exali Glossary
Your encyclopedia of technical terms used in the insurance industry
The insurance industry is full of technical terms—from insurance policies and obligations to recourse claims. To help you keep track of everything, the exali glossary explains the main insurance terms in a simple, understandable, and practical way.
In the exali glossary, you will find not only definitions, but also practical examples, legal information, and references to the appropriate insurance coverage. This way, you always know where the risks lie—and how to protect yourself against them.
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Recourse
Recourse therefore refers to a situation where someone demands compensation from a third party after suffering damage – in other words, asserts a recourse claim. In insurance and liability law, this means that if a claim has been settled, the paying party can reclaim all or part of the costs from a third party who caused the damage.
A typical example: A company causes a data protection breach through a web developer. The company's insurance pays for the damage incurred – but then recovers the costs from the web developer because he caused the breach through faulty programming.
Service providers, freelancers, and agencies can also quickly become the target of recourse claims—even if they are not directly contracted by the injured third party.
In such cases, professional liability insurance protects against the financial consequences. It checks whether the recourse claim is justified, covers justified payments, and defends against unjustified claims—this is known as passive legal protection. Recourse cases are particularly common in project chains or with subcontractors.
A real-life example:
An exali customer is sued for recourse by an agency because his flawed SEO strategy led to a loss of traffic for a major customer. In this case, professional liability insurance covers the review and possible payment of the recourse claim – without the customer being left to foot the bill.
Important for project work
Anyone involved in larger projects as an external service provider should be aware of the risk of recourse – especially if liability clauses are stipulated in the contract or the client is insured themselves. This is because recourse claims can be asserted even years after the project has been completed.
Term: Recourse
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