A man from Windsor, Ont., who claimed he suffered mental anguish after finding a dead fly in his bottled water is going to the Supreme Court of Canada.
The country's highest court ruled on Thursday that Waddah Mustapha can appeal to have his damages against a water company reinstated after a lower court stripped them away.
Mustapha said the discovery in 2001 triggered a phobia of flies that changed his personality and even killed his sex life.
He said he had trouble drinking coffee because it contained water and became anxious about getting in the shower.
Mustapha decided to sue the water supplier, Culligan of Canada Ltd., and in 2005 the Ontario Superior Court awarded him $341,775, but the ruling was overturned last year by the Ontario Court of Appeal.
In a 3-0 ruling, the higher court said the incident was so bizarre that Culligan could not have foreseen the events that transpired.
The court also noted that neither Mustapha nor anyone in his family drank water from the bottle and did not come close to suffering any physical injury.
A document filed with the lower court said the man could not get the fly in the bottle out of his mind and would have nightmares about flies. He said he lost his sense of humour, and became argumentative and edgy.
