Irish woman lost $1 million injury claims after being revealed as Christmas tree throwing champion

Source: The Straits Times
Author: Ian Cheng

IRELAND - A woman's €760,000 (S$1.1 million) injury claims against an insurance company were thrown out of the Irish High Court in February, after images surfaced of her winning a Christmas tree throwing competition.

Ms Kamila Grabska, 36, had claimed that a car crash in 2017 left her with neck and back injuries, The Irish Examiner reported.

She had told a Limerick court and doctors that her injuries were so bad that she was unable to get out of bed, play with her two children, and lift a heavy bag without suffering shooting pain.

She also had to quit her job and lived on disability payments.

In 2022, she sued RSA Insurance for her loss of past and future income.

However, her claims were questioned after photos of her throwing a 1.5m-tall Christmas tree during a charity event in 2018 came to light.

Ms Grabska had taken part in the annual Christmas tree throwing competition in the town of Ennis in County Clare - when she lived - during a period when she was supposedly suffering from "disabling" injuries.

Her win, which was documented in local media, eventually led to the loss of her million-dollar injury claims.

Not only that, she also won the competition, which is held to raise awareness of recycling Christmas trees and is popular elsewhere in Europe, according to BBC.