Lo Studio legale associato Bertolini Fusi, composto da Avvocato fondatori, avvocati collaboratori e impiegati amministrativi, è a Vostra disposizione in Piazza Antonio Vallisneri 4 a Reggio nell'Emilia.
BERTOLINI-FUSI ASSOCIATED
LAW FIRM
2025 - BERTOLINI-FUSI ASSOCIATED LAW FIRM
Piazza Antonio Vallisneri, 4 - 42121 Reggio nell'Emilia
vat n. 01771590351
Phone: 0522-453468
e-mail: amministrazione2@studiobertolinifusi.it
IN SERVICE AMBULANCE AND RED LIGHTS
Supreme Court, ruling 4316/2024 - Feb. 1st 2024
CAUTION!
What it means for the Court?
The driver is not exempt from observing the rules of common prudence and diligence, under penalty of a criminal conviction, even for very serious injuries, as in the case examined by the Court.In fact, ambulance drivers, when they are carrying out urgent services and if they use the acoustic alarm device and the visual signaling device (blue flashing light) together, are not obliged to observe the limitations and prohibitions provided for correct road circulation, such as signs; but there are compromises to the possibility of not respecting the prohibitions, compromises that are represented by the presence of traffic officers (whose provisions the ambulance drivers must comply with) and the rules of common prudence and diligence.The Court of Cassation expressly provides that the legislation in this matter, while allowing ambulance drivers not to observe the rules of road circulation, does not exempt the aforementioned drivers from exercising the utmost caution when driving the vehicles, so as not to create unjustified risk situations. Furthermore, driving must be adapted to the particular road and traffic situations.
In the case examined by the Court, the driver of the car, while crossing (with the acoustic and visual signaling devices in operation) an intersection with a red light, violently collided with a moped on which two minors were traveling, who suffered serious personal injuries. The driver was accused of having violated the rules of the highway code, in particular of not having respected the red light of the traffic light, without observing the minimum and necessary caution and without paying attention to those who had already entered the intersection, such as the motorcycle.According to the Supreme Court, the driving behavior of the ambulance driver had been very irresponsible: in fact, the vehicle had entered the intersection at high speed without even braking, thus colliding with the moped, which was already in the intersection.The rules that the Judges deemed to have been violated were not so much those of the road, but rather those of diligence which required the driver to check for the presence of other vehicles in the area, thus moderating the speed, also taking into account the fact that the ambulance had just passed a red light.
Attorney Liliana Bertolini
Supreme Court, ruling 4316/2024
In summary, the Court held that “The driver, travelling at an estimated speed of approximately 52 km/h, had entered the intersection without interruption and had impacted a motorcycle that had already entered the same intersection: in this way, he had violated the 2 rules of common prudence and diligence which instead required him to check whether other vehicles had already entered the intersection area and, therefore, to moderate his speed in order to carry out this check, maintaining a prudent conduct, made necessary by the peaceful awareness of having passed a red light.”