Compensatory Damages | AQA A-Level Law
For Specification 7162
AQA A-Level Law | Free Revision Notes
Estimated study time: 45 minutes
Compensatory damages are the principal monetary remedy available to a successful claimant in tort. These Compensatory damages A-Level Law revision notes explain how damages compensate for physical injury, property damage and legally recoverable economic loss. You will also distinguish pecuniary from non-pecuniary loss and general from special damages. The central principle is compensation rather than punishment: the award should reflect the loss caused by the defendant's tort. This lesson follows the tort defences and leads into mitigation and injunctions [Lesson 115. Mitigation and injunctions].
Learning Objectives 🎯
By the end of this revision page, you should be able to:
Explain the compensatory purpose of damages in tort.
Distinguish pecuniary and non-pecuniary loss.
Distinguish general and special damages.
Explain compensatory damages for physical injury.
Explain damages for property damage and economic loss.
Apply the principle of compensation to factual scenarios and calculate simple awards where appropriate.
Revision Notes 📚
Compensatory damages A-Level Law revision: the core principle
Compensatory damages are a financial remedy designed to compensate the claimant for loss caused by the defendant's tort.
The basic aim is to place the claimant, so far as money can reasonably do so, in the financial position they would have been in if the tort had not occurred.
The purpose is therefore compensation, not punishment.
A claimant should receive compensation for legally recoverable loss, but should not receive an unjustified windfall.
Damages are a civil remedy
Damages must not be confused with a criminal fine.
Damages | Fine |
Civil remedy | Criminal penalty |
Normally paid to the claimant | Normally paid to the state |
Designed to compensate for legally recoverable loss | Designed as a criminal sanction |
Relevant to tort claims | Relevant following criminal conviction |
AQA's 2024 examiner report identified some confusion between damages awarded by a civil court and fines imposed in criminal proceedings.
For a tort question, use the language of compensation, not punishment.
Liability comes before damages
A claimant cannot obtain compensatory damages simply because they have suffered a loss.
They must first establish a cause of action.
For example, in negligence the claimant must establish:
duty of care
breach
factual causation
legal causation
legally recognised damage.
Only then does the court consider the appropriate amount of compensation.
This means the correct order is:
liability → defence → remedy
If a defence such as contributory negligence [Lesson 111. Contributory negligence] applies, it may alter the amount eventually recovered.
If the complete defence of consent [Lesson 112. Consent] succeeds, the claimant may recover nothing on that claim.
Pecuniary and non-pecuniary loss
AQA's 2023 mark scheme expressly recognised the distinction between pecuniary and non-pecuniary loss when explaining compensatory damages.
Pecuniary loss
A pecuniary loss is a financial loss which can be expressed in monetary terms.
Examples include:
lost earnings
future loss of earnings
medical or care expenses
repair costs
replacement costs
legally recoverable lost profits.
Some amounts are easy to establish from documents such as:
wage records
receipts
invoices
repair estimates.
Other losses, particularly future losses, require an estimate based upon the evidence.
Non-pecuniary loss
A non-pecuniary loss does not have an exact market price.
In personal injury claims, important examples include:
pain and suffering
loss of amenity.
Money cannot literally remove pain or restore a lost experience, but the court can award financial compensation for these consequences.
Pecuniary and non-pecuniary loss compared
Pecuniary loss | Non-pecuniary loss |
Financial loss | Loss without an exact financial price |
Can be valued directly or estimated financially | Court must place a monetary value upon the effect on the claimant |
Lost wages, care costs, repair costs | Pain and suffering, loss of amenity |
May involve past or future loss | Commonly associated with personal injury |
General and special damages
AQA's 2023 mark scheme also identified the distinction between general and special damages as relevant to the structure of an award.
Special damages
Special damages compensate for financial losses which have already occurred and can be specifically calculated by the time of trial or settlement.
Examples may include:
earnings already lost because the claimant could not work
medical expenses already paid
travel expenses resulting from the injury
repair bills already incurred.
The claimant should provide evidence of these losses.
Example
Priya is unable to work for eight weeks following an accident.
