The Court of Cassation rejected the appeal presented by the Municipality of Agrigento which, at first instance and then also on appeal, had been sentenced to compensation for the financial and physical damages suffered by a cyclist assisted by the lawyer Marco Patti.
The Municipality of Agrigento has always supported the cyclist’s exclusive responsibility, as the manhole was located in the historic center, was clearly visible and the cyclist lived nearby. The Court of Cassation instead rejected the Municipality’s appeal, confirming the sentence to pay compensation for the damages suffered by the cyclist, based once again on the valorisation of the characteristics of the individual concrete case, which can never be ignored.
Specifically, the manhole that was the subject of the dispute had two peculiar characteristics: it was found to be located at a difference in level with respect to the road surface, resulting in it being sunken and less visible; furthermore the drainage slits were placed parallel to the direction of travel and not perpendicular.
Basically, the rainwater drainage grates were placed in such a way that the bike tire would get stuck. On the basis of this consideration, which already emerged during the appeal and shared by the Supreme Court, said situation of the places had a connotation of danger, which the cyclist could not have noticed, both due to its characteristics and because it was not appropriately signalled. These two elements on the one hand confirm the causal link with the fall, on the other hand they exclude the fault of the injured party, erroneously recognized by the Authority.
Nor did the Authority manage to have the defense line accepted according to which it was unable to exercise control over the territory, due to its extension, as in the specific case the accident in question had occurred in the historic centre.
