Wealthy duo wins case over moths
A UK court has approved a refund for a billionaire heiress and her family concerning a $40 million mansion that was infested with moths. Read Full Article at RT.com.
TroibNews 
A Georgian heiress has initiated legal proceedings against the seller of a pest-infested Victorian mansion in London, purchased for $40 million.
A British judge recently ruled in favor of a couple seeking a refund for their acquisition of a £32.5 million mansion plagued by moths.
Iya Patarkatsishvili, daughter of Georgian billionaire Badri Patarkatsishvili, and her husband Yevhen Hunyak, bought the seven-bedroom property from former professional rower William Woodward-Fisher in 2019. Shortly after the purchase, they discovered the pest issue, as detailed in court documents filed on Monday.
The couple's legal representatives informed the court that Patarkatsishvili and her family were dealing with a daily onslaught of approximately 100 moths, according to the BBC. Hunyak testified that the insects frequently landed on their children's toothbrushes, food plates, and beverages. They also reported around £15,000 in damages to their clothing.
The infestation was traced back to the home's woolen insulation, which had been overtaken by the pests.
The judge determined that Woodward-Fisher had lied about the condition of the property before the sale, failing to reveal “a very serious infestation.”
“He simply wanted to sell the house and move on,” the judge remarked.
Additionally, the judge noted, “As he admitted in cross-examination, disclosure of the infestation would likely have caused the sale to go off, and he would have been left needing to move out of the house and do expensive works to remove all the woolen insulation.”
The heiress and her husband sought a complete refund of the purchase price, along with £3.7 million for land tax and several hundred thousand pounds for damages and extermination costs.
The judge ordered that the couple be reimbursed for the home's cost, with an adjustment for the time they spent living there, as stated in a press release from the British Judiciary. They will also receive a refund for the taxes and significant damages and costs incurred due to the infestation.
The specific amount of the award and further terms of relief will be decided at a hearing later this month, according to the press release.
Iya Patarkatsishvili inherited a portion of her father's estate following his death in 2008, with Forbes estimating Badri Patarkatsishvili’s fortune at around $12 billion.
Alejandro Jose Martinez for TROIB News
A British judge recently ruled in favor of a couple seeking a refund for their acquisition of a £32.5 million mansion plagued by moths.
Iya Patarkatsishvili, daughter of Georgian billionaire Badri Patarkatsishvili, and her husband Yevhen Hunyak, bought the seven-bedroom property from former professional rower William Woodward-Fisher in 2019. Shortly after the purchase, they discovered the pest issue, as detailed in court documents filed on Monday.
The couple's legal representatives informed the court that Patarkatsishvili and her family were dealing with a daily onslaught of approximately 100 moths, according to the BBC. Hunyak testified that the insects frequently landed on their children's toothbrushes, food plates, and beverages. They also reported around £15,000 in damages to their clothing.
The infestation was traced back to the home's woolen insulation, which had been overtaken by the pests.
The judge determined that Woodward-Fisher had lied about the condition of the property before the sale, failing to reveal “a very serious infestation.”
“He simply wanted to sell the house and move on,” the judge remarked.
Additionally, the judge noted, “As he admitted in cross-examination, disclosure of the infestation would likely have caused the sale to go off, and he would have been left needing to move out of the house and do expensive works to remove all the woolen insulation.”
The heiress and her husband sought a complete refund of the purchase price, along with £3.7 million for land tax and several hundred thousand pounds for damages and extermination costs.
The judge ordered that the couple be reimbursed for the home's cost, with an adjustment for the time they spent living there, as stated in a press release from the British Judiciary. They will also receive a refund for the taxes and significant damages and costs incurred due to the infestation.
The specific amount of the award and further terms of relief will be decided at a hearing later this month, according to the press release.
Iya Patarkatsishvili inherited a portion of her father's estate following his death in 2008, with Forbes estimating Badri Patarkatsishvili’s fortune at around $12 billion.
Alejandro Jose Martinez for TROIB News
