A young woman lying in a coma since 2008 was awarded €400,000 in damages yesterday by a court in Gozo.

The case was filed by Xavier and Celestina Grech against Jeoffrey Vella on behalf of their daughter, Marla Grech, who fell into a coma following a traffic accident.

The court, presided over by Magistrate Paul Coppini heard that Ms Grech, who was 15 years old at the time of the accident, was a front seat passenger in a car driven by Mr Vella, her boyfriend, who was dropping her off at home.

In the incident, which occurred in the early hours of March 1, 2008, Mr Vella lost control of his car and crashed into a wall and an electricity pole. Ms Grech suffered a permanent disability and is still in a coma.

The court established that the driver lost of control of the car because of excessive speeding.

It pointed out that Ms Grech’s father had lost income when he was looking after his daughter when in hospital in Malta, while her mother had dedicated her life to looking after her.

Magistrate Coppini said that at the time of the incident, Ms Grech was studying to sit her for her O levels and she would have been expected to earn at least the minimum wage for 40 years.

The court therefore found in favour of Mr and Mrs Grech and ruled that Mr Vella was solely responsible for the accident. Mr Vella was ordered to pay €394,917 in damages.