Do I need to instruct a solicitor to claim compensation against Mohamed Al-Fayed and Harrods?

As confirmed in our recent blogs, the Harrods Redress Scheme for survivors of abuse by Mohamed Al-Fayed was opened on 31st March 2025, and is expected to close on 31st March 2026.

A question many survivors will now be considering, is whether it is necessary to instruct a solicitor to pursue their claim to Harrods, or whether the survivors should pursue the claim themselves.

The first point to make, is that survivors of abuse by Mohamed Al-Fayed do not need to instruct a solicitor, and they can pursue a claim for compensation themselves via the Redress Scheme.

To be eligible for the scheme an applicant must:

• Be able to prove their identity; and
• Provide written evidence and/or documentation to prove on the balance of probabilities that:

1. They were subjected to sexual assault/wrongful testing and
2. Harrods is vicariously liable for the sexual assault/wrongful testing.

Whilst many survivors of abuse by Mohamed Al-Fayed will wish to instruct a solicitor to handle their claim, questions the survivors would need to consider are: 

• Who will pay their legal fees? and
• Will they be required to pay their solicitor any proportion of their compensation if their claim is successful?

If the survivor instructs Jordans Solicitors, the funding agreement that Jordans Solicitors can offer, will ensure that if their claim under the Redress Scheme is not successful, the survivor would not be required to pay any legal fees.

The Redress Scheme is funded by Harrods, and if a survivor chooses to instruct a solicitor to handle their claim and their claim is successful, Harrods has confirmed they will pay the survivor’s reasonable legal fees.

In addition, if the claim under the Redress Scheme is successful, Jordans Solicitors do not deduct any amount from the survivor’s compensation award, therefore the survivor would receive 100% of the compensation awarded by Harrods.

The Redress Scheme recommends that applicants to the Scheme should obtain legal advice, as there are two separate pathways for the applicant to choose:

1. Either a medical route, in which the applicant can claim general damages up to £200,000 and up to £25,000 in aggravated damages; or
2. A non-medical route, in which the applicant can claim general damages up to £110,000 and up to £25,000 in aggravated damages.

In addition to the above damages, applicants can also claim wrongful testing compensation of up to £10,000 (this applies when the survivor was required to undergo invasive sexually motivated gynaecological procedures; and/or sexually motivated blood tests by Al-Fayed), treatment costs and compensation for work impact up to £150,000.

Harrods will also provide a personal apology to each eligible applicant. They will also offer a meeting with a senior representative from Harrods to receive an apology in person or by video if this is possible.

It is therefore highly recommended that any survivors of abuse by Al-Fayed instruct a solicitor to pursue their claim (assuming the solicitor will not be seeking to recover any amount of compensation from the applicant).

Jordans Solicitors has a very experienced team, with a proven track record in successfully pursuing abuse claims.

Instructing us to act for you in relation to the Harrods Redress Scheme, will ensure you receive expert guidance in navigating the Scheme’s procedures and evidence gathering, with a view to obtaining the maximum amount of compensation for the survivor, with no compensation deductions made by Jordans Solicitors.