Calling an Ambulance While It Is Not an Emergency Is Cheating and Deceit

12-7-2020 | IslamWeb

Question:

If I call an ambulance although I know it is not an emergency but I want to ensure I get seen quickly, what are the moral implications of this?

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Answer:

All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah, and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.

The ugliness of such an action is self-evident and does not require a Fatwa; it involves cheating and deceiving the concerned authorities into believing that the caller's condition is a medical emergency, which is not true. It was narrated on the authority of Ibn Mas‘ood that the Prophet said: “Whoever cheats us is not one of us, and cunning and deceit are in Hellfire.” [Ibn Hibbaan]

Moreover, this action involves incurring harm on other patients who actually need ambulance services.

Allah Knows best.