She proves that she lost £4,000 in wages during that period.
The £4,000 is a specifically quantifiable past financial loss and may form part of the compensatory award.
General damages
General damages cover loss which cannot simply be calculated from past bills and receipts.
They may include:
pain and suffering
loss of amenity
future loss of earnings
future care or treatment costs.
These amounts require assessment or estimation rather than simply adding together past invoices.
Do not confuse the two classifications
The terms pecuniary/non-pecuniary and general/special describe damages in different ways.
For example:
past lost wages are pecuniary and usually form part of special damages
pain and suffering is non-pecuniary and forms part of general damages
future lost earnings are pecuniary, but because they concern future estimated loss, they form part of general damages.
A useful comparison is:
Loss | Pecuniary or non-pecuniary? | General or special? |
Past lost earnings | Pecuniary | Special |
Past treatment expenses | Pecuniary | Special |
Pain and suffering | Non-pecuniary | General |
Loss of amenity | Non-pecuniary | General |
Future lost earnings | Pecuniary | General |
Future care costs | Pecuniary | General |
For AQA, understand the distinctions rather than attempting highly detailed calculations.
Damages for physical injury
Where the claimant suffers physical injury because of a tort, compensatory damages may cover both:
the injury itself and its effect on the claimant
the financial consequences of the injury.
A personal injury award may therefore combine several different heads of loss.
Pain and suffering
Damages may compensate the claimant for the pain and suffering caused by the injury.
The amount will depend upon matters such as:
the nature of the injury
its seriousness
how long the claimant suffers
whether the effects are temporary or permanent.
There is no receipt showing the exact financial value of pain.
This is therefore a non-pecuniary form of general damages.
Loss of amenity
Loss of amenity concerns the effect of the injury on the claimant's ability to enjoy ordinary activities and their way of life.
For example, an injury may prevent the claimant from:
participating in sport
enjoying hobbies
carrying out ordinary daily activities.
AQA's 2023 mark scheme specifically identified possible compensation for a claimant who might no longer be able to play football.
The important point is that loss of amenity is concerned with what the claimant can no longer do or enjoy because of the injury.
Pain and suffering versus loss of amenity
These concepts are related but distinct.
Pain and suffering
How physically or mentally unpleasant has the injury been?
Loss of amenity
How has the injury reduced the claimant's ability to enjoy or carry out activities?
Example
A footballer suffers a serious leg injury.
They may receive compensation for:
the pain caused by the injury and treatment
the loss of enjoyment resulting from being unable to play football.
Past loss of earnings
A claimant may lose income because an injury prevents them working.
Past lost income is normally a pecuniary loss capable of calculation from financial evidence.
Example
Ravi earns £500 per week.
Because of the defendant's tort, Ravi is unable to work for six weeks.
His past lost earnings are:
£500 × 6 = £3,000
Subject to the normal rules of causation and recoverability, this may be included within the compensatory award.
Future loss of earnings
A serious injury may affect the claimant's ability to earn money in the future.
The court may therefore award compensation for future loss of earnings.
This can be particularly important where the claimant:
cannot return to their former occupation
can work only reduced hours
loses a promising future career
suffers permanently reduced earning capacity.
AQA's 2023 Paper 2 mark scheme specifically recognised possible future lost earnings where a young claimant's promising football career might be lost because of injury.
Future loss requires evidence
The claimant cannot simply invent an optimistic future income.
The court must assess the loss using the evidence available.
A scenario might therefore provide facts such as:
the claimant's occupation
existing salary
evidence of career prospects
whether the disability is permanent.
AQA rewards application of those facts rather than unsupported statements that the claimant will receive "lots of damages".
Medical, care and related financial loss
Physical injury may also produce additional reasonable expenses.
For example:
medical costs
care costs
travel expenses connected with treatment
other financial consequences directly resulting from the injury.
Where these have already been incurred and can be calculated, they may form part of special damages.
Reasonably anticipated future costs may form part of general damages.
The thin skull rule can affect the size of the award
If the defendant is legally responsible for the claimant's injury, the claimant's unusual vulnerability does not necessarily limit compensation.
