Russia has tightened responsibility for not allowing ambulances to pass through

How much will you have to pay if you don't miss an ambulance in 2021?

For ignoring an ambulance with sound and light signals, the owner of the vehicle may be subject to administrative or even criminal penalties.

Motorists will be held liable for violations based on the following regulatory framework:

From August 2021, the fine for failure to allow an ambulance to pass, which has a special color, light and sound accompaniment, has increased. The amount of financial penalties has increased tenfold. Drivers will be required to contribute from 3 to 5 thousand rubles. There may be situations where the certificate can be withdrawn for a period of 3 to 12 months (Based on Law 12.17.2 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of Russia).
Criminal sanctions are possible if the patient suffers serious injuries as a result of the ambulance being late due to the fault of the driver. The fine can reach 80 thousand rubles. If the patient dies, the driver will face jail time. The term of imprisonment can last 4 years (article of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation numbered 124, part 1).

Thus, drivers are required to give the ambulance priority right of way. Otherwise, car owners will suffer punishment commensurate with the offense.

How will the driver’s dispute with the traffic police over an ambulance end?

The confrontation between Togliatti driver Viktor Allin and the local State Traffic Inspectorate, brought to the point of absurdity, can be safely resolved in favor of common sense. The traffic police department of the Samara region is ready to cancel the fine for the driver who violated the most important traffic rule in an attempt to give way to an ambulance.

The incident occurred in Togliatti, at the intersection of Frunze Street and Marshal Zhukov Street. Victor, as befits a responsible driver, stopped in front of the pedestrian crossing when the traffic light turned red. While waiting for the green signal, he saw an ambulance from behind, driving between two lanes, honking and flashing its lights.

Victor realized that he should let the doctors rush to respond to an urgent call. In order to move his vehicle, he had to drive a little forward, as a result of which the front wheels drove over the stop line. Drivers of neighboring cars performed a similar maneuver. One of them also drove over the solid line - he probably also received a fine.

Photo courtesy of Victor Allin

“All the cars made way, and I also moved forward and to the left so that the ambulance could pass,” Victor told News.ru. The incident was captured by a camera located above the road, and on August 9, Victor was given a fine of 800 rubles. The amount is not that significant, but it is offensive: after all, the driver crossed the stop line not out of inattention or malice, but with the best of intentions.

“Actually, I expected the fine to come. I knew that there were cameras at the intersection, but I couldn’t help but let the ambulance pass,” Victor said in a commentary to News.ru. He wrote a complaint on the traffic police website, but his arguments were ignored. In the document signed by the acting the head of the Center for Automated Recording of Administrative Offenses of the Regional Directorate of the State Traffic Safety Inspectorate, Evgeniy Magsumovich Shaidullin (available to News.ru), says that Victor should have “taken such a position in advance to ensure unhindered passage for this vehicle, as well as the vehicles accompanying it.”

At the same time, Victor stated that he had already dealt with the fine. “I have neither the desire nor the time to travel to the courts because of this, so I paid for it. For the first twenty days you can pay for it with a 50% discount, I paid 400 rubles,” he said in an interview with News.ru. “I don’t quite understand this decision. I couldn't change lanes in advance because by the time I saw the ambulance, I had already been at the traffic light for about forty seconds. I couldn’t predict in advance that she would appear,” Victor is perplexed.

Courtesy of Victor Allin

“A driver, while driving in a busy city, cannot, of course, take into account the possibility of an ambulance appearing at every stop at an intersection,” Evgeniy Grek, a representative of the taxi drivers’ union, stated in an interview with News.ru. He drew attention to the fact that the legislation does not specifically regulate the rules of conduct in such a controversial situation. And we’re not just talking about moments when you need to miss an ambulance.

For example, if a taxi driver drops off a disabled passenger at a special parking lot intended only for this category of citizens, he may also face a fine, since the taxi is not included in a special register where cars of people with disabilities are included. “The only thing left is to either drop off the passenger two kilometers from the place he needs and create unnecessary difficulties for him, or pay later,” complains Evgeniy. However, in his opinion, the driver should let the ambulance pass in any case, so that the doctors have time to arrive on time to the call: saving a human life is more important than any fines.

Many social network users also supported Tolyatti resident Viktor Allin.

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vk.com/life_samara

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vk.com/life_samara

It is noteworthy that if the driver does not give way to an ambulance rushing to call, he will also face a fine or deprivation of the right to drive a vehicle for a period of 1 to 3 months (Article 12.17 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation). But when passing doctors, it is important not to overdo it, so as not to create an emergency situation for other road users.

