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Contract and Commercial Law Act 2017

Contracts legislation - Contractual remedies - Damages for misrepresentation

35: Damages for misrepresentation

You could also call this:

“When someone lies to you about a deal, you can get money back”

If someone tricks you into making a contract by telling you something that isn’t true, you can get money from them. This applies even if they didn’t mean to trick you. You can get the same amount of money as if the untrue thing they said was actually part of the contract and they broke it.

If the person lied to you on purpose, or if they didn’t mean to lie but were careless, you can’t get extra money from them for being dishonest or careless. You only get the money as if it was part of the contract.

These rules also apply to contracts where you’re buying things. However, there are some other rules in sections 197 and 201(2) that might change how this works. Also, section 34 might affect how these rules work for buying things.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM6844098.

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Part 2 Contracts legislation
Contractual remedies: Damages for misrepresentation

35Damages for misrepresentation

  1. If a party to a contract (A) has been induced to enter into the contract by a misrepresentation, whether innocent or fraudulent, made to A by or on behalf of another party to that contract (B),—

  2. A is entitled to damages from B in the same manner and to the same extent as if the representation were a term of the contract that has been breached; and
    1. A is not, in the case of a fraudulent misrepresentation, or of an innocent misrepresentation made negligently, entitled to damages from B for deceit or negligence in respect of the misrepresentation.

      1. Subsection (1) applies to contracts for the sale of goods—

      2. despite sections 197 and 201(2); but
        1. subject to section 34.

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