Court asked to rethink damages calculation formula by family of 71-year-old accident victim

The family of the 71-year-old victim of a fatal truck accident have filed Constitutional proceedings, arguing that the formula used by Malta’s courts to calculate civil damages is discriminatory towards the elderly.

Carmnu Micallef from Mġarr died in February 2022, after being run over by a truck in Triq Wied il-Qoton in Birżebbuġa.

He is believed to have been assisting another worker to manoeuvre a truck when he was crushed by the same vehicle. 36-year-old Davide Manunta from Mosta was recently charged with involuntary homicide and negligent driving in connection with the fatal incident.

The courts long used the criteria established in the 1967 landmark Butler v Heard judgement by the Court of Appeal. In calculating the damages due, the court takes into account the age of the individual, the wage that he was earning at the time of incident in question and the percentage of disability, as determined by medical experts. Damages are normally calculated up till retirement age.

The use of this formula will limit the amount in damages that the family will be able to receive - if any. The plaintiffs’ lawyer, Franco Galea, is arguing that this will result in prejudice towards clients solely due to the age of the deceased.

The application asks the court to declare that the applicants will suffer a breach of their fundamental rights under the Constitution and the European Convention on Human Rights if the Butler vs Heard formula is used to quantify the damages they can receive and grant an “effective and adequate” remedy in the circumstances.