to enter. He said he had reached the opposite carriageway when the Mercedes struck his van. Mr Meegan said the van had travelled along the hard shoulder and suddenly pulled out in front of him.
The judge preferred Mr Meegan’s account of where the impact occurred. He relied on the main concentration of debris on the northbound carriageway, the damage to both vehicles and their positions after the collision. Garda Aoife Kelly had identified the likely impact point from the debris and accounts given at the scene. The judge also found that the van’s indicator was engaged almost at the moment of impact, rather than in good time.
The court also found Mr Meegan negligent. Although he had seen Mr Kelly’s U-turn and the van travelling slowly on the hard shoulder, he did not sound his horn, flash his lights or slow further as he approached. The judge found it reasonably foreseeable that the van might try to rejoin the carriageway, and that Mr Meegan’s speed left him without a reasonable prospect of dealing with the emergency.
The judge considered the injury evidence, including physical injuries and psychological effects. He found that the crash triggered a recurrence of Mr Kelly’s previously treated depressive disorder, for which he remained on medication. The court awarded €40,000 for past physical pain and suffering and €25,000 for past psychological injuries. It assessed future pain and suffering at €35,000, principally for continuing psychological effects. Agreed special damages were €1,575.
The judgment sets out a total of €100,000 in general damages and €1,575 in special damages, subject to the 75/25 apportionment of fault. It does not state the final reduced amount or record a final order; the judge said he would discuss the form of the orders with counsel.