“Employers must take reasonable care when writing employment references”
The House of Lords held that an employer does owe a duty of care to a former employee when providing a reference. The employer must take reasonable care to ensure the reference is accurate and fair, though they are not required to provide a reference at all.
Spring was summarily dismissed by Guardian Assurance after relations with its new chief executive deteriorated following Guardian's acquisition of his employer. Guardian Assurance later provided a reference to a prospective employer describing Spring as a man of little or no integrity who could not be regarded as honest, which effectively prevented him from obtaining employment in the insurance industry. Spring sued, claiming the reference was negligently prepared and contained inaccurate statements that damaged his reputation and career prospects.
Whether an employer owes a duty of care to a former employee when providing a reference to prospective employers, and if so, what standard of care applies.
The court applied the three-stage test from Caparo v Dickman, finding foreseeability of harm, sufficient proximity between the parties, and that it was fair, just and reasonable to impose a duty. The duty requires reasonable care in preparation but preserves the employer's right to give an honest opinion and does not mandate providing references.
This case significantly expanded employer liability in negligence and established important protections for employees against carelessly prepared references. It balanced competing interests between honest assessment and protection from negligent harm.
Employers owe a duty of care to former employees when providing employment references, and can be liable for economic loss caused by negligent references.
The House of Lords held that a duty of care exists, restored the trial judge's finding that the reference had been negligently prepared, and remitted the case to the Court of Appeal on the issue of causation.
It significantly expanded negligence liability to cover economic loss in employment contexts and established key principles for reference-giving duties.
The court emphasized that the duty does not prevent employers from giving honest, even unfavorable, opinions about former employees, provided reasonable care is taken in the preparation of such references.
OSCOLA Citation
Spring v Guardian Assurance plc [1995] 2 AC 296 (HL)
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[2026] EWHC 1095 (KB)
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