A man who fractured his foot after he tripped on steps and fell as he left the smoking area of The George pub in Dublin has been awarded €44,000 damages by a High Court judge.
The pub was 60 per cent responsible for the injuries suffered by Patrick McDonagh while Mr McDonagh was 40 per cent responsible, Mr Justice Kevin Cross found.
He said Mr McDonagh, a credit controller, suffered a nasty injury and has been left with unsightly scars on his knee, leg and ankle. He was nine weeks out of work and required surgery and physiotherapy after the fall, the judge noted.
He awarded a total of €74,764 which, with a deduction for contributory negligence on Mr McDonagh’s part, was reduced to just over €44,000. The judge held him 40 per cent responsible for the incident as there was CCTV footage indicating he was looking upward as he approached the steps.
Mr McDonagh, Wilford Court, Corke Abbey Avenue, Bray, Co Wicklow had sued Vikram Limited, trading as The George public house, South Great George’s Street, Dublin as a result of the fall on September 24th, 2011.
The judge said Mr McDonagh was going from a smoking area at the rear of the premises at the back of the pub when he fell and tripped on steps.
Mr Justice Cross said, from watching the CCTV, he believed Mr McDonagh did trip and fall on the steps.
The steps had originally been part of a fire escape but, after the introduction of the smoking ban, a smoking area had been situated there, he noted.
The judge said he thought it was impractical to provide a handrail at the step. He found the step Mr McDonagh fell on was too high and was a danger or trap.
Mr McDonagh could not escape a finding of contributory negligence in relation to the accident, he also found. The area was well lit and the step had a strip of white paint on it. While Mr McDonagh was not intoxicated, he had consumed a significant quantity of alcohol throughout the night and his reactions were not what they might have been.
Mr McDonagh had given evidence of having consumed about three pints and said he was not intoxicated but was “merry”. Mr McDonagh had not looked to see the steps and the CCTV showed him looking upwards, the judge said.