The principles considered in legal causation and remoteness [Lesson 99. Legal causation and remoteness] may therefore affect the extent of recoverable damages.
If the thin skull rule applies, the defendant takes the claimant as they find them.
This may mean that unexpectedly serious consequences of a foreseeable type of injury are compensated.
Worked physical injury example
Xavier negligently injures Will in a road accident.
Will suffers a serious leg injury.
As a result:
he experiences significant pain during treatment
he can no longer play football
he loses £2,500 of wages before trial
medical treatment already costs £800
his injury may reduce his future earning capacity.
Possible damages include:
Non-pecuniary general damages
pain and suffering
loss of amenity from being unable to play football.
Pecuniary special damages
£2,500 past lost earnings
£800 past medical expenses.
Pecuniary general damages
any proven future loss of earnings
any reasonable future treatment or care costs.
The final award should compensate Will for the legally recoverable consequences of the injury rather than punish Xavier.
Damages for property damage
Compensatory damages may also be awarded where the defendant's tort causes damage to the claimant's property.
The aim remains compensation.
The claimant should receive a financial award reflecting the property loss caused by the tort.
Repairable property
Where property can reasonably be repaired, the cost of repair may provide the basis for compensation.
Example
A negligent driver damages Amira's garden wall.
The reasonable repair cost is £2,000.
If the defendant is liable and the amount is properly proved, the £2,000 may form part of Amira's compensatory damages.
Destroyed property
Where property is destroyed rather than merely damaged, damages may reflect the financial value of the lost property.
The claimant should be compensated for the actual loss rather than placed in a better financial position than before the tort.
Consequential financial loss from property damage
Property damage may also produce further financial consequences.
For example, damage to business equipment may prevent a business trading while the equipment is repaired.
That financial loss may be consequential economic loss, because it results from physical damage to the claimant's property.
This should be distinguished from pure economic loss caused by negligent acts [Lesson 101. Pure economic loss caused by negligent acts].
Example
A defendant negligently damages a bakery's oven.
The bakery incurs:
£3,000 reasonable repair costs
£1,500 lost profits while the oven cannot be used.
The repair cost is property loss.
The lost profits flow from damage to the bakery's own property and may therefore constitute consequential economic loss.
Whether the losses are recoverable still depends upon matters such as causation and remoteness.
Different losses should be considered separately
A single accident may cause:
physical injury
property damage
economic loss.
Do not combine these automatically into one unexplained figure.
Identify each head of loss and ask what caused it.
This is especially important where a defence applies only to some of the damage.
The 1984 Act property-damage exception
There is an important statutory distinction in occupiers' liability.
Under visitors under the Occupiers' Liability Act 1957 [Lesson 105. Visitors under the Occupiers' Liability Act 1957], relevant property damage may potentially be recoverable.
However, the statutory duty under trespassers under the Occupiers' Liability Act 1984 [Lesson 106. Trespassers under the Occupiers' Liability Act 1984] is concerned with personal injury and does not provide recovery for damage to a trespasser's property in the same way.
AQA's 2024 examiner report specifically highlighted this distinction.
Example
A trespasser is injured when a dangerous structure collapses and their phone is also destroyed.
Even if liability arises under the 1984 Act:
damages may potentially be awarded for the personal injury
the destroyed phone is not recoverable under that statutory occupiers' liability duty.
Do not assume that every proven loss is legally recoverable under every tort.
Damages for economic loss
An economic loss is a financial loss.
Examples include:
lost earnings
lost profits
additional expenses
future income which will no longer be received.
However, the claimant can recover economic loss only where the underlying rules of tort permit recovery.
Consequential economic loss
Consequential economic loss flows from recognised physical injury or property damage.
Examples include:
wages lost because the claimant is physically unable to work
business profits lost because the defendant damaged the claimant's machinery.
Where the underlying physical loss is recoverable, consequential economic loss may also form part of compensatory damages, subject to causation and remoteness.
Pure economic loss
Pure economic loss is financial loss which does not flow from physical injury or damage to the claimant's property.
