A Cork taxi driver has been awarded €22,985 after the High Court rejected an argument that his personal injury claim was tainted by suspicious additional damage later inflicted on the taxi he was driving.
Ms Justice Nuala Jackson delivered judgment on 23 March 2026 following a Circuit Court appeal by Starrus Eco Holdings Limited and its driver, Thomas Wall.
John Morrissey was stationary at a red light in Cork city at about 3.30pm on 30 November 2021 when the defendants' vehicle struck his taxi from behind. The immediate damage was minor and both drivers spoke amicably at the scene.
Morrissey did not own the taxi but leased it for €200 per week. Photographs taken immediately after the collision and during an insurance inspection on 21 December showed limited damage. However, a second inspection on 5 January 2022 revealed substantially greater damage.
The court found that extra damage had undoubtedly been caused between those inspections and had nothing to do with the November collision. A material-damage claim by the vehicle owner was nevertheless paid on the basis of the later damage.
The defendants argued that Morrissey's personal injury claim should therefore be dismissed under section 26 of the Civil Liability and Courts Act 2004 for false or misleading evidence.
The judge rejected that argument. Although she considered that Morrissey must have had some knowledge of what had happened to the vehicle and had exaggerated the seriousness of the accident when speaking to his GP, she found no evidence that he caused the extra damage, participated in the third party's claim or sought to rely on the enhanced damage in his own proceedings.
The court found that Morrissey sustained lower-moderate soft-tissue neck injuries lasting approximately 12 to 24 months, with lesser shoulder, elbow and radiating finger symptoms.
He was awarded €22,000 in general damages and €985 in special damages. Aggravated damages were refused.