In an emergency, if you are unsure which of the services to call, it may be wise to call the Fire number (dial 18), as the fire service (sapeurs-pompiers) deals with the greatest variety of situations and will summon an ambulance or the police if they deem it appropriate.

All calls are FREE to emergency numbers, whether you call from a public or private telephone.

PLEASE NOTE - Dialling 112 will also connect you to the emergency switchboard for your area. There are plans to make 112 the standard emergency number across all EU member countries. Do not rely on operators to speak English.

It is wise to ensure that all members of your household know how to make an emergency call, including enough French to give their name, location/street and which service they need.

The national emergency numbers in France are:

15 - Ambulance (Service d'Aide Medicale d'Urgence/SAMU) . This number is also to contact a duty doctor out of hours.

17 - Police (police-secours)

18 - Fire (sapeurs-pompiers/feu centrale d'alarme)

Telephone directories list other emergency or useful numbers, such as your local ambulance service (SAMU), police station (gendarmerie) and fire service (pompiers).

Numbers to call for gas and electricity emergencies are usually listed under EDF/GDF.

The Samaritans can be found under SOS Amitie and the poison emergency service under centre anti-poisons.

For those contemplating suicide, there is Suicide Ecoute on 01 45 39 40 00.

For women, there is an internet helpline called SOS Femmes at: http://www.sosfemmes.com/

All major cities have emergency telephone boxes at major junctions - marked 'Services Medicaux', these have direct lines to the emergency services. Across France there are free SOS call boxes on motorways.

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