The restrictions studied in pure economic loss caused by negligent acts [Lesson 101. Pure economic loss caused by negligent acts] therefore remain important.
The fact that an economic loss can be calculated precisely does not mean that it is legally recoverable.
AQA's 2025 examiner report identified a small number of students who wrongly thought a pure economic loss claim failed because damages were impossible to calculate.
That is incorrect.
The difficulty is the legal restriction on liability, not an inability to perform the calculation.
Negligent misstatements
Pure economic loss may be recoverable where the rules governing negligent misstatements [Lesson 102. Negligent misstatements] are satisfied.
For example, if a claimant:
establishes the required duty based on the special relationship
proves breach
proves causation
suffers financial loss
compensatory damages may be awarded for that economic loss.
Worked economic loss example
A professional adviser negligently gives inaccurate financial advice in circumstances creating the necessary special relationship.
The claimant reasonably relies on the advice and loses £20,000.
If liability for negligent misstatement is established, the £20,000 financial loss may form the basis of compensatory damages.
By contrast, if the same £20,000 is unrecoverable pure economic loss caused by a negligent act, the claimant cannot obtain damages merely because the financial amount is easy to calculate.
The underlying right to recover must come first.
Causation limits damages
Compensatory damages are awarded only for losses legally caused by the defendant's tort.
The claimant cannot add every difficulty they have experienced after an accident and assume that the defendant must pay for it.
Apply:
factual causation [Lesson 98. Factual causation]
legal causation and remoteness [Lesson 99. Legal causation and remoteness].
Ask:
Would the loss have occurred but for the defendant's tort?
Is the loss legally attributable to the defendant?
Is the relevant kind of damage reasonably foreseeable?
Has the chain of causation been broken?
These rules help determine the scope of the compensatory award.
A defence may change the final award
Once the claimant's losses have been identified, consider any defence.
Contributory negligence
Under contributory negligence [Lesson 111. Contributory negligence], damages may be reduced where the claimant's unreasonable conduct contributed to the accident or the extent of the loss.
This is a partial defence.
Consent
Under consent [Lesson 112. Consent], valid voluntary acceptance of the relevant risk may provide a complete defence.
If successful, there is no compensatory award for the defeated claim.
Different losses may be affected differently
This was a particularly perceptive point identified by AQA in its 2025 examiner report.
Suppose Faye is injured when another driver's negligence causes her car to leave the road.
Faye is not wearing a seat belt.
Her car is destroyed and her personal injuries are more serious because she was unrestrained.
Contributory negligence may reduce damages for the physical injuries, because wearing a seat belt would have reduced them.
But the seat belt would not have prevented the car from being destroyed.
The same reduction therefore does not automatically apply to the property loss.
Always ask:
Which particular loss did the claimant's conduct contribute to?
Calculating a simple compensatory award
AQA does not require highly technical personal injury calculations at this level.
However, you should be able to combine straightforward losses.
Example
A claimant suffers the following legally recoverable losses:
past lost earnings: £6,000
medical expenses: £1,000
property repair: £3,000
assessed pain, suffering and loss of amenity: £10,000.
Total compensatory damages before any defence:
£6,000 + £1,000 + £3,000 + £10,000 = £20,000
If contributory negligence produces a 25% reduction affecting the entire award in the scenario:
25% of £20,000 = £5,000
Final award:
£20,000 − £5,000 = £15,000
In a real legal dispute, calculations can be considerably more complex. For AQA, focus on the legal principles and straightforward application.
Future losses
Future losses create greater uncertainty because they have not yet occurred.
Possible future losses include:
future earnings
future treatment costs
future care costs.
The court must estimate the financial effect using the evidence available.
AQA's 2023 mark scheme specifically recognised analysis of future losses as part of compensatory damages.
Future losses must still be caused by the tort
A claimant cannot receive future damages based merely on speculation.
For example, a claimant arguing that an injury has destroyed a highly paid future career should provide factual support for that claim.
Relevant evidence in a scenario may include:
established employment
existing earnings
training already completed
clear career prospects
medical evidence about future disability.
Use those facts when applying the principle of compensation.
