Harrods, one of the world's most famous luxury department stores, is reportedly seeking to recover the cost of compensation it has paid to hundreds of women who allege they were sexually abused by Mohamed Al Fayed, the late billionaire who once owned the store. According to reports, Harrods is seeking full indemnity — meaning full financial compensation — from Fayed’s estate for any settlements it is required to pay. This would allow Harrods to recover the full amount of any compensation it pays to survivors, effectively leaving the store without financial responsibility. Survivors of the alleged abuse have expressed distress over this plan, calling it contradictory to Harrods’ public acceptance of responsibility. Lucy Traynor, a senior associate at KP Law, which represents the majority of known survivors, said Harrods has publicly stated that it accepts responsibility for the abuse suffered by survivors. However, the store’s lawyers have confirmed that Harrods intends to seek full indemnity from Fayed’s estate for any compensation it pays. This would mean that Harrods could recover every pound it pays in compensation from the estate, bearing no financial consequence itself. Traynor said this intention is difficult to reconcile with Harrods’ public statements about institutional responsibility and accountability. Survivors have raised serious questions about the environment in which the alleged abuse could occur, the role of others within the organization, and whether institutional structures facilitated or failed to prevent Fayed’s conduct. If Harrods is successful in its claim, it could affect survivors who are seeking compensation from the estate, as any large sums recovered by Harrods could reduce the assets available to meet those claims. In a statement, Harrods said its priority is to ensure all eligible survivors receive compensation for abuses allegedly perpetrated by Fayed, and that it continues to settle claims. The store has previously accepted "vicarious liability" for the abuse, meaning it is legally responsible for the actions of its employees, and has condemned the alleged abuse. Earlier this week, KP Law said that compensation claims against Harrods and the estate by 275 of the survivors it represents could reach up to £150 million. Mohamed Al Fayed, who died in 2023 at the age of 94, has been accused of rape, sexual assault, sexual exploitation, and human trafficking from 1977 to 2014. Survivors claim Harrods did not adequately address the allegations for years. Two years ago, Harrods opened an investigation into whether any of its current staff were "directly or indirectly involved" in the alleged abuse. An employee was reported to have left the business in 2025 in relation to that investigation. Harrods created its own compensation scheme for survivors last year, which closed to new claims in March. Its latest accounts showed it had paid out £4.1 million from the £57 million it set aside for compensation in 2025. The store added that it had made settlements with 113 women to date, but did not disclose the total amount paid. In 2023, the Sunday Times reported that Fayed’s fortune was £1.69 billion, making him the fourth richest person in Scotland at that time. Last year, Harrods made a passing-over application (POA) to appoint special executors to administer Fayed’s estate, replacing family members. The department store said this was necessary to protect assets and ensure the estate could pay compensation "in a timely and appropriate manner." A high court hearing is scheduled for November. Harrods said to its knowledge, the Fayed estate has not publicly acknowledged abuses, nor apologized or settled a single claim. The POA seeks the appointment of an independent executor to administer claims against the estate, meaning any financial recovery for compensation to survivors of Fayed’s abuses remains a number of legal steps away. Shanta Sundarason, who says she was sexually assaulted by Fayed in his office when she worked as a designer at Harrods, said the store’s plan to recover the costs of compensation was "deeply disturbing." She said Harrods was not simply the backdrop to what happened to her — it was the environment in which she was recruited, selected, controlled, and ultimately abused. She said Harrods cannot tell her that it accepts institutional responsibility for what happened to her while simultaneously seeking to ensure that the institution ultimately bears none of the financial consequence. A former employee named Catherine, who says she was sexually abused by Fayed when she worked as his personal assistant between 1990 and 1991, described Harrods’ plan to recover compensation costs from the estate as "truly sickening." She said Harrods have stated that they are sorry but are doing everything they can to escape paying anything and it’s simply not right. The estate was approached for comment.