“No one expects a driver to lift his car in a helicopter or run a red light,” Alexander Kaminsky, a representative of the Academy of Driving Skills, explained to News.ru. He pointed out that Victor Allin’s good intentions are obvious, but the camera records a violation of traffic rules absolutely impartially and the mechanical device is not aware of the situation. “Although, at the trial, I would acquit him,” the interlocutor said.

“In this case, the driver was obliged to let the ambulance pass. In this regard, and also due to the insignificance of the violation [crossing the stop line by less than half a car length, which did not create interference or an emergency situation], he should be released from liability on the basis of Articles 24.5 of the Code of Administrative Offenses and 2.9 of the Code of Administrative Offenses,” says the automobile lawyer of the public movement “STOP Illegal” Alexander Lyaskovsky.

“I think that Victor’s fine is completely unjustified,” lawyer Dmitry Sotnikov expressed his opinion in an interview with News.ru. In his opinion, Russian legislation allows such controversial fines to be appealed through the courts, but most drivers prefer not to get involved in litigation.

Posted by Victor Allin (@victorallin)Jul 2, 2021 at 9:31 PDT

True, now the money can be returned to the driver: the Samara traffic police department probably became ashamed and called Victor with a proposal to cancel the unfair punishment. “He [the State Traffic Inspectorate representative who called] told me that I need to go to court and he will petition for the traffic police to cancel the fine,” Allin said. The News.ru correspondent sent a request to the Ministry of Internal Affairs with a request to explain what happened, but there has been no response yet (the Ministry of Internal Affairs promised to send a letter to the News.ru editorial office on August 30).

Lawyer Dmitry Sotnikov advises Allin to go to court after all: only through regular lawsuits will it be possible to change law enforcement practice in the field of fines. “The court ruling will need to be carried out for execution by the traffic police. They will return the money paid as a fine to the account or debit card,” the lawyer noted in a comment to News.ru.

Let us note that what happened to Victor is by no means an isolated incident. In the same city of Tolyatti last year, driver Vyacheslav Strochenkov gave way to an ambulance and also received a fine. Then the traffic police also advised the driver to appeal the order. Unfortunately, the traffic police do not often correct their mistakes immediately. “It happens that already when submitting applications they say that we will refuse, you can sue or complain to the prosecutor’s office,” notes Evgeniy Grek.

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What exactly is meant by not letting an ambulance pass?

Failure to allow a special vehicle to pass is characterized as actions by road users in which special vehicles cannot freely travel to their destination, even with the use of sound and light accompaniment. This wording is presented in paragraph 3.2 of the Rules.

However, there are some problems with the law. Motorists in some cases have the right to violate traffic rules. The driver is obliged to give the Ambulance car priority right of passage, but he cannot edit his route or change it if there are other cars nearby. A sudden change in direction can lead to an emergency.

This rule applies only at an intersection where the driver stands and waits for the traffic light to clear, and a special car with flashing lights passes in front. If the special vehicle is behind the driver, maneuvering to allow passage for the ambulance will be a violation of traffic rules.

An ambulance pass does not give you the right to break the law. The car owner must allow special transport to pass and remain within the legal framework.

When the driver allows the ambulance to pass, he must not:

cross stop lines, lanes on the road;
interfere with other participants of the DD;
pick up too high a speed;
violate other traffic rules.

Recently, Russian motorists are increasingly receiving fines for traffic violations that were committed while the special services were passing cars. Appealing fines does not yield results. The authorities argue the penalty by saying that even allowing an ambulance to pass must be done in accordance with all regulations.

In this light, missing an ambulance can be viewed as a kind of risk. However, it is better to give way and pay a fine, based on moral considerations. Also, the death of an ambulance patient can lead to criminal liability.

What is this new law?

Actually, it's not new. It was developed 2 years ago by 2 deputies: Yarovaya and Morozov. But the draft Federal Law was postponed in June 2017 after its adoption in the first reading. And now in 2021 they returned to it and put it up for discussion.

This bill introduces an amendment to the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, which the initiators propose to supplement with Article 1241. This article will provide for increasing liability for the fact that the driver of a civilian vehicle does not give way to an ambulance, depending on the consequences that such violation of traffic rules led to:

if failure to allow the ambulance to pass resulted in moderate health problems for the patient to whom the ambulance was traveling,
if failure to give way to the road resulted in death or serious harm to the health of the patient.

