>> the contractor is liable unless the cause
of the injury or death can be attributable
to the employer within the ambit of the
relevant provision;
fault or default of the contractor. Here, the
different forms of conditions of contract
have employed varying drafting styles in
describing such fault or default; typical
examples being:
>> where both the contractor and
the employer are the cause of the
injury or death, then there will be an
apportionment of liability between
them in proportion to contribution to
the cause;
>> ‘any negligence, omission, default and/
or breach of contract …’: Clause 18.1
PAM Contract 2006 (With Quantities),
PAM C ontr ac t 20 0 6 ( W i thou t
Quantities);
>> ‘any act, omission, breach or default
…’: Clause 14.1 JKR Forms 203 & 203A
(Rev 1/2010); Clause 38.2 PWD Form
(Rev 1/2010).
>> generally, unless it is expressly provided
for to the contrary, the employer carries
full liability for neutral or non-negligent
risks: Callaghan and Anor trading as RW
Construction v Hewgate Construction;45
In essence, even if not specifically mentioned
such fault or default extends even to negligence
causing the personal injury or death: Sharpe v
ET Sweeting & Son Ltd;41 AC Billings & Sons Ltd
v Riden.42
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42
43
44
45
46
47
48
It is trite that under this category of
Indemnity, the contractor is liable unless
the employer is proven to be so. The
contemporary development is that the
contractor’s liability for indemnification is
generally excluded or reduced to the extent
that injury or death is caused by any act or
neglect of the employer or anyone for whom
the l