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A HOTEL worker who had part of her little finger amputated after the door of a room she was cleaning suddenly slammed shut has been awarded €50,000 damages by the High Court.
Aneta Antoszczyk was in the process of removing the a wooden door stopper- keeping open the door of a room at the Rivercourt Hotel in Kilkenny open on April 24, 2011, when it slammed shut with great force and severed part of her left little finger.
It was not possible to re-attach the part of the finger the got trapped in the door. The court also heard that she was seven months pregnant at the time of the accident.
Arising out of her injuries she claimed her employer was negligent, which was denied by the defendant.
In his ruling today Mr Justice Iarfhlaith Ó Neill said that Ms Antoszczyk had sustained "a most unfortunate injury," that there had been negligence, and was satisfied that she was entitled to €50,000 damages.
Ms Antoszczyk (aged 35) of Priory Square Dean Street Kilkenny, sued her employer Gatehalf Ltd t/a Kilkenny Rivercourt Hotel, with an address Spectra Head Office, Clieveragh Industrial Estate Listowel Co Kerry for damages.
She claimed her employer was negligent on grounds including that it failed to provide her with a safe place or system of work and had exposed her to a risk of injury that they ought to have known.
In its defence denying the claims the hotel argued that she contributed in whole or in part to her own injuries on grounds including that she placed her hand in a dangerous position while removing the stopper and failed to have regard to her previous experience of carrying out the task.
In his decision the judge said he was satisfied from the evidence before the court that Ms Antoszczyk was not responsible for her injuries and that the defendant had been negligent.
