A FORMER York factory worker who said she badly injured her back while lifting boxes has lost the right to claim for £100,000 in damages.
Teresa Bialochleb, 52, said the constant strain on her back through lifting heavy boxes of Everton mints eventually left her unable even to do housework, and left her family dependent on benefits.
She said she sustained the injury to her back at the Trebor Bassett factory in January 2006 after hours of lifting boxes. She launched a compensation claim at York County Court but, after initially missing out on a payout, took her fight for compensation to the Court of Appeal in London.
However, Lord Justice Ward said that, despite having misgivings, the fact that there was inaccuracies in her evidence over the type of box she was carrying meant he could not uphold Mrs Bialochleb’s claim for damages.
He said: “It does seem that this lady’s injuries relate back to something that happened on that day, which is hitherto unexplained. I do worry about that.
“But, in the unfortunate circumstances where there was no representation and the lady had to do her best, the way her story changed was fatal to her claim.
“The way her story changed meant the judge was left with no alternative. For those reasons, I have concluded – despite my misgivings – that permission to appeal should be refused.”
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