UNITED KINGDOM
Daily Mail
Taxpayers’ bill to compensate Savile victims could hit £30million: Lawyers have racked up six-figure costs as they squabble over payment scheme
By CHRIS GREENWOOD
Taxpayers face a growing bill for Jimmy Savile’s crimes because of a bitter and expensive dispute over his estate.
Lawyers have already racked up six-figure costs as they squabble over the compensation scheme for victims of the sick sexual predator who died in 2011.
The expensive litigation, which has already dragged on for 20 months, threatens to engulf his entire £3.3million legacy.
Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt has said the public purse will underwrite any claims not met by Savile’s estate, for which NatWest is the executor.
This could be extremely costly as compensation could run into tens of millions of pounds.
Law firms have already taken on almost 200 victims but there are believed to be around 500 in total who could each claim up to £60,000 compensation – giving a maximum bill, in theory, of £30million.
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