The Indian Contract Act, 1872
73. Compensation of loss or damage caused by breach of contract
When a contract has been broken, the party who suffers by such breach is entitled to receive, form the party who has broken the contract, compensation for any loss or damage caused to him thereby, which naturally arose in the usual course of things from such breach, or which the parties knew, when they made the contract, to be likely to result from the breach of it.
Such compensation is not to be given for any remote and indirect loss of damage sustained by reason of the breach.
Compensation for failure to discharge obligation resembling those created by contract : When an obligation resembling those created by contract has been incurred and has not been discharged, any person injured by the failure to discharge it is entitled to receive the same compensation from the party in default, as if such person had contracted to discharge it and had broken his contract.
Explanation : In estimating the loss or damage arising from a breach of contract, the means which existed of remedying the inconvenience caused by non-performance of the contract must be taken into account.
Illustrations
(a) A contracts to sell and deliver 50 maunds of saltpetre to B, at a certain price to be paid on delivery. A breaks his promise. B is entitled to receive from A, by way of compensation, the sum, if any, by which the contract price falls short of the price for which B might have obtained 50 maunds of saltpetre of like quality at the time when the saltpetre ought to have been delivered.
(b) A hires B’s ship to go to Bombay, and there takes on board, on the first of January, a cargo, which A is to provide, and to bring it to Calcutta, the freight to be paid when earned. B’s ship does not go to Bombay, but A has opportunities of procuring suitable conveyance for the cargo upon terms as advantageous as those on which he had chartered the ship. A avails himself of those opportunities, but is put to trouble and expense in doing so. A is entitled to receive compensation from B in respect of such trouble and expense.
(c) A contracts to buy of B, at a stated price, 50 maunds of rice, no time being fixed for delivery. A afterwards informs B that he will not accept the rice if tendered to him. B is entitled to receive from A, by way of compensation, the amount, if any, by which the contract price exceeds that which B can obtain for the rice at the time when A informs B that he will not accept it.
(d) A contracts to buy B’s ship for 60,000 rupees, but breaks his promise. A must pay to B, by way of compensation, the excess, if any, of the contract price over the price which B can obtain for the ship at the time of the breach of promise.
(e) A, the owner of a boat, contracts with B to take a cargo of jute to Mirzapur, for sale at that place, starting on a specified day. The boat, owing to some avoidable cause, does not start at the time appointed, whereby the arrival of the cargo at Mirzapur is delayed beyond the time when it would have arrived if the boat had sailed according to the contract. After that date, and before the arrival of the cargo, the price of jute falls. The measure of the compensation payable to B by A is the difference between the price which B could have obtained for the cargo at Mirzapur at the time when it would have arrived if forwarded in due course, and its market price at the time when it actually arrived.
(f) A contracts to repair B’s house in a certain manner, and receives payment in advance. A repairs the house, but not according to contract. B is entitled
to recover from A the cost of making the repairs conform to the contract.
(g) A contracts to let his ship to B for a year, from the first of January, for a certain price. Freights rise, and, on the first of January, the hire obtainable for the ship is higher than the contract price. A breaks his promise. He must pay to B, by way of compensation, a sum equal to the difference between the contract price and the price for which B could hire a similar ship for a year on and from the first of January.
(h) A contracts to supply B with a certain quantity of iron at a fixed price, being a higher price than that for which A could procure and deliver the iron. B wrongfully refuses to receive the iron. B must pay to A, by way of compensation, the difference between the contract price of the iron and the sum for which A could have obtained and delivered it.
(i) A delivers to B, a common carrier, a machine, to be conveyed, without delay, to A’s mill, informing B that his mill is stopped for want of machine. B unreasonably delays the delivery of the machine, and A, in consequence, loses a profitable contract with the Government. A is entitled to receive from B, by way of compensation, the average amount of profit which would have been made by the working of the mill during the time that delivery of it was delayed, but not the loss sustained through the loss of the Government contract.
(j) A, having contracted with B to supply B with 1,000 tons of iron at 100 rupees a ton, to be delivered at a stated time, contracts with C for the purchase of 1,000 tons of iron at 80 rupees a ton, telling C that he does so for the purpose of performing his contract with B. C fails to perform his contract with A, who cannot procure other iron, and B, in consequence, rescinds the contract. C must pay to A 20,000 rupees, being the profit which A would have made by the performance of his contract with B.
(k) A contracts with B to make and deliver to B, by a fixed day, for a specified price, a certain piece of machinery. A does not deliver the piece of machinery, at the time specified, and, in consequence of this, B is obliged to procure another at a higher price than that which he was to have paid to A, and is prevented from performing a contract which B had made with a third person at the time of his contract with A (but which had not been communicated to A), and is compelled to make compensation for breach of that contract. A must pay to B, by way of compensation, the difference between the contract price of the price of machinery and the sum paid by B for another, but not the sum paid by B to the third person by way of compensation.
(l) A, a builder, contracts to erect and finish a house by the first of January, in order that B may give possession of it at that time to C, to whom B has contracted to let it. A is informed of the contract between B and C. A builds the house so badly that, before the first of January, it falls down and has to be re-built by B, who, in consequence, loses the rent which he was to have received from C, and is obliged to make compensations to C for the breach of his contract. A must make compensation to B for the cost of rebuilding of the house, for the rent lost, and for the compensation made to C.