Psychiatric injury and compensatory damages
Where a claimant successfully establishes liability for a recognised psychiatric injury, compensatory damages may also be available.
This applies to successful claims by:
primary victims [Lesson 103. Psychiatric injury: primary victims]
secondary victims [Lesson 104. Psychiatric injury: secondary victims].
The claimant must first satisfy the special liability rules for psychiatric injury.
The remedy comes afterwards.
As with physical injury, the purpose remains compensation for the legally recognised harm caused by the defendant.
Compensatory damages in other torts
The same broad compensatory principle appears throughout the tort topics.
Occupiers' liability
A successful claimant may recover compensatory damages for recoverable injury and, under the appropriate legal framework, property damage.
Negligent misstatement
A successful claimant may receive compensation for legally recoverable economic loss.
Rylands v Fletcher
A claimant who establishes the rule in Rylands v Fletcher [Lesson 108. The rule in Rylands v Fletcher] and defeats any defence may seek compensation for the relevant property damage.
Private nuisance
Damages may compensate for loss caused by private nuisance.
An injunction may alternatively or additionally become important. Injunctions are considered in mitigation and injunctions [Lesson 115. Mitigation and injunctions].
Compensation and mitigation are different issues
The claimant is entitled to compensation for recoverable loss, but they cannot simply allow avoidable losses to increase indefinitely.
The principle that a claimant should take reasonable steps to reduce their loss is known as mitigation.
This is developed in the next lesson, mitigation and injunctions [Lesson 115. Mitigation and injunctions].
For this lesson, remember the basic sequence:
Identify the original loss → determine what is legally recoverable → apply any defence → consider mitigation → calculate compensation
A complete damages structure
For a factual scenario, use the following method.
Step 1: Establish liability
Identify the tort and confirm that the claimant has a valid cause of action.
Step 2: Identify each head of loss
Separate:
physical injury
property damage
economic loss.
Step 3: Classify personal injury losses
Where useful, distinguish:
pecuniary and non-pecuniary
general and special damages.
Step 4: Apply causation and remoteness
Ask whether each individual loss was caused by the tort and is legally recoverable.
Step 5: Value the loss
Use the factual information provided:
invoices
lost wages
repair costs
future income
pain, suffering and loss of amenity.
Step 6: Apply any defence
Determine whether:
contributory negligence reduces compensation
consent eliminates the relevant claim.
Step 7: Consider each loss separately
Do not automatically apply a defence to a loss which the claimant's behaviour did not cause or increase.
Step 8: Reach a reasoned conclusion
State the categories of damages the claimant may recover and, where the figures allow, calculate the total.
Worked application
Nadia is injured when Omar negligently drives into her car.
Omar admits liability.
As a result of the accident:
Nadia suffers a broken leg
she experiences significant pain for four months
she cannot continue her usual recreational running
she loses £5,000 in wages before returning to work
she pays £700 in treatment expenses
doctors conclude that she will earn £8,000 less over the next two years because she must reduce her working hours
repairing her car costs £4,000.
Physical injury
Nadia may receive non-pecuniary general damages for:
pain and suffering
loss of amenity caused by being unable to run.
Past financial loss
Her:
£5,000 past lost earnings
£700 treatment costs
are pecuniary losses which can be specifically calculated.
Future financial loss
The £8,000 future reduction in earnings is a pecuniary future loss and may form part of general damages if adequately established.
Property damage
The reasonable £4,000 car repair cost may also be recoverable.
Total calculable financial loss
Ignoring the unquantified pain, suffering and loss of amenity award:
£5,000 + £700 + £8,000 + £4,000 = £17,700
Nadia's final compensatory award would include this recoverable financial loss plus the court's assessment of her non-pecuniary personal injury loss.
The purpose is to compensate Nadia for what Omar's tort has caused, not to punish Omar.
Worked application: separate losses and contributory negligence
Change the facts.
Nadia was not wearing a seat belt, and medical evidence shows that:
the accident would still have occurred
the car would still have suffered £4,000 damage
her leg injury would have been significantly less serious if she had worn the seat belt.
Omar may argue contributory negligence.
