Good Samaritan law

First Aid & CPR Chile

The Good Samaritan: compassion and protection

Drawn from the Bible (Luke 10:25-37), the parable of the Good Samaritan tells of a traveller left for dead who is rescued by a stranger that tends to him and sees to his care. Beyond its religious context, it carries a universal message: the moral duty to help others in danger, through compassion and altruism.

Inspired by this principle, many so-called Good Samaritan laws have been enacted around the world to protect those who assist in good faith during an emergency from legal action. The exact scope of that protection, however, varies from one jurisdiction to another: here is what the law applicable to your region provides.

Statute citation

Governing act Art. 494 No. 14 of the Chilean Criminal Code — "omisión de socorro", classified as a falta (misdemeanour) punishable by fine.
Scope of protection Any person who encounters, in an unpopulated place ("en despoblado"), someone wounded, mistreated or in danger of perishing and fails to help — only when it can be done without detriment to oneself. The "unpopulated place" requirement is a distinctive limiting element of Chilean law.
Duty to rescue Yes
Penalty for failure to assist Fine of 1 to 4 UTM (Monthly Tax Units) — fine only.
AED liability protection No
Legal duty to rescue applies

Your protection under the law

Chilean law recognises a duty to rescue but frames it with a condition all its own. Article 494 No. 14 of the Criminal Code, "omisión de socorro," is a misdemeanour (falta) punishable by fine, applying to a person who encounters someone "en despoblado" (in an unpopulated place) wounded, mistreated or in danger of perishing, and fails to help when they could do so without detriment to themselves. The "unpopulated place" requirement narrows the duty to situations where the victim can hope for no other help, making the bystander their only recourse.

Duty to rescue

In Chile, failing to help in an unpopulated place is a falta punishable by a fine of 1 to 4 UTM; the penalty is modest, but the message is not — where you are the only one present, the law counts on you. In populated areas, helping is more a personal choice than an obligation. Note that Law 21.156 (2019) mandates AEDs in certain premises, but as an installation and training rule — it provides no Good-Samaritan civil immunity for the lay rescuer. All the more reason for protection to come first from competence.

Why training matters

In a cardiac arrest, the chances of survival fall by about 10% with every minute without resuscitation. In Chile — between the northern desert, the central valleys and the vast southern regions — the victim often depends on one thing alone: the presence of a bystander who knows what to do. Training in CPR and first aid makes you able to fill that role calmly, whether in a city or alone "en despoblado." Competence is the best protection of all — for the victim, and for the one who comes to help.