(m) A sells certain merchandise to B, warranting it to be of a particular quality, and B, in reliance upon this warranty, sells it to C with a similar warranty. The goods prove to be not according to the warranty, and B becomes liable to pay C a sum of money by way of compensation. B is entitled to be reimbursed this sum by A.
(n) A contracts to pay a sum of money to B on a day specified. A does not pay the money on that day. B, in consequence of not receiving the money on that day, is unable to pay his debts, and is totally ruined. A is not liable to make good to B anythi
ng except the principal sum he contracted to pay, together with interest upto the day of payment.
(o) A contracts to deliver 50 maunds of saltpetre to B on the first of January, at a certain price, B, afterwards, before the first of January, contracts to sell the saltpetre to C at a price higher than the market price of the first of January. A breaks his promise. In estimating the compensation payable by A to B, the market price of the first of January, and not the profit which would have arisen to B from the sale to C, is to be taken into account.
(p) A contracts to sell and deliver 500 bales of cotton to B on a fixed day. A knows nothing of B’s mode of conducting his business. A breaks his promise, and B, having no cotton, is obliged to close his mill. A is not responsible to B for the loss caused to B by closing of the mill.
(q) A contracts to sell and deliver to B, on the first of January, certain cloth which B intends to manufacture into caps of a particular kind, for which there is no demand, except at that season. The cloth is not delivered till after the appointed time, and too late to be used that year in making caps. B is entitled to receive from A, by way of compensation, the difference between the contract price of the cloth and its market price at the time of delivery, but not the profits which he expected to obtain by making caps, nor the expenses which he has been put to in making preparation for the manufacture.
(r) A, a ship owner, contracts with B to convey him from Calcutta to Sydney in A’s ship, sailing on the first of January, and B pays to A, by way of deposit, one-half of his passage-money. The ship does not sail on the first of January, and B, after being, in consequence, detained in Calcutta for some time, and thereby put to some expense, proceeds to Sydney in another vessel, and, in consequence, arriving too late in Sydney, loses a sum of money. A is liable to repay to B his deposit, with interest, and the expense to which he is put by his detention in Calcutta, and the excess, if any, of the passage-money paid for the second ship over that agreed upon for the first, but not the sum of money which B lost by arriving in Sydney too late.
COMMENTS
Award of damages
When a contract is broken, the party who suffers by such breach is entitled to receive compensation for any loss or damage caused to him from the party who has broken the contract; K. Narayana Kurup v. Sankaranarayanan, AIR 2000 Ker 296.
Breach of Contract of carriage
A corporation had placed the order on telephone. The entire transaction was oral and no attempt was made to produce any witness of the alleged buyer to support the contention that the market value of the goods was at the rate of Rs. 3,000 per metric ton. The material on record does not show that the price of goods has risen to Rs. 3,000. Therefore the damages as a result of non-delivery of the alleged goods, have not been proved by the plaintiff and he is not entitled to any damages; Thakral and Sons v. Indian Petro Chemicals Corporation Ltd., AIR 1994 Del 226.
Damages for breach of contract
When there is a breach of contract, party to the contract cannot determine as to who has committed breach. Damages could be recovered from the person who has committed breach only after the same is determined. The conditions of contract would be considered as liquidated damages and could be recovered and no power has been conferred on the other contracting party to determine the damages; P.V. Paily v. State of Kerala, AIR 2000 Ker 268.
The party in breach must make compensation in respect of the direct consequences flowing from the breach and
not in respect of loss or damage indirectly or remotely caused; Pannalal Jankidas v. Mohanlal, AIR 1951 SC 145: (1950) SCR 979.
Damages for breach of contract of service
A contract of service entered into by father on behalf of minor is void being without consideration; Raj Rani v. Prem Adib, AIR 1949 Bom 215.
Damages when become due
A seller who commits breach will be liable to compensate according to the prices at the place of sale and not at destination; Murlidhar Chiranji Lal v. Harish Chandra Dwarkadas, AIR 1962 SC 366: (1962) 1 SCR 653.
Limitation
The principle of awarding damages for a reasonable period or reasonable period of notice comes into play only when the contract of employment is not for a fixed period; S.S. Shetty v. Bharat Nidhi Ltd., AIR 1958 SC 12: (1958) SCR 442.
Measure of damages – Breach of contract for sale of goods
Damages are to be awarded as compensation for any loss or damage arising naturally in the usual course of things from the breach of contract; Karsandas H. Thacker v. Saran Engg. Co. Ltd., AIR 1965 SC 1981.
Natural and probable result of breach: Special damage
In cases of breach of contract the damages should be such as may fairly and reasonably be considered as arising naturally or the damages may be such as may reasonably be supposed to have been in contemplation of both parties at the time they made the contract as the probable result of the breach of it. The damages, however cannot include compensation for any remote and indirect loss or damages sustained by reason of the breach; Hadley v. Bexendale, 9 Ex 742.
Taking advantage of benefit resulting from breach of contract
Where a vendee is in default and the vendor subsequently sells at a price higher than the market price on the date of delivery, the fact that by reason of the loss of the contract which the vendee had failed to perform, the vendor obtained the benefit of another contract which was of value to him did not entitle the vendee to the benefit of the later contract; Jamal v. Moola Dawood Sons & Co., (1916) AC 175.
