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Contracts • Remedies for Unexcused Non-Performance
K#161
Legal Definition
Incidental damages are always recoverable by a non-breaching buyer or seller, and consist of costs incurred in dealing with the breach (e.g., storing rejected goods or finding a replacement in a services contract).
Plain English Explanation
Incidental damages are costs that are incidentally incurred while trying to deal with a breach. For example, if you agree to buy a product or service for $100, and then the product or service is not given to you, it is likely that trying to replace the product or service will cost some amount more than $100 since now you have to deal with delays, or unexpected costs related to fixing the situation.
Hypothetical
Hypo 1: Bob needs someone to paint his house immediately. He hires Sam to paint it for $100. Sam never shows up, so Bob goes online to Craigslist and pays $10 to post a job ad. Amy responds and says she will do it for $100. Amy comes over and paints the house, and Bob pays her $100. Result: Bob can sue Sam for the $10 ad fee that was incidental to having to quickly find a replacement after Sam flaked and breached their contract.
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