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Woman awarded million euros for whipped cream dispenser injuries

A French court has awarded more than a million euros to a woman whose skull was fractured by an exploding whipped cream dispenser in 2013. In June a fitness blogger was killed when a dispenser exploded.

The Préfecture in Montauban
The Préfecture in Montauban Didier Descouens/Open content/Wikimedia commons
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The 1,089-million-euro payout was unusually large for France, where courts are reluctant to make large awards for damages "in the absence of death".

Emilie Lada was 30 at the time of the accident.

As well as cracking her skull, the exploding canister tore off part of her face.

She can no longer work and has lost her sense of taste and smell.

Her lawyer, Emeline Petitgirard, said the case of was especially tragic.

The damage award included 10,000 euros each to Lada's husband and their two children, aged three and six, as they were in the kitchen with her.

According to the judgement, made public Saturday, the court in the southern French town of Montauban found the canister's importer F2J.com and its insurance provider AXA liable for the incident.

AXA has appealed the decision, saying supermarket chain Auchan should bear some responsibility as it sold the canister.

France's National Consumer Institute (INC) had already issued a warning over the type of canister, used by the Ard'Time brand, saying the plastic lid may not be able to withstand pressure from carbon dioxide inside.

Despite warnings issued by a consumer body, a similar incident occurred in June when Rebecca Burger, a well-known fitness blogger, died in eastern France after a whipped cream dispenser exploded, hitting her in the chest.

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