[H019]

hold harmless agreement

A contractual arrangement in which one party agrees to assume certain liability which otherwise would be borne by the other party. For example, an insurer may wish to pay a loss when it is uncertain whether it may be called upon a second time to some other party. The payee may be asked to execute an agreement whereby the company will be reimbursed or held harmless by the payee if such request should happen. Another example is when the principal in a large construction project frequently demands hold harmless agreements from all subcontractors in respect to claims made against the principal arising out of the subcontractors' negligence. The principal often stipulates the purchase of a liability policy by the subcontractor to support the hold harmless agreement.

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