However, Nadia's failure to wear the seat belt affected her physical injury, not the damage to the car.
The court should therefore consider carefully which heads of loss are subject to any reduction.
This reflects the detailed application praised in AQA's 2025 examiner report.
Exam technique: match the depth to the question
AQA's 2023 examiner report noted that some students gave very long accounts of:
general damages
special damages
within a broad negligence problem.
Those explanations could receive credit, but full marks could be achieved with a brief explanation of compensatory damages applied to the claimant's actual losses.
This creates an important exam rule:
Know the detail, but use only as much as the question needs.
In a question specifically about damages, explain the categories fully.
In a 30-mark negligence scenario where damages are only a small final issue, a concise applied paragraph may be enough.
Key Words 🔑
Key word | Student-friendly definition | How it may be used in an exam |
Compensatory damages | Money awarded to compensate a claimant for legally recoverable loss caused by a tort. | Identify the main monetary remedy available after establishing tort liability. |
Pecuniary loss | A financial loss which can be expressed in money, such as lost earnings or repair costs. | Identify financial consequences which may form part of the damages award. |
Non-pecuniary loss | A loss without an exact financial price, such as pain, suffering or loss of amenity. | Explain compensation for the non-financial consequences of personal injury. |
Special damages | Specifically calculable financial losses already incurred by the time damages are assessed. | Apply figures such as past lost wages and treatment expenses. |
General damages | Damages requiring assessment rather than simple calculation of past expenditure, including pain, suffering, loss of amenity and future losses. | Explain compensation for non-pecuniary injury and estimated future financial losses. |
Hints from the Examiner Reports 💡
Examiner hint: Distinguish a civil award of damages from a criminal fine. AQA's 2024 report suggested that some students were confusing these remedies. Compensatory damages compensate the claimant rather than punish the defendant.
Examiner hint: AQA's 2023 mark scheme recognises the distinctions between pecuniary and non-pecuniary loss and general and special damages. Make sure you understand how the classifications overlap rather than treating them as identical pairs.
Examiner hint: Apply damages to the claimant's actual circumstances. In 2023, relevant losses included pain and suffering, future loss of earnings and loss of amenity caused by potentially losing a promising football career.
Examiner hint: Match the amount of damages discussion to the question. The 2023 examiner report noted that some students wrote lengthy descriptions of general and special damages when only a brief applied remedy discussion was needed.
Examiner hint: Consider different losses separately when applying a defence. AQA's 2025 report praised students who recognised that failure to wear a seat belt might reduce compensation for personal injury but would not necessarily reduce damages for a car which would have been destroyed anyway.
Examiner hint: Do not say contributory negligence eliminates damages. AQA's 2022 examiner report emphasised that it reduces rather than eliminates the claimant's award. A successful consent defence, by contrast, can eliminate the relevant claim.
Examiner hint: Check whether the governing tort permits recovery for the particular type of loss. AQA's 2024 report specifically highlighted that the Occupiers' Liability Act 1984 does not provide damages for a trespasser's damaged personal property.
Common Mistakes ⚠️
Mistake: Saying damages punish the defendant
Why this is incorrect: Compensatory damages are primarily designed to compensate the claimant for legally recoverable loss.
How to improve: Use language such as:
"The award aims to compensate the claimant for the loss caused by the tort."
Mistake: Treating damages like a criminal fine
Why this is incorrect: A fine is a criminal penalty, while compensatory damages are a civil remedy paid to compensate a claimant.
How to improve: Keep civil remedies and criminal sentencing separate.
Mistake: Confusing general damages with non-pecuniary loss
Why this is incorrect: General damages may include both non-pecuniary losses and estimated future pecuniary losses.
How to improve: Remember that future lost earnings are financial, but they form part of general damages because they concern future estimated loss.
Mistake: Forgetting loss of amenity
Why this is incorrect: Personal injury may affect the claimant's enjoyment of life even where there is no direct financial cost.
How to improve: Look for facts about sports, hobbies and ordinary activities the claimant can no longer undertake.
Mistake: Assuming every economic loss is recoverable
Why this is incorrect: The law restricts recovery of pure economic loss in some situations.
