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Brief
Summary: Tennessee emergency responders are not
required to follow certain traffic laws when responding to an emergency
call. However, they are still required
to drive with “due regard for the safety of all persons” and can still be held
liable if they do not comply with this requirement.
Analysis: A recent Tennessee Court of Appeals decision
discussed an interesting issue about whether emergency responders are required
to comply with traffic laws. The case of
Hardeman County v.
Judy I. McIntyre, 2013 WL 1227034, No. W2012-01690-COA-R3-CV (Tenn. Ct. App.
2013)
involved a situation where an ambulance struck another vehicle while on an
emergency call. The ambulance crossed
the double lines in order to proceed around some vehicles but ended up striking
the plaintiff’s vehicle, injuring the plaintiff. The trial court assessed 60% of the fault
against the ambulance driver and 40% of the fault against the driver of the
other vehicle. The case was appealed and
the respective duties were discussed in detail.
The court noted that T.C.A. § 55-8-108 provides that
emergency responders are exempt from certain traffic laws in Tennessee. The key parts to T.C.A. § 55-8-108 are as follows:
(a) The driver of an authorized emergency vehicle, when responding to an
emergency call, or when in the pursuit of an actual or suspected violator of
the law, or when responding to but not upon returning from a fire alarm, may
exercise the privileges set forth in this section, but subject to the conditions
stated in this section.
(b)(1) A driver of an authorized emergency vehicle operating the vehicle
in accordance with subsection (a) may:
(A) Park or stand, notwithstanding other provisions of this chapter that
regulate parking or standing;
(B) Proceed past a red or stop signal or stop sign, but only after
slowing down as may be necessary for safe operation;
(C) Exceed the speed limits so long as life or property is not thereby
endangered; and
(D) Disregard regulations governing direction of movement or turning in
specified directions.
(2) Subdivision (b)(1) shall not relieve the driver of an authorized
emergency vehicle from the duty to drive with due regard for the safety of all
persons, nor shall subdivision (b)(1) protect the driver from the consequences
of the driver's own reckless disregard for the safety of others.
However, it is important to note that T.C.A. § 55-8-108(b)(2) specifically
provides that an emergency vehicle operator is not excused from operating a
vehicle with due care. As a result,
ambulances and other emergency responders are allowed to disregard posted speed
limits and other governmental regulations regarding direction and
movement. However, the emergency
responders cannot place life or property in danger and must exercise due regard
for all drivers. Hardeman County at
5.
Although this is a lengthy opinion which
should be reviewed for an analysis of when emergency responders can be
responsible for an automobile accident, ultimately the court reversed the trial
court decision and found the ambulance company was not responsible for the
accident in question. In fact, the court
awarded the ambulance service damages for the accident. It is an interesting case to read if you have
a situation involving an accident with an emergency responder vehicle.
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blog.
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