Words: Ashley Rigg
Published: 2nd December 2009
Savills ordered pay up in “£30m” house court case
International estate agency group Savills has been order to pay damages and apologise to a client whose home was said to be worth £30 million but was sold for £2.9 million.
Barry McKay, from Sunningdale, an affluent area of Southeast England agreed to sell his property for £2.9m on the basis that it did not go to a developer, who had converted a neighbouring property into 34 flats, costing £1.7m each.
However, after the sale went through, he discovered that the house had been bought by a company, Rork's Ltd, owned by the neighbouring property's developer, John Morris.
Mr McKay claimed that the former head of the Sunningdale branch of Savills, Michael Ball, had disguised the involvement of the purchaser. He said he had twice asked Mr Ball – who subsequently quit Savills – whether Mr Morris was behind the £2.9m bid to buy the property, but was told that this was not the case.
Mr McKay then sued Savills for £6.1m after planning permission was granted.
Yesterday, in the High Court, it was revealed that Mr McKay had accepted the apology and a pay-out from Savills.
He said: "I recognise that Savills has been the victim of a rogue employee and I know they are a firm of high professional standards which I would be happy to use again."
Jeremy Stuart-Smith, Savills' barrister, said: "Savills greatly regrets the conduct which led to this claim and wishes to make an open and unreserved apology for the breach of duty to which Mr McKay was subjected."
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