Facts
On 14 September 1956, at 19:50, Mrs. Ella Dinkel-Otto was driving her vehicle on Hönggerstrasse in Zurich in the direction of the city center. She intended to turn left to go to the garage located opposite. After checking her rearview mirror and not seeing any vehicle behind her, she activated her turn signal, slowed down to about 20 km/h and checked her rearview mirror again. When she did not see any vehicle approaching, she turned left and collided with a moped driven by Hans Vogel, who was behind her.
On 31 October 1956, the Zurich city police court fined Mrs. Dinkel 15 francs for violating Article 25, paragraph 1, of the Federal Road Traffic Act (MFG). Mrs. Dinkel appealed the judgment.
On 9 May 1957, the single judge in criminal matters of the Zurich district court acquitted Mrs. Dinkel, considering that she had fulfilled her duty of care by activating her turn signal, slowing down and checking her rearview mirror twice.
Considerations
The Federal Court examined the question of whether Mrs. Dinkel had fulfilled her duty of care as a driver turning left outside a crossroads or fork. The Court considered that places where accesses to garages, private paths, etc. meet with the public road are not crossroads within the meaning of Article 26, paragraph 3, MFG, where overtaking is prohibited.
The Court estimated that Mrs. Dinkel had fulfilled her duty of care by activating her turn…