In Australia, two families sue Matt Wright over airboat crash
In Australia, two families have filed a lawsuit against television presenter Matt Wright, his wife Kaia Wright and Top End Safari Camp over a 2023 airboat crash in Bynoe Harbour west of Darwin. Ryan and Philippa Payne from New South Wales, as well as Scott and Bianca McFarlane from Queensland, are acting on their own behalf and on behalf of four children. They say they suffered physical and psychological injuries.
As ABC News Australia reports, the plaintiffs are seeking damages, including aggravated and exemplary damages. They accuse the Wrights and the company of negligence, and also claim that the defendants acted unconscionably and breached Australian consumer protection law.
The plaintiffs’ version
According to the lawsuit materials, the families came to the camp for a crocodile tour as part of a corporate retreat. They were told that headphones would be provided to protect them from engine noise, but, according to them, no safety briefing was conducted.
The plaintiffs claim that a driver named Anton set off at high speed, although the airboat allegedly had no seat belts, working radio communications or first-aid kit. When a large tree on the shore appeared about 200 metres ahead, the passengers, according to their account, thought the driver would turn at the last moment. During the collision, the McFarlanes pressed their children against themselves.
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The lawsuit states that one passenger sustained a severe head injury, while another woman periodically lost consciousness. The families said they were terrified because they remained in the damaged airboat in crocodile-inhabited waters without mobile phone service, a working radio or a first-aid kit.
The defendants’ objections
The plaintiffs also refer to alleged previous safety breaches connected to Wright’s former business operations, including other airboat crashes and claims concerning his helicopter transport activities. In objections filed with the court, Matt and Kaia Wright broadly rejected the families’ account of events.
The defendants deny that Anton was an employee of Top End Safari Camp and also state that, at the time of the crash, the airboat was not required to have seat belts. They described the claims of previous safety breaches as “provocative,” unproven and irrelevant to this case. The couple also denies negligence, unconscionable conduct and breaches of consumer protection law. The next hearing in the case is scheduled for October 2.
