Weighing up the costs of liability
Series: Construction News ; (6728) 9 August 2001, 12(1)Publication details: 2001Subject(s): Summary: In the case of "Merrett v Babb", surveyor John Babb was found personally liable for negligence in a survey he had conducted in 1992. He was no longer covered by the Professional Indemnity insurance of his then employer, which had subsequently gone bust. Disclaimers purporting to relieve a firm of professionals and its employees of liability are likely to be worthless. Such disclaimers have, in two recent cases, been found to be unreasonable under the terms of the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977. Potentially, any professional - not just a surveyor - could be caught out like Mr Babb. They would do well to seek personal insurance cover if there is any likelihood that their employer's PI insurance does not cover them after their employment ends.| Item type | Current library | Call number | Copy number | Status | Barcode | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Journal article | London Journal article | ABS64433 (Browse shelf(Opens below)) | 1 | Available | 114068-1001 |
In the case of "Merrett v Babb", surveyor John Babb was found personally liable for negligence in a survey he had conducted in 1992. He was no longer covered by the Professional Indemnity insurance of his then employer, which had subsequently gone bust. Disclaimers purporting to relieve a firm of professionals and its employees of liability are likely to be worthless. Such disclaimers have, in two recent cases, been found to be unreasonable under the terms of the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977. Potentially, any professional - not just a surveyor - could be caught out like Mr Babb. They would do well to seek personal insurance cover if there is any likelihood that their employer's PI insurance does not cover them after their employment ends.