Family of Chinese MH370 victim sues Malaysia Airlines

Kuala Lumpur: A Chinese woman has sued Malaysian Airline System Bhd (MAS) for negligence and breach of contract, seeking damages following the disappearance of MH370 flight.

K. Sri Devi, 32, wife of late S. Puspanathan who was on board the Beijing bound flight which departed from Kuala Lumpur Airport on March 8, 2014, has sued MAS, Malaysia`s The Star online reported.

Sri Devi has sought about $723,000 in damages over loss of support, loss of future bonus of her late husband, loss of medical benefits, loss of prospect of her re-marriage, bereavement and psychiatric injury.

Sri Devi filed the lawsuit at the high court on Thursday.

"We are waiting to serve the suit to all the defendants as soon as possible," her lawyer Shailender said.

"My clients have no choice but to file the claim as they did not get an answer to their queries," said Shailender.

Under international agreements, families have two years to sue over air accidents.

Any damages are to be paid by the insurer, Germany-based Allianz, and thus would not impact the struggling airline`s finances.

But some also plan to sue Malaysia`s civil aviation authorities and military for losing track of MH370, attorneys said, and at least one will target aircraft manufacturer Boeing.

If successful, total payouts could reach into "hundreds of millions" of dollars, said Joseph Wheeler, an Australian attorney who was seeking an out-of-court settlement for four Malaysian next of kin before the deadline.

Under international agreements, families are automatically granted around $160,000 per passenger as a form of compensation.

Meanwhile, Transport Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said the next of kin of the victims of MH370 will have till March 7 to decide if they will accept the compensation or file a lawsuit over the incident as the two-year deadline approaches.