INXS guitarist suing Sydney rental boat operator following career-ending hand injury

July 31, 2019

Tim Farris is the man behind the riffs that the Australian band is known for.

The lead guitarist for Australian rock band INXS is suing a Sydney rental boat operator following a career-ending hand injury.

Tim Farriss' left ring finger was reduced to a bloody stump in a horror accident in January 2015, Nine News reports. His index and middle finger were also seriously injured, while a pinky finger received minor injuries.

The 62-year-old is now suing operators - John William Axford and Jill Mary Axford of Church Point Charter - for damages, claiming there was a preventable risk of injury to someone operating the anchoring equipment on the boat. He also claimed he did not receive proper instructions prior to operating it.

"I will never forget what I saw next as long as I live," the Perth-born musician said in his evidentiary statement to the NSW Supreme Court.

"My hand was covered in rust, blood and mud, but I could see one of my fingers had been severed and the others were disfigured, badly lacerated and bleeding."

Farriss' severed appendage required 11 hours of surgery to be reattached to his hand. The finger is no longer functional.

"I find my reattached ring finger to be an annoyance and unsightly. I have considered having it amputated," Farriss said.

"I am no longer able to play guitar other than a few beginner-level chords."

However, the defence argued Farriss' injury was "caused or contributed to by the first plaintiff's own fault and negligence".

Farriss is seeking damages for loss of earnings, future loss of earnings, and out-of-pocket expenses.

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