How to improve: First establish whether the underlying law permits recovery using pure economic loss caused by negligent acts [Lesson 101. Pure economic loss caused by negligent acts] or negligent misstatements [Lesson 102. Negligent misstatements].
Mistake: Saying pure economic loss fails because it cannot be calculated
Why this is incorrect: A pure economic loss may be very easy to calculate. The restriction concerns the existence of legal liability, not necessarily the mathematics.
How to improve:
Separate:
whether a loss is legally recoverable
how much that loss is worth.
Mistake: Applying contributory negligence to every head of loss
Why this is incorrect: The claimant's behaviour may contribute only to a particular injury or consequence.
How to improve: Ask separately whether the claimant's conduct contributed to each form of loss.
Mistake: Giving property damages under the 1984 Act
Why this is incorrect: The statutory duty towards unlawful visitors under the Occupiers' Liability Act 1984 concerns personal injury rather than damage to the claimant's property.
How to improve: Always check what type of loss the particular tort or statute protects.
Mistake: Writing several pages on damages in every negligence problem
Why this is incorrect: The amount of detail should reflect the marks available and the issues raised by the scenario.
How to improve: Where remedy is only a small part of a larger question, briefly identify and apply the relevant heads of loss.
Exam-Style Questions ✍️
Question 1
Which one of the following is a non-pecuniary loss?
A. Past lost wages
B. Repair costs
C. Pain and suffering
D. Future care expenses
[1 mark]
Question 2
Explain the compensatory purpose of damages in tort. [2 marks]
Question 3
Explain the difference between special damages and general damages.
[4 marks]
Question 4
A claimant suffers a serious leg injury in a road accident.
As a result, she:
loses £3,000 in wages before trial
pays £500 for treatment
experiences significant pain
can no longer play tennis.
Identify and explain the different types of compensatory damages which may be available.
[5 marks]
Question 5
A defendant negligently damages a bakery's commercial oven.
The reasonable cost of repairing the oven is £4,000. The bakery also loses £2,000 in profits while the oven is unusable.
Explain how the bakery's losses may be treated when assessing compensatory damages.
[5 marks]
Question 6
Hannah is injured when Idris negligently causes her car to leave the road.
Hannah was not wearing a seat belt. Medical evidence shows that this substantially increased her physical injuries. Her car, worth £8,000, would have been destroyed in the accident whether or not she had worn the seat belt.
Hannah also loses £5,000 in earnings because of her injuries.
Analyse how compensatory damages and contributory negligence may apply to Hannah's different losses. [10 marks]
Question 7
Jay suffers serious physical injury because of Kim's negligence.
Jay proves:
£6,000 past lost earnings
£1,500 past treatment expenses
£20,000 probable future lost earnings
continuing pain
permanent inability to take part in a sport which had been an important part of his life.
Advise Jay on the heads of compensatory damages he may seek. [10 marks]
Question 8
Analyse how the principle of compensatory damages applies to physical injury, property damage and economic loss in tort. [15 marks]
Mark Scheme
Question 1
Answer: C. [1 mark]
Pain and suffering has no exact financial price and is therefore a non-pecuniary loss.
Question 2
Award up to 2 marks:
1 mark: Compensatory damages are intended to compensate the claimant for legally recoverable loss caused by the tort.
1 mark: The broad aim is to restore the claimant, so far as money can do so, to the position they would have occupied if the tort had not occurred rather than to punish the defendant.
Question 3
Award up to 4 marks:
Special damages concern specifically calculable financial losses already incurred by the time of assessment.
Examples include past lost earnings and expenses already paid.
General damages require assessment rather than simple calculation of past expenditure.
They may include pain and suffering, loss of amenity and estimated future financial losses such as future lost earnings.
Question 4
Award up to 5 marks.
Indicative content:
The £3,000 past lost wages are a pecuniary loss and may form part of special damages.
The £500 treatment expenses are also pecuniary and specifically calculable.
Pain is a non-pecuniary loss compensated through general damages for pain and suffering.
Inability to play tennis may amount to loss of amenity.
