WORKER GIVEN £26,000

Press, Volume CV, Issue 31007, 12 March 1966, Page 3

WORKER GIVEN £26,000

Apple Board Held Negligent

etc Zealand Press Association

AUCKLAND, March 11

A jury 7 in the Supreme Court at Auckland tonight assessed damages totalling more than £26,000 for a railway worker who was seriously injured when a case of fruit fell from a railway waggon and struck him on the hack of the neck.

The plaintiff is Hubert Watts, aged 54 (Mr J. D. Dalgety and Mr S. G. Lockhart).

Mr Walls claimed j £30,000 general dam- j ages and special dam- | ages of £4891 after an ' accident in the out- j ward goods section at | the Auckland railway j station on March 25, : 1963.

He alleged negligence and claimed damages against the Apple and Pear Marketing Board (Mr M. H. Vautier) as first defendant and the At-torney-General. sued in respect of the Railways Department (Mr G. D. Speight) as second defendant. The hearing lasted five days.

The jury found that the first defendant was negligent in a manner causing or contributing to the accident in placing the cases of fruit

lengthways In the doorway area of the railway waggon. It found that the second defendant was negligent in a manner causing or contributing to the accident in failing to take adequate steps of warning or instruction to safeguard members of the traffic branch of the Railways Department from the risk of fruit cases falling from the waggon when the door was opened. It assessed general damages of f 23,000 for the plaintiff. It found that the plaintiff was negligent in a manner causing or contributing to the acci-

dent in taking up an unsafe position when attempting to open the door. Having regard to the plaintiff's share of responsibility in the accident, the jury found it just and equitable that the total damages should be reduced by 5 per cent The jury assessed the responsibility of the first defendant at 90 per cent and the responsibility of the second defendant at 10 per cent. Mr Dalgety moved for judgment of £26,497 2s in accordance with the jury’s verdict.

Mr Vautier said he had no application to make in respect of the judgment. His Honour reserved the entry of judgment and the fixing of costs for three weeks.