A boy who suffered a brain injury after a swing he was playing on in his grandmother’s garden collapsed and struck him on the head has settled a High Court action for €77,500.
Billy Norris was aged seven when he fell forward while playing on the swing in his grandmother’s garden in Carrick-on-Suir, Co Tipperary, before the swing hit him on the back of the head.
Billy, from Carrick-on-Suir, had through his father Eoghan Norris initially sued his grandmother Eileen O’Shea, but the court heard she died last year and the case was now against the O’Shea estate.
Billy, who is now 15 years old, will pay €27,500 of his settlement figure in costs, the court heard.
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The boy’s counsel, William Fitzgerald BL, said his client, who suffered a significant injury, had made a good and remarkable recovery.
The boy had with his mother been visiting his grandmother’s house at Carrickbeg, Carrick-on-Suir, on January 27th, 2017, when the incident happened.
While playing on the swing, made of gun barrel metal, it collapsed and struck the boy on the head, fracturing his skull.
It was claimed that at all material times it was reasonably foreseeable that the swing was potentially a hazardous risk to visitors at the premises, including the boy.
It was further claimed the boy had been permitted to play on a swing which was allegedly hazardous and there was an alleged failure to take appropriate safeguards or precautions to prevent the boy from being exposed to the risk of injury.
It was contended that it was reasonably foreseeable that the boy was at risk of injury due to the dilapidated state of the swing.
Judgment had been obtained in default of defence.
The boy, who suffered a depressed skull fracture, was rushed to hospital and transferred to a Dublin hospital for further treatment. He also had to attend the National Rehabilitation Hospital and suffered from fatigue after the incident. For a time, he also had to use a wheelchair.
Approving the settlement, which in all the circumstances the judge said was fair and reasonable, Mr Justice Paul Coffey wished the teenager all the best for the future.
