Harrods plans legal action against al-Fayed estate
Earlier this year, it was reported that Harrods’ lawyers were close to finalising compensation payments worth more than £300k for victims
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Harrods is reportedly planning to launch legal action against the estate of Mohamed al-Fayed, as a multimillion-pound legal bill for compensating his sexual abuse victims continues to rise.
According to Sky News, the department store is set to file a passing-over application in the High Court in order to remove his estate’s current executors, replacing them with professional executors.
Professional executors would be expected to investigate the assets and liabilities of the estate. Sources told Sky that the current executors, who are thought to be close family members of the former Harrods owner, had “ignored” correspondence from its lawyers.
They added that the passing-over application would enable Harrods to potentially recover “substantial” sums from the al-Fayed estate, which is facing a compensation bill of “tens of millions” of pounds.
A Harrods spokesperson told Retail Sector: “We are considering legal options that would ensure that no doors are closed on any future action and that a route to compensation and accountability from the Fayed estate remains open to all.”
Al-Fayed, who died in 2023, is believed to have raped or sexually abused hundreds of women during his 25-year tenure as the owner of the famous department store.
Earlier this year, it was reported that Harrods’ lawyers were close to finalising compensation payments worth more than £300k for victims.
It is understood the law firm had been in touch with potential claimants and informed them that they could be eligible for general damages lump sums of up to £110k or £200k. However, this was dependent on their willingness to submit to a psychiatric assessment arranged by the company.
