Proof of loss and loss of a chance

A word is merited about the terminology of damages for loss of a chance. While it may be possible to distinguish conceptually between damages for loss of a chance and damages for the chance of a loss, this chapter draws no such distinction. Rather it uses the terminology of loss of a chance in a wide sense which covers both the lost chance of acquiring a benefit and the lost chance of avoiding a detriment. Increasing the chance of a loss equates to the lost chance of avoiding a detriment and this explains why a case like Barker v Corus (UK) Plc—where, as we have seen in the previous chapter, the courts awarded damages proportionately to the ‘material increase in risk’ of a disease—is equally well viewed as a loss of a chance case.