Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977

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The Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 — to its users, “UCTA” — is a plank of United Kingdom consumer protection legislation. It limits and in some places overrides basic common law principles as to what kind of losses or damages a contractual party can be liable to. Relevant for exclusion clauses which seek to ludicrously restrict the liability a merchant can have for doing what it promised to do.

On point in the extraordinarily ill-judged (by the appellant) litigation in ParkingEye Ltd v Beavis

Exclusion of liabity for one’s negligence

Is outright prohibited should that negligence lead to death or personal injury:

Section 2(1) provides:

“A person cannot by reference to any contract term or to a notice given to persons generally or to particular persons exclude or restrict his liability for death or personal injury resulting from negligence.”

See also

• OceanGate
• ParkingEye Ltd v Beavis