07.09 Exclusion of liability

07 Liability Law

In practice, companies often want to exclude their own liability in whole or in part. In this respect, the provisions of Swiss rules of CO 100 (contract law) and PrHG 8 (product liability) must be observed in particular.

According to CO 100 in contract law, any agreement made in advance, according to which liability for unlawful intent or gross negligence would be excluded, is null and void. This means that only an exclusion of liability for slight negligence is possible; in practice, however, it is difficult to distinguish between gross and slight negligence.

According to PrHG 8 in product liability, agreements which limit or waive liability under this law towards the injured party are null and void. In connection with PrHG 1 thus only allows an exclusion of liability for property damage in the ratio business to business. An exclusion of liability is completely impossible or null and void in the business to consumer relationship.

In my opinion, it is advisable (and accepted by the other party) to agree a disclaimer. If you do not agree a disclaimer, there is no disclaimer. However, one must be aware that the exclusion of liability does not work in many cases. Important: As liability risks cannot be excluded to a large extent, it is essential to have a liability insurance (see chapter 07.11 Liability insurance).

07 Liability Law