Clare County Council was held liable after a cyclist suffered a serious ankle injury in a fall at a cattle grid on a public road at Clonmoney South, Shannon. The High Court found the grid’s concrete surround had been defectively constructed and created a hazard, but assessed the cyclist as 25% contributorily negligent.
Mr Justice David Barniville awarded the plaintiff €113,404.87, including €105,000 in general damages after the reduction and €8,404.87 in special damages. The special damages had been agreed at €11,206.50 before the deduction.
The plaintiff, then 64, fell on 3 August 2014 while cycling over the grid. The court accepted his evidence that, as he crossed the concrete surround on the left side, he encountered a sudden drop onto the metal bars, lost control and fell. The judge found that the final drop was about 25mm and was not visible to a cyclist approaching the grid in time to prepare for it.
The court accepted engineering evidence that concrete had been laid over at least the first metal bar and later broke away, leaving the drop. It found the feature defectively designed and constructed, and said it should have been set back from the grid. A warning could also have been provided at little expense.
The grid and road had been transferred from Shannon Development to the Council in 2004. The road became a public road in 2011. The judge found the Council liable in negligence, concluding that the defect resulted from misfeasance in the original construction rather than a failure to maintain the road. He also found the condition amounted to a public nuisance created by Shannon Development and continued or adopted by the Council.
The judge did not decide the plaintiff’s alternative claims under the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1995 or the Roads Act 1993, because the negligence and nuisance findings were sufficient to resolve liability. He found the plaintiff could have dismounted and used a narrow gap beside the grid, or crossed nearer its middle or right side, and set contributory negligence at 25%.
The plaintiff sustained a serious fracture of his left ankle and continues to experience pain and restricted movement. The court accepted that he will require either an ankle fusion or replacement. General damages were assessed at €95,000 for pain and suffering to date and €45,000 for the future, before the contributory-negligence deduction.