Lawyers acting for the family of the late chairman of Leicester City football club have launched what they claim to be the largest fatal accident claim in English history.
The claim seeks £2.15bn to cover lost earnings and other damages, after Khun Vichai was killed with four others in a 2018 helicopter crash at the club’s King Power stadium.
Vichai, full name Khun Vichar Srivaddhanaprabha, was a businessman from Thailand who founded and owned the duty-free market leader King Power Group. The company bought Leicester City in 2010 for £39m.
A 209-page report by the Air Accident Investigation Branch (AAIB) in 2023 said the crash of the Leonardo AW169 aircraft was a result of mechanical failure, in particular the seizure of a tail rotor bearing shortly after takeoff. The AAIB says its reports should not be used to assign fault or blame or determine liability, 'since neither the investigation nor the reporting process has been undertaken for that purpose'.
However, lawyers from claimant firm Stewarts allege that the helicopter’s manufacturer, Italian aerospace firm Leonardo, is liable because it failed to warn customers or regulators about the risk.
Stewarts partner Peter Neenan, who is representing the Vichai family, said: ‘The foundation of the claim brought against Leonardo is the independent AAIB report released in September 2023. The report was as damning a report as I have ever read. The claim takes that safety-driven analysis to its eventual implication in allegations of defects and negligence throughout the design process.’
The Srivaddhanaprabha family has also retained specialist silks, Philip Shepherd KC and Harry Steinberg KC.
The claim, brought in the Technology and Construction Courts, states that at the time of the crash, King Power had revenues of more than £2.5bn a year with a net profit of £237m in 2017. That success, it is submitted, was driven by Vichai’s vision, drive, relationships, entrepreneurship, ingenuity and reputation – all of which were lost with his death.
The family claims damages pursuant to the Law Reform (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1934 and the Fatal Accidents Act 1976 for injuries and suffering immediately before death, statutory bereavement damages, damage to or loss of his personal effects, special losses and the past and future losses of income and services.
Following the AAIB report, Leonardo said more than 150 of its helicopters continued to operate safely in over 30 countries, logging over 150,000 flight hours to-date across the global fleet. The fleet had not been subject to any grounding or airworthiness restrictions since the accident. The AAIB had not directed any recommended actions to Leonardo and its final report concluded that the company complied with regulatory requirements in both the design and manufacture of the model.’
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