The red flags that were missed or dismissed when Harrods was bought

In 2010 the Gulf authorities of Qatar bought luxury section store Harrods for £1.5bn, via its sovereign wealthiness fund, the Qatar Investment Authority.

It should person been the jewel successful the Qatari crown. However, Harrods present faces superior intersexual maltreatment allegations implicit the actions of its erstwhile boss, Mohamed Al Fayed.

Many of these claims were uncovered successful a caller BBC investigation, but aggregate ineligible experts person said Qatar either missed oregon dismissed overmuch of what was already known astir Al Fayed astatine the clip of the purchase.

This includes a 2008 constabulary probe into the alleged battle of a 15-year-old miss successful a Harrods boardroom.

Harrods has told the BBC it is "utterly appalled" by the allegations and has apologised to the victims.

It present looks arsenic if the ungraded could outgo the institution and its proprietor millions.

So what, if anything, was known by Qatar astir the allegations?

When a institution buys different company, the process of looking to spot if determination are immoderate skeletons successful the cupboard is known arsenic owed diligence.

The buyers volition prosecute advisers who volition inquire the seller's advisers questions astir immoderate issues they should cognize about. They whitethorn besides bash their ain autarkic research.

When the proprietor is idiosyncratic similar Mohamed Al Fayed, who had respective allegations surrounding him astatine the clip of the deal, the buyer's owed diligence process should beryllium lengthy.

"I deliberation it would beryllium sensible to inquire elaborate questions astir fig of claims, fig of complaints - informal oregon ceremonial - adjacent if not upheld, taxable of the complaints adjacent if they were not upheld, fig and worth of settlements, fig of NDAs (non-disclosure agreements)," says Beth Hale, a spouse astatine instrumentality steadfast CM Murray.

In "exceptional cases" this accusation mightiness scupper a deal, though she believes it is much apt the purchaser would inquire the seller to compensate them for immoderate losses that mightiness travel from the alleged behaviour.

This is what Ms Hale says a concern should bash if it were buying a institution similar Harrods successful 2024, but she says that 2010 was a antithetic time.

She says this pre-#MeToo epoch was a "world distant successful presumption of attitudes and approaches to intersexual harassment".

"Sexual harassment claims did not signifier arsenic large a portion of owed diligence past arsenic they bash now."

She says it appears that either Qatar's owed diligence was "not adequate" oregon that the process did bring up definite claims and it decided to proceed successful immoderate event, possibly imagining that they mightiness not extremity up hurting the institution excessively badly.

"Pre-#MeToo, with a mates of intersexual harassment claims, a institution mightiness settee them, get an NDA, and determination on."

Catriona Watt, spouse astatine Fox & Partners, says it looks arsenic if Qatar whitethorn person known astir the allegations but went up anyway.

"It seems to maine that it wasn't a implicit secret. It was astir apt a calculated risk," she says, adding the owed diligence process "depends connected the questions you ask".

"You mightiness say, 'I lone privation to cognize astir this if it has a worth of X,"' she says.

Virginia Albert, erstwhile selling prof and existent relationship manager astatine advertizing bureau DeVito/Verdi, besides believes Qatari views connected women's rights are relevant, suggesting they whitethorn not person considered intersexual maltreatment allegations thing sufficiently superior to warrant dropping the deal.

"You could reason that brands align with marque values during mergers," she says, adding the Gulf authorities would person considered if its values "aligned with what they knew, if they knew, astir the values of this section store".

Lazard, which represented the Al Fayed Trust during the deal, told the BBC: "We powerfully condemn the behaviour these reports person brought to light."

Harrods and the Qatar Investment Authority did not reply to aggregate requests for remark connected the owed diligence process erstwhile the institution was bought. In its erstwhile effect to the BBC, Harrods said it had been settling claims "since caller accusation came to light" past year.

Meanwhile, Harrods' managing manager Michael Ward said connected Thursday: “While it is existent that rumours of [Al Fayed's] behaviour circulated successful the nationalist domain, nary charges oregon allegations were ever enactment to maine by the police, the [Crown Prosecution Service], interior channels oregon others.

"Had they been, I would of people person acted immediately."

Credit Suisse, present owned by UBS, represented the Qatar Investment Authority successful the woody and declined to comment.

Whatever Qatar knew during the deal, the interaction of the allegations is apt to beryllium substantial.

First, determination is the full outgo of payments to the survivors of the alleged intersexual maltreatment by Al Fayed, which aggregate ineligible experts person told the BBC could beryllium successful the millions, with each idiosyncratic assertion apt to outgo the steadfast a six-figure sum.

Harrods has accepted vicarious liability for immoderate of the claims, a ineligible word meaning it accepts eventual work for Al Fayed's alleged actions.

It could besides beryllium liable for alleged failings arsenic an leader for charges specified arsenic negligence oregon failing to supply a harmless moving environment, experts predicted.

Defending the ineligible lawsuit and hiring an autarkic researcher to look into the claims are besides expected to beryllium six-figure sums.

However, the existent harm is expected to beryllium reputational.

"People are going to beryllium really, truly pissed," says Ms Albert, adding that galore volition privation to spot Harrods dealing with the superior allegations from the survivors swiftly and thoroughly.

"There's truthful overmuch much visibility present than determination was."

What mightiness prevention Harrods, she says, is the loyalty of its long-time shoppers, but the high-price constituent volition marque it overmuch easier for casual customers who dislike the mode the retailer is perceived to person treated women to spell elsewhere.

She predicts boycotts and says the concern whitethorn conflict to retrieve unless customers spot action, alternatively than conscionable words.