A MAN who was assaulted in the Canary Islands and claimed benefits from a permanent health insurance policy because he was brain-damaged and unable to work was attending university as a law student, a court heard yesterday.
Friends Provident Life Office, an insurance company with an address in Surrey, England refused to continue paying out £350 a week to Mr William Hennessy of Rockspring, Montenotte, Cork under the policy agreement.
He sued them in the Cork Circuit Court to get his payments under the policy and it counterclaimed seeking to have the policy declared null and void.
Judge Patrick Moran dismissed Mr Hennessy's claim and allowed the counterclaim declaring the policy null and void on the basis of concealment of the material facts and fraudulent misrepresentation by Mr Hennessy.
Although Mr Hennessy did not appear for the special court sitting, claiming that he is a patient in the Mater Hospital, Judge Moran decided to hear the case in his absence. His legal team was present in court.
Mr Michael Gleeson SC for Friends Provident said more than £100,000 had been paid to Mr Hennessy to date.
He said on January 4th, 1989, Mr Hennessy claimed he was attacked while on board a yacht in Grand Canaria and beaten about the head with a winch handle.
He suffered head injuries which gave rise to a mental incapacity which qualified him for benefit under the policy because he was unable to pursue his pre-disability employment as a financial consultant.
The insurance company heard that Mr Hennessy, while claiming off the policy, was doing a law degree in University College, Cork.
The policy was suspended for a time in 1991 and again in 1994 because Mr Hennessy refused to travel to Dublin for a medical examination. He indicated he was terminally ill and would not be able to travel and the Circuit Court directed that a chauffeur-driven car be provided to take him there.
Mr Gleeson said Mr Hennessy had seriously misrepresented the extent of his disability, which effectively rendered the policy null and void.
He had attended University College, Cork as a law student initially at night, successfully completing diploma courses in law and was accepted as a full-time day student.
He made his first application for admission as a student in April 1989, three months after the incident in the Canaries.
The following October he was examined by Dr Frank Matthews on behalf of Friends Provident: during the examination he could not remember simple details such as his age or his date of birth.
Dr Matthews said when he examined Mr Hennessy on October 7th, 1991 to see if he qualified for benefits under the policy, Mr Hennessy told him he had difficulty remembering and that he had tried to return to his work but had to stop because he was making silly mistakes.
He told Dr Matthews that after the assault, in January 1989, he lost consciousness for between 12 and 24 hours and was hospitalised for two weeks, after which he was flown home.
He could not remember his date of birth and had to consult a diary to check it. He could not recall answers to simple questions. After the examination, Dr Matthews said, he advised the insurance company Mr Hennessy would never work again.
He saw him again on October 28th, 1993. "During examination he did not come across as someone capable of attending university. He was incapable of pursuing any career which required the use of his brain," the doctor said.
Mr Hennessy told him he had been in the US, where he had brain scans which showed brain shrinkage and he complained of weight loss and abdominal pains. His memory was very bad and he had difficulty concentrating, finding it hard to carry on any meaningful conversation. He also said he suffered blackouts. He had not driven a car since 1990 because of these.
"In my opinion, based on the way he presented himself at the examinations, Mr Hennessy was quite incapable of attending primary school, never mind third- level education," Dr Matthews said.