A British banker, Robert Ebert, who served 14 months in Hong Kong prison after his Ferrari collided with and killed a security guard, is launching a bid in London's High Court to sue Ferrari for millions. Ebert claims the accident in June 2015 was caused by a sudden failure of his Ferrari 458 Spider's brakes, a contention disputed by a Ferrari representative at his criminal trial.
Ebert, who was then head of equities for the Asia Pacific region at Deutsche Bank, was convicted of causing death by dangerous driving. His barrister, Andrew Butler KC, stated that evidence from a Ferrari employee asserting brake failure was "scientifically impossible" significantly influenced the conviction. Ebert maintains that he was pressing the brake pedal with immense force at the time of the incident.
Following his release and deportation to the UK, Ebert, who now runs his own financial service firm and earns approximately £80,000 annually, seeks to prove that Ferrari had prior knowledge of braking issues. His legal team is pursuing pre-action disclosure to obtain documents from Ferrari, aiming to establish the manufacturer's awareness of potential problems at the time of his trial. Ebert argues that his conviction has severely impacted his career, preventing him from reaching higher-paying roles and limiting his ability to travel to several countries where his family resides.
Further complicating Ebert's case, Ferrari issued recalls for certain models, including the 458 Spider, in October 2021 in the US and in 2022 in China for brake-related defects. The Chinese recall specifically mentioned a "brake reservoir fluid cap which may not vent properly" and covered vehicles imported between March 2010 and March 2019. Ebert's 2012 Ferrari 458 Spider was among the vehicles included in these recalls.
Ferrari's legal team, however, is contesting Ebert's application. Lawyer Tim Otty KC argued that Ebert is attempting to bypass proper legal procedures and that any disclosure requests should be made in Hong Kong or Italy, not London. Ferrari denies that the later recalls are relevant to Ebert's accident or his conviction, asserting that their representative's trial testimony regarding the braking system's impossibility of failure was accurate. The supercar manufacturer contends that Ebert's claim represents an improper attempt to circumvent international legal protocols.