Austrian OGH: Liability for Road Traffic Accident Involving an Ambulance

Oct 29, 2026 Benn-Ibler Rechtsanwälte

The Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, hereinafter OGH) recently considered whether, when apportioning liability under the Austrian Railway and Motor Vehicle Liability Act (Eisenbahn- und Kraftfahrzeughaftpflichtgesetz, hereinafter EKHG), account may be taken of fault on the part of the driver of an emergency vehicle where the accident may have occurred in the exercise of public authority.

Strict liability alongside public-authority liability

In the case at hand, an ambulance operated by the Vienna Emergency Medical Service ambulance approached a red-light junction, with its blue warning beacon activated, while the traffic signal was showing red. Despite limited visibility, the driver entered the junction and collided with the claimant’s vehicle. Because the siren had been set to the  wrong frequency, the siren emitted only a single audible signal. The claimant sought damages of EUR 13,020.50 in damages.

The court of first instance allowed the claim in full, whereas the appellate court apportioned liability equally between the parties. It held that, because the Austrian Public Liability Act (Amtshaftungsgesetz, AHG) might apply, the driver’s fault had to be disregarded when determining strict liability under the EKHG.

Fault as a factor in apportionment

The OGH clarified that claims based on strict liability under the EKHG may coexist with claims arising from public-authority liability. Although an additional claim in fault under the general provisions of civil law is, in principle, excluded where it would circumvent the special rules of the AHG, this does not mean that the driver’s fault must be disregarded when liability is apportioned under section 11(1) of the EKHG.

In the circumstances, section 26(3) of the Austrian Road Traffic Act (Straßenverkehrsordnung, StVO) required the ambulance driver to ensure that entering the junction would neither endanger any person nor cause damage to property. Given the restricted visibility, he ought not to have entered the junction. By contrast, no contributory negligence was attributable to the claimant, who was generally entitled to assume that even an emergency vehicle would comply with a red traffic signal.

Sole fault of the emergency-vehicle driver

The OGH allowed the claimant’s appeal on points of law and interlocutory appeal and reinstated the judgment of the court of first instance. The driver’s fault wholly displaced the ordinary operational risk attributable to the claimant’s vehicle; accordingly, there was no basis for apportioning the loss.

OGH 2 Ob 84/26f (15 September 2026)