Child wins Lm35,000 in damages after restaurant incident

A child injured in the collapse of a Qawra restaurant wall was yesterday awarded damages exceeding Lm35,000 by Mr Justice Tonio Mallia, sitting in the First Hall of the Civil Court.

The award was given in the case filed by George and Sandra Borg on behalf of their daughter Carly against Anthony and Carmen Borg and against Renzo Borg.

The court heard that the accident occurred on September 17, 2000, at Strawberry Grove Restaurant, Qawra when the child and her parents went for a meal with friends.

The child, who at the time was five years old, was playing with the other children of the group on the restaurant's terrace which was surrounded with a three foot high wall on which were some troughs filled with plants.

One of the troughs fell onto the child's right hand inflicting serious injuries that were estimated by the court experts as causing a permanent disability of 16 per cent.

The court heard that at the time of the accident the child's parents had sat down to eat with their friends while their daughter, together with the other children, kept playing around. The adults occasionally checked on the children.

It was only when they heard their child cry in pain that the parents noticed that an accident had happened.

According to the parents, the trough was not affixed to the wall by cement or by brackets, and this was confirmed by the police who investigated the accident.

Anthony and Carmen Borg and Renzo Borg, who together ran the restaurant, denied responsibility for the accident.

They claimed that the parents were at fault for allowing the children to play unsupervised on the terrace.

They further claimed that the trough had been pulled down by one of the children while playing.

But the court found that the girl's parents had not been negligent in her regard. They had gone to eat in a public place that accepted children as clients and had every right to expect that the place was safe for themselves and for their child.

The parents were not obliged to check every item in the restaurant and it was up to the restaurant to ensure that no danger existed, for everyone was aware that children did not often sit quietly at table.

Once the restaurant had opened its doors to children it had to ensure the place was safe for them. Children had to be allowed to play, and no parent could be expected to hold their children's hands while at play.

The court concluded by finding the restaurant owners liable in damages and ordered them to pay Lm35,328 to the child's parents on her behalf.

Mr Justice Mallia ordered that this sum be placed by the parents in a fixed bank account in the child's name on condition it could not be withdrawn by them until the child reached the age of 18.

The court added that a withdrawal could take place by court order, and that the interest on the account would accrue to the parents.