Harrods settling more than 250 claims against former owner

October 21

Harrods has told the BBC it is in the process of settling more than 250 claims for compensation brought by women who allege historical sexual misconduct by Mohamed Al Fayed.

The department store said the women have come forward since the release of a BBC documentary more than four weeks ago. The investigation exposed decades of serious sexual abuse allegations against the former Harrods owner.

Harrods has previously said it has already settled a number of claims.

Fayed owned Harrods between 1985 and 2010. Its new owners have previously said they are “appalled” by allegations of sexual abuse by Al Fayed and have been investigating since last year whether any current members of staff were involved.

The company said it would not provide a “running commentary” of its internal review.

Harrods has a compensation scheme for ex-employees who say they were attacked by Al Fayed, which is separate from a legal case against the luxury department store being brought forward by several different law firms.

Justice for Harrods Survivors group, who represent the accusers of the former Harrods boss, said their lawyers were working with 147 women. It is unclear if there is some overlap between the women seeking compensation from Harrods and those pursuing legal action.

The billionaire businessman, who died last year aged 94, is accused of multiple counts of rape and attempted rape by several women who worked for him – many of whom felt unable to report what had happened until recently.

At the time of many of the alleged attacks, Fayed was the owner of Harrods, the Ritz Paris hotel and football club Fulham FC.

He was a well-known public figure who had links to senior figures in Parliament and courted royalty and celebrities alike.

The BBC heard testimony from more than 20 female ex-employees at Harrods during its investigation for the documentary and podcast – Al Fayed: Predator at Harrods.

The documentary, which aired last month, found that during Fayed’s ownership, Harrods not only failed to intervene but helped cover up abuse allegations.

Responding to the investigation, Harrods’ current owners said they were “utterly appalled” by the allegations and that his victims had been failed – for which the store sincerely apologised.

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