预定违约赔偿金

Liquidated damages are a fixed sum agreed upon in a contract that will be payable if a specific breach occurs. They replace the need to prove actual damages in court, saving time and legal costs. In real estate, they commonly appear in construction contracts (for delayed completion), sale agreements (for buyer default), and lease agreements (for early termination).

Dubai SPAs (Sale and Purchase Agreements) commonly include liquidated damages clauses. For off-plan purchases, RERA regulations allow buyers to claim compensation if the developer delivers late. Typical construction contracts specify daily or weekly delay penalties, for example, 0.1% of contract value per day of delay, capped at 10%. On the buyer side, forfeiting the deposit (typically 10%) is a common form of liquidated damages for failing to complete a purchase.

Liquidated damages clauses remove the burden of proving actual loss in a breach scenario. This saves time and legal costs but requires the pre-agreed amount to be a genuine estimate of probable loss, not a penalty. UAE courts will examine whether liquidated damages provisions are punitive and may reduce them if they are disproportionate to actual harm.

For buyers of off-plan properties, the liquidated damages clause in the SPA is the primary contractual protection against developer delays. Review this clause carefully: note the delay period that triggers compensation, the rate of compensation, and whether it caps at a maximum amount. A poorly drafted clause may provide less protection than expected.