Loss of amenity is also non-pecuniary general damages.
The total award should compensate the claimant for these legally recoverable consequences of the injury.
Question 5
Award up to 5 marks.
Indicative content:
The £4,000 repair cost represents financial loss resulting from physical damage to the bakery's property.
It may therefore form part of compensatory damages if reasonable and properly caused by the defendant's tort.
The £2,000 lost profits are economic loss.
As they result from damage to the bakery's own oven, they may be characterised as consequential economic loss rather than pure economic loss.
They may therefore potentially be recoverable subject to causation and remoteness.
The bakery should be compensated for its actual legally recoverable loss rather than receive a punitive award.
Question 6
Award up to 10 marks for knowledge, application and reasoned analysis.
Indicative content:
Physical injury
Hannah may claim compensatory damages for her physical injuries.
These can include pain and suffering and any relevant financial consequences.
Her failure to wear a seat belt may amount to contributory negligence.
Medical evidence shows that this increased the severity of her injuries.
Damages attributable to the personal injury may therefore be reduced.
Lost earnings
The £5,000 earnings loss flows from the physical injury.
It is consequential financial loss.
To the extent that the seriousness or duration of the injury was increased by Hannah's failure to wear a seat belt, the court should consider the effect of contributory negligence upon this loss.
Car
The destroyed car represents property damage.
Its loss is valued at £8,000 on the facts given.
The car would have been destroyed even if Hannah had worn her seat belt.
Her failure to wear the seat belt did not therefore contribute to this particular loss.
The same contributory negligence reduction should not automatically be applied to the property damage.
A strong answer should treat the different heads of loss separately.
Question 7
Award up to 10 marks.
Indicative content:
Past pecuniary losses
£6,000 past lost earnings.
£1,500 past treatment expenses.
These are specifically calculable financial losses and may form part of special damages.
Future pecuniary loss
£20,000 probable future lost earnings.
Future lost earnings are pecuniary but form part of general damages because they are future estimated losses.
The amount must be supported by appropriate evidence and caused by Kim's tort.
Non-pecuniary loss
Jay's continuing pain may attract general damages for pain and suffering.
Permanent inability to participate in an important sport may amount to loss of amenity.
Loss of amenity forms part of non-pecuniary general damages.
Overall principle
The award should compensate Jay for legally recoverable loss caused by the negligence.
It should not be designed to punish Kim.
Causation, remoteness and any relevant defence must still be considered.
Question 8
Award up to 15 marks according to the quality of legal knowledge, explanation and application.
A strong response may include:
definition and compensatory purpose of damages
recognition that damages are a civil remedy, not a criminal fine
the aim of compensating rather than punishing
distinction between pecuniary and non-pecuniary loss
distinction between special and general damages
past lost earnings as pecuniary special damages
pain and suffering as non-pecuniary general damages
loss of amenity as non-pecuniary general damages
future loss of earnings as pecuniary general damages
possible future treatment and care costs
application to physical injury
compensation for reasonable property repair or financial loss caused by destruction of property
distinction between property damage and related consequential economic loss
consequential economic loss such as lost profits resulting from damaged business equipment
restrictions on recovery of pure economic loss caused by negligent acts
possible recovery of pure economic loss through negligent misstatement where the necessary liability requirements are satisfied
recognition that the ability to calculate a loss does not itself determine whether that loss is legally recoverable
factual and legal causation as limits on the scope of damages
reasonable foreseeability and remoteness
recognition that the thin skull rule may affect the extent of recoverable personal injury loss
effect of contributory negligence [Lesson 111. Contributory negligence] in reducing damages
importance of applying contributory negligence only to losses to which the claimant's conduct contributed
effect of consent [Lesson 112. Consent] as a possible complete defence
recognition of the distinction between property recovery under the Occupiers' Liability Acts 1957 and 1984
connection with the separate principle of mitigation considered in mitigation and injunctions [Lesson 115. Mitigation and injunctions]
a reasoned conclusion that the final award should compensate the claimant for each legally recoverable loss actually caused by the tort without providing a punitive or unjustified windfall.
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