A claim for compensation for recovery costs under Article 10 of the Act on Counteracting Excessive Delays in Commercial Transactions : selected issues

Compensation for recovery costs, referred to in Article 10 of the Act on Counteracting Late Payments in Commercial Transactions, is an additional amount due to a creditor when a debtor delays a pecuniary performance arising from a commercial transaction. The nature of this performance is controversial both among legal scholars and in judicial decisions. On the one hand, it is pointed out that it does not depend on incurring any costs, while, on the other, the meaning of the word “compensation” is emphasized, and no costs are expected to be borne in order to acquire the right to claim them from the debtor. The author of the article brings together some of the currently trending views and reviews them taking into account some key challenges. He then supports one of them, justifying his choice and highlighting its practical consequences. Also, he indicates under what conditions and using which defence measures the debtor can defend themselves against such claims before court.