€18k award for sisters in fake raid

Two sisters, who fell victims to a mock armed robbery during a staff training exercise in a Dublin H&M store, were awarded €18,000 damages between them in the Circuit Civil Court.

The court heard yesterday that in March 2013, Abbie Kennedy, 11, and her sister Casie, 6, were at H&M in Dundrum Shopping Centre, Dundrum, with their mother Claudia McGrane when the “terrifying” incident happened.

The family had been in one of the store’s changing rooms when they heard someone shouting “everybody get down on the ground, open the fucking till, get down on the ground, what are you looking at?”

The scene had continued for several minutes while the family was still in the changing room, and Abbie and Casie had been terrified and in fear for their lives.

A store manager later told Ms McGrane staff were being trained in the event there was a robbery, and what they had heard was a robbery simulation. Later that day, Ms McGrane called H&M head office in England. She was offered a €30 voucher, which she refused.

The court was told H&M had made offers of €10,000 for Abbie and €8,000 for Casie, which the judge approved.