Gardener settles with Woodies after being forced to prove she bought mop

A 66-year-old woman who claimed she had been wrongly accused of not paying for a bucket and mop has settled her €38,000 damages claim for defamation against Woodies DIY Limited.

Ana Malone, a keen gardener of Inver Rd, Cabra, Dublin, told the Circuit Civil Court she had gone to Woodies on Malahide Rd, Dublin, in October 2012 to buy garden plants and a bucket and mop.

She had been accompanied by her 95-year-old mother and a sister, who used a crutch to help her walk. After paying for the goods she had left them beside a counter while she and her sister, Vera, helped their mum out to their car.