In the case of Sykula v O’Reilly [2025] IEHC 638, the High Court (Ferriter J.) assessed damages following a minor road traffic accident Dublin, in December 2017. A large focus of the Court's award related to the plaintiff’s claim for psychiatric injury further to which it was claimed led to job loss and homelessness.
The plaintiff had a pre-accident history of anxiety and depression but was found to be well at the time of the accident. She claimed that the accident a number of physical and psychiatric symptoms, resulting in her eventual inability to work and significant personal hardship. The plaintiff presented evidence form a psychiatrist that noted a diagnosis of PTSD, with the impact of multiple contributing stressors.
Reviewing the plaintiff's pre- and post-accident history, the court applied the “eggshell skull” rule, with Judge Ferriter ruling that a defendant must take a plaintiff as found. It was held that psychiatric injury should be compensated where it accompanies physical injury, even if the reaction is more severe than might objectively be expected.
However, the Court also found that the plaintiff’s psychiatric symptoms were “multifactorial”, with significant exacerbation from unrelated external factors such as homelessness, the COVID-19 pandemic, and litigation stress. Accordingly, damages for psychiatric injury were discounted by 50% to reflect these non-accident-related contributors.
General damages were assessed at €65,000, with €30,000 for psychiatric injuries after 50% reduction for external factors and €35,000 for physical injuries.
This case highlights the imperative of applying the “eggshell skull” principle in Irish personal injuries litigation, and at the same time reveals the importance of interrogating medical history where there are multiple issues causing psychological injury.
