Recital 79

(79) In order to ensure that victims of adverse impacts have effective access to justice and compensation, Member States should be required to lay down rules governing the civil liability of companies for damage caused to a natural or legal person, on condition that the company intentionally or negligently failed to prevent or mitigate potential adverse impacts or to bring actual impacts to an end or minimise their extent and, as a result of such a failure, damage was caused to the natural or legal person. Damage caused to a person’s protected legal interests should be understood in accordance with national law, for example death, physical or psychological injury, deprivation of personal liberty, loss of human dignity, or damage to a person’s property. The condition that the damage has to be caused to a person as a result of the company’s failure to comply with the obligation to address the adverse impact, when the right, prohibition or obligation listed in the Annex to this Directive, the abuse or violation of which is resulting in the adverse impact that should have been addressed, is aimed to protect the natural or legal person to whom the damage is caused, should be understood as meaning that derivative damage (caused indirectly to other persons who are not the victims of adverse impacts and who are not protected by the rights, prohibitions or obligations listed in the Annex to this Directive) is not covered. For example, if an employee of a company suffered damage due to the company’s violation of safety standards in the workplace, the landlord of such an employee should not be allowed to bring a claim against the company for an economic loss caused by the employee not being able to pay the rent. Causality within the meaning of civil liability is not regulated by this Directive, with the exception that the companies should not be held liable under this Directive if the damage is caused only by the business partners in the chains of activities of the companies (so-called ‘being directly linked to’ as referred to in the international framework). Victims should have the right to full compensation for the damage caused in accordance with national law and in line with such common principle. Deterrence through damages (punitive damages) or any other form of overcompensation should be prohibited.

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Source: EUR-Lex CELLAR · retrieved 2026-08-27 · Text as adopted (Official Journal); later amendments are not incorporated in this text.