Vaatschade

Vaatschade is a Dutch legal term that refers to the damages suffered as a result of fraud or deceit in a transaction or contract. The concept appears in Dutch-language legal literature and case law to describe the financial harm caused when one party is misled by another’s deliberate false statements, concealment of relevant information, or other forms of deceit.

In civil liability, vaatschade can arise under general rules on liability for wrongful acts (onrechtmatige daad) and in contract when deceit affects the formation or performance of an agreement. If deceit constitutes an unlawful act, the deceived party may claim damages intended to restore them to the position they would have been in had the deceit not occurred. This can include direct financial losses, interest, and, in some cases, costs of legal procedures. When a contract is entered into because of misrepresentation, Dutch law also addresses remedies related to dwaling (misrepresentation) and bedrog (fraud), which can affect the validity of the contract and the recoverable damages.

Damages are typically limited to those that are proven to have flowed directly from the deceit and to losses that were reasonably foreseeable at the time of the transaction. The precise scope and calculation of vaatschade depend on the applicable civil-law framework, including whether the case concerns contractual remedies, tort-based liability, or the interplay between misrepresentation and contract.

See also: bedrog, dwaling, onrechtmatige daad, schadevergoeding, contract law.