Generally, the scope of recovery and damages that may be obtained will be greater where an indemnity is provided.
This is because an indemnity is effectively a promise to either reimburse or make good relevant issues if they arise.
Furthermore, indemnities:
- Do not require the person giving the indemnity to have actually caused the loss – in other words, regardless of how the loss arises, liability will be triggered.
- Common law rules that normally limit the scope of liability, such as remoteness or an obligation to mitigate losses, do not apply in relation to indemnities.
In contrast, a warranty only provides a promise that certain statements are correct. Practically this means:
- A party seeking to claim in relation to a breach of warranty must do so by seeking damages.
- The common law principles mentioned above of remoteness and an obligation to mitigate potential losses do apply.
** For the trainspotters, the title of today's post is riffed from the Alabama Shakes song ‘Don’t wanna fight’.
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