Literally the text of the draft new law speaks of creating barriers to access to patients:

Obstructing the legitimate activities of a medical worker in providing medical care by restraining, threatening, creating obstacles to access a patient...

View the full text of the bill. It is also available on the official website of the National Medical Chamber and Consultant Plus.

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How to skip the First Aid of troubles and consequences for yourself and the victim?

The traffic rules indicate the rules that the driver must follow when detecting a car with special signals on the way. First, you need to make sure that the car really needs to be allowed through. A special services vehicle must have both sound and light signals.

If an ambulance is rushing to respond to a call, the driver is obliged to reduce the speed as much as possible or stop the car altogether.

It is necessary to act according to the situation:

It is prohibited to start accelerating until the hospital paramedics have passed.
If it is possible to clear the road for easy passage of an ambulance, the driver can make a maneuver.
If the driver noticed an ambulance, but was standing still, he does not have the right to start moving until the way is cleared.
If the Ambulance can be missed only by using a maneuver, it is allowed to perform it only if the points of the DD Rules are followed.

The instructions provided to motorists are quite clear. Nevertheless, problems with interpreting the legality of performing a particular maneuver often arise. Even if a traffic violation is committed while passing an ambulance, the driver will be fined.

If a maneuver is contrary to the rules of the DD, it cannot be performed from a legal point of view. However, there are common situations when it is impossible to give way without violations. In such a combination of circumstances, it is worth disrupting the orderly traffic and allowing the ambulance to pass. Such an act will create inconvenience, but will save human life.

Current fines

Now it’s worth touching on the topic of fines for not allowing an ambulance to pass. The corresponding penalties are regulated by the Code of Administrative Offences. The fine associated with failure to comply with the requirements to give way is subject to Article 12.17, Part 3.

It is important to consider one key detail. Punishment for the fact that the driver did not allow a special vehicle, that is, an ambulance, to pass, is possible only if an advantage is not provided. If drivers allow an ambulance to pass but do not ensure unhindered traffic, no one will issue a fine for this. There are no such provisions in the law. And if there are no rules and requirements, then penalties cannot exist.

Currently, there are two options for administrative penalties for the fact that a motorist did not give way to an ambulance. A driver who fails to yield in such a situation may receive a fine. Which one depends on the specific case.

If the driver of a vehicle is not inferior to a car equipped with special signals (blue beacon and sound siren), as well as having a special emergency graphic diagram, and the signals themselves are turned on, then the fine will be 500 rubles.
The second situation applies to cars with special signals, but without graphic circuits. This applies to cars of deputies, special services, etc. Here the fine will vary from 100 to 300 rubles.

The law does not establish any time frame, according to which the driver undertakes to fulfill all the conditions within a certain time by giving way.

There are situations when the driver faces not just a fine, but also deprivation of his license. The maximum period for confiscation of a driver's license is 3 months.

But a motorist may have his license taken away in a situation where a violation was recorded by traffic police officers. Therefore, most often we talk about deprivation of rights only when the traffic police, traffic police or other similar departments do not allow a car to pass. Your license can be taken away if the driver, during a maneuver, trying to provide an advantage, violated other traffic rules.

If the driver was drunk and overtook an ambulance with active special signals, then a huge fine will follow, and the license will be taken away for 1-3 years.

Under what conditions can an ambulance violate traffic rules?

A car rushing to help a sick person has the right to violate certain traffic rules. This opportunity arises with the simultaneous operation of sound and light signals.

If the specified condition is met, the ambulance can drive through a red light or not allow pedestrians to pass at the crossing.

Below we will talk about the features that ambulances have when driving on the road:

The ambulance receives all the benefits only if it needs it. The need for travel arises when it is necessary to deliver the victim to the hospital or rush to a call.
The driver of a special service vehicle can use his privileges only after making sure that the right-of-way is actually given way to him. At the same time, the paramedic should not create a dangerous situation when moving.
The ambulance cannot ignore the signals sent by the traffic controller. Even if the car has all the special signals turned on, only the traffic controller can control the passage of cars.

Ambulance transport has serious grounds for violating certain traffic rules. However, this is only possible in emergency situations. If the driver of the car, while driving, does not turn on at least one of the special signals when driving through a prohibitory traffic light order, the actions will be regarded as a full violation. The ambulance will receive a fine.