Influencer Awarded £16,000 After Zara Security Opens Dressing Room Curtain.
A social media influencer has been awarded €20,000 (£16,000) in compensation after staff at Zara’s largest store in Ireland, located in Dublin, pulled open a dressing room curtain while she was changing.
Krystal Joyce, 20, a TikTok star and a member of the Irish Traveller community, described the experience as distressing and claimed that a female security guard opened the curtain while she was only partially dressed.
Following the incident, Joyce said she was interrogated by the security staff, who implied she was a criminal. The security guard repeatedly stated, “I am calling the guards,” while preventing her from leaving, an ordeal that occurred in front of other shoppers.
She was eventually allowed to leave the changing area and move onto the shop floor, but security and store staff continued questioning her, further humiliating her.
Court Ruling and Compensation
The case was brought before Judge Roderick Maguire, who ruled that Zara and its security team had defamed Joyce.
The court ordered €10,000 in damages against ITX Retail Limited, which operates Zara in Ireland, and an additional €10,000 against security company Bidvest Noonan (ROI) Limited, totalling €20,000 (£16,000) in compensation.
During the proceedings, Joyce’ss barrister, Esther Earley, told the court that her client frequently films herself trying on outfits for her TikTok content, making the incident particularly distressing.
Judge Maguire criticized the store’s witness testimony, stating that it contained “glaring inconsistencies“ compared to the incident report by Zara staff. He said these contradictions made it difficult to accept their version of events.
In contrast, the judge described Krystal Joyce as a truthful and reliable witness, stating, “The plaintiff has given honest and forthright evidence” He also acknowledged the incident’s emotional impact on Joyce, particularly given her social media presence and efforts to raise awareness for the Traveller community.
The court’s ruling confirms that Zara’s staff and security team’s actions amounted to defamation, leading to Joyce’s substantial compensation award.
