Driver awarded Lm38,000 damages after road accident

A woman injured in a traffic accident was yesterday awarded over Lm38,000 in damages by Mr Justice Tonio Mallia, sitting in the First Hall of the Civil Court.

Fiona Dowling claimed she had suffered a permanent disability after Paul Caruana had lost control of his vehicle and had crashed into her car at Bahar Ic-Caghaq in 2000.

The court heard that Ms Dowling was driving towards St Andrews. Mr Caruana, who was driving someone else's car, was going in the opposite direction when he lost control of the car and a collision ensued. His vehicle had ended upside down and had caught fire.

Mr Caruana had, at first, refused to admit he was driving the car, and told the car owner to say he had been in the driving seat. But, on the day after the accident, Mr Caruana had told the inquiring magistrate he was in fact the car's driver.

Mr Justice Mallia said there was no doubt that Mr Caruana was responsible for the accident.

Ms Dowling was driving on the correct side of the road at normal speed. It was Mr Caruana who had crossed lanes and collided with her.

The brake marks on the scene of the accident indicated that Mr Caruana had been driving at about 95 kilometres an hour.

The court found that Mr Caruana was driving in a dangerous and negligent manner and that he was responsible for the accident and for the damages suffered by Ms Dowling.

When liquidating the damages, the court noted that the victim had incurred serious injuries and had medical problems. After hearing the medical experts, the court ruled she had suffered a 55 per cent permanent disability.

The court examined Ms Dowling's income and awarded her the sum of Lm38,060 in damages.