Boy who broke arm jumping on hotel bed awarded €21,500

A boy who broke his left arm when he fell between two beds in a four-star Dublin hotel, has been awarded €21,500 damages in the Circuit Civil Court.

Barrister Benjamin Shorten told the court that Jamie Gould was two-years-old in August 2013 when the accident happened while staying with his parents at the Carlton Hotel, Church Road, Blanchardstown.

Mr Shorten said Jamie had been jumping on two divans which had been pushed together to form one bed when he slipped between them, trapping his left arm.

The court heard he cried out in distress because of pain in his arm and was taken to Temple Street Children’s Hospital.

Circuit Court President Mr Justice Raymond Groarke heard that x-rays revealed a fracture and that Jamie had to undergo surgery under anaesthetic. He was discharged the next day.

Through his mother Brenda Lagan, of Terramount, Rathcormac, Co Cork, Jamie sued Paximol Ltd, which trades as Carlton Hotel Blanchardstown, of Parkway House, Old Airport Road, Cloghran, Co Dublin.

Danger

His legal team claimed the hotel had failed to ensure he would be safe in the bedroom as the bed constituted a danger and a trap. It was alleged the hotel had failed to take any effective measures to fix the bed in a more stable manner.

It was also claimed the hotel had failed to take effective measures to prevent him from falling and had failed to provide a bed configuration in the bedroom without the need to push two divans together.

Mr Shorten, who appeared with Carl O’Mahony Solicitors, said the defendant had made an €21,500 settlement offer and, recommending acceptance of it, he said liability might have been made an issue in the case if it proceeded to a full trial.

Judge Groarke approved the offer. He was told that Jamie’s injury had left a small scar on his elbow.