Five stitches after a visit to a Riga bar; the staff didn’t even apologize

When the mind games were over, Elena and her friends decided to stay a little longer and chat. At this time, a bar employee began to remove equipment provided for the event. Right next to the sofa where the friends were sitting, there was a speaker on a stand. At the moment when the employee began work, the column fell on Elena’s head.

“The speaker hit me on the shoulder and head. The staff didn’t even bring ice, only when we asked for it. We asked them to call an ambulance. They didn’t even come to apologize. It might have hit a little lower, more in the face, then you probably wouldn’t be able to stand here and talk at all,” says the young woman.

The arriving medical team decided to hospitalize Elena and took her to Stradiņa Hospital, where five stitches were applied. Elena is more hurt by the indifference of the bar staff and management than by the injury itself. Neither that same evening nor subsequently, no one apologized for what happened, and the victim’s SMS message to the bar manager remained unanswered.

“The doctors also reported the incident to the police. They called me and we agreed that one day I would stop by the police station to write a statement. When I left, the duty department asked me what happened. I told everything, he said that the case might not be opened because I drank two ciders. I don’t believe that you can harm another person and not be punished if the victim drank alcohol,” Elena is indignant.

Attorney-at-law Janis Berovskis argues that in this case the police really might not help, since no criminal offense occurred. If it is not possible to reach an agreement with the entrepreneur on compensation for damage, justice should be sought through the courts.

“The victim may demand compensation for treatment costs, lost profits, as well as compensation for moral damage caused,” the lawyer said.

After the intervention of journalists, the director of the company immediately contacted Elena. He apologized to the victim and arranged a meeting. Elena says that the director agreed to transfer part of the amount to the woman’s account, and compensate the rest with gift cards from the establishment.

“We did a little test. We realized that the speaker mounts we purchased had partial factory defects, and maybe even defective. Having already gotten rid of them, we are going to buy new fasteners so that a similar situation will never happen once more. This was also a hard lesson for us. This was a non-standard situation, we discussed it with the employees. We have introduced a new procedure to follow in emergency situations. This has also been improved, I am sure that this will not happen once more,” said Janis Bekker, director of “Ezītis miglā”.

Elena declares that she is satisfied with the solution found.