Coursera · Coursera Terms of Use

Limitation of Liability

High severity
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What it is

Coursera caps its legal responsibility and will not pay you for most types of harm caused by its services, including loss of data, lost learning opportunities, or other indirect losses.

Consumer impact (what this means for users)

If Coursera's platform fails, leaks your data, or wrongly terminates your account, this clause prevents you from recovering most categories of damages — including the value of lost educational progress or credentials you paid for.

Cross-platform context

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Why it matters (compliance & risk perspective)

This clause means that even if Coursera's platform error or breach causes you significant harm — such as losing your course progress or certificate — the company's financial liability to you is severely restricted.

View original clause language
In no event will Coursera, its officers, directors, employees, agents, and successors be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages, including without limitation damages for loss of profits, goodwill, use, data or other intangible losses (even if Coursera has been advised of the possibility of such damages).

Institutional analysis (Compliance & legal intelligence)

1) REGULATORY FRAMEWORK: Broad limitation of liability clauses in consumer contracts are subject to review under the FTC Act Section 5 for unfairness, and under state consumer protection statutes (e.g., Cal. Civ. Code § 1668 which voids contract terms exempting willful injury). In the EU, Directive 93/13/EEC (Unfair Contract Terms Directive) and national implementations may render blanket liability exclusions unenforceable against consumers. GDPR Art. 82 provides a specific right of compensation for data subjects harmed by GDPR violations that contractual liability caps cannot override. 2)

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Applicable agencies

  • FTC
    The FTC has authority to challenge limitation of liability clauses that leave consumers without effective remedy for corporate misconduct under FTC Act Section 5.
    File a complaint →
  • State AG
    State attorneys general can challenge unconscionable limitation of liability clauses under state consumer protection statutes such as the California CLRA and UCL.
    File a complaint →

Provision details

Document information
Document
Coursera Terms of Use
Entity
Coursera
Document last updated
April 29, 2026
Tracking information
First tracked
April 18, 2026
Last verified
April 18, 2026
Record ID
CA-P-002849
Document ID
CA-D-00157
Evidence Provenance
Source URL
Wayback Machine
SHA-256
d67cd5c44e1912191635fd8b7e2198b45b8ec6ab8725f8a00753d9335a136c85
Verified
✓ Snapshot stored   ✓ Change verified
How to Cite
ConductAtlas Policy Archive
Entity: Coursera | Document: Coursera Terms of Use | Record: CA-P-002849
Captured: 2026-04-18 10:12:56 UTC | SHA-256: d67cd5c44e191219…
URL: https://conductatlas.com/platform/coursera/coursera-terms-of-use/limitation-of-liability/
Accessed: May 2, 2026
Classification
Severity
High
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