Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Key definition

Negligence definition

What does Negligence mean? In legal practice, negligence describes a failure to take reasonable care that results in foreseeable harm or loss. It is proved by establishing: (i) a duty of care, (ii) breach of that duty measured against the objective standard of a reasonable person, (iii) causation (factual “but for” cause and legal scope/remoteness), and (iv) recoverable damage. The concept is defined and developed by case law. A classic formulation is that negligence is omitting what a reasonable person would do, or doing what a prudent person would not (Blyth v Birmingham Waterworks (1856) 11 Ex Ch 781). The test is objective: the

Precedent letter of claim against accountant for negligent preparation of statutory/abridged company accounts and breach of contract, under the Pre-Action Protocol for Professional Negligence (England and Wales)

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Precedents

[ ON THE HEADED NOTEPAPER OF CLAIMANT’S SOLICITORS ] Our reference: [ insert your file reference for this matter ] FAO: [ INSERT RELEVANT NAME ] [ NAME OF DEFENDANT ACCOUNTANT ] [ ADDRESS LINE 1 ] [ ADDRESS LINE 2 ] [ POSTCODE ] [ DATE ] Dear [ insert name ] [ PROSPECTIVE CLAIMANT’S NAME ] AND [ PROSPECTIVE DEFENDANT’S NAME ]

LETTER OF CLAIM

[ We refer to our correspondence dated [ insert date of your preliminary notice of claim, if sent ]. That correspondence was a preliminary notice of claim issued under the Pre-action Protocol for Professional Negligence, and required an acknowledgement by [ insert date ]. ] [ We acknowledge receipt of your letter dated [ insert date ] which acknowledges the preliminary notice. [ Nevertheless, we still await confirmation that your professional insurers have been notified of the circumstances of our client’s claim against you. We also ask that you forward a copy of this letter to them, and please confirm to us that you have done so ] ]...

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Web page updated on 22/05/2026

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