Sparkasse Berlin increased fees without customer consent. Now a court ruling could give many of those affected a refund, and not just in the capital.
Munich – A ruling that could be followed by a flood of refunds to bank customers. The Federal Association of Consumer Organizations (vzbv) had filed a lawsuit against Sparkasse Berlin after the financial institution had introduced or increased certain fees several times since 2016. There were repeated suggestions to customers, but Sparkasse Berlin did not obtain any real consent. For example, at the end of 2016, it switched the “Comfort checking account” to “Giro Flat Rate” and unilaterally increased the monthly fee by three euros, the consumer advice center reported in a press release.
The Berlin Court of Appeal declared such processes unlawful on April 9, 2024. This follows a ruling by the Federal Court of Justice against Postbank from 2021. Millions of those affected can now receive a proper refund of fees paid over the years. “According to the judgment, the customers involved in the model declaratory action are entitled to refunds of amounts that they have had to pay additionally to the savings bank since 2018,” says Sebastian Reiling from vzbv.
After the court ruling: Sparkasse Berlin is considering appealing
According to IPPEN.MEDIA
's request, Sparkasse Berlin counters
: “Berliner Sparkasse will decide in the coming days whether it will appeal on appeal. We continue to be of the opinion that the three-year solution can be transferred to bank fees and charges.” Consequently, there would be no claims for reimbursement. They don't want to say anything more about the ongoing proceedings.
If the Berlin ruling stands, customers can demand this money back from their bank or savings bank. And not just customers of Sparkasse Berlin, but possibly also of other banking institutions.
In similar proceedings, the vzbv is taking action against the Sparkasse KölnBonn. The proceedings there are suspended to await the result at Berliner Sparkasse. “This procedure is being appealed to the Federal Court of Justice. If the Federal Court of Justice decides, its statements will have a ripple effect. If a BGH decision is made, the vzbv expects that banks and savings banks will adhere to it,” explains the consumer advice center.
Refunds: After Postbank, customers of savings banks and possibly other banks are now also affected
According to focus.de
, the following financial institutions are threatened with concrete effects
: In addition to many regional savings banks, Volksbanks and Landesbanken, these could also include Deutsche Bank, ING Diba and Commerzbank. They are said to have increased their fees by up to 65 percent between January 2018 and December 2022, according to a report. It's not just about the fees for account management, but also the costs for transfers, SMS-Tan or account statements. A Verivox survey recently showed that half of current accounts have become more expensive in the last two years.
Contrary to the media report, Postbank appears to be out of the running. At
IPPEN.MEDIA
, the company explained: “The judgment of the Court of Appeal does not affect us. According to the Federal Court of Justice ruling of April 27, 2021, Postbank has refunded its customers any fees that were wrongly charged upon request. In this respect, the Court of Appeal’s ruling confirms our legal opinion.”
“So far, as far as we know, various banks and savings banks have already paid back fees at least at the request of customers - at least for a certain period of time,” the consumer advice center remains somewhat vague here.
ING, Sparkasse, Commerzbank: This is how you can get the refund
Important: The Sparkasse ruling is not yet legally binding. A revision is underway because the consumer association insists that customers are entitled to a refund for the period before 2018. However, the court found that the statute of limitations applies to fee increases before January 1, 2018.
Once the judgment is legally binding, customers can request the money back using a sample letter from the consumer advice center. According to Niels Nauhauser, from the Baden-Württemberg consumer advice center, the price list that was in effect when the account was opened applies, reports
focus.de
.
At the beginning of 2024, persistent IT problems and lack of access to accounts caused dissatisfaction among Postbank customers. Under certain circumstances there was even 1000 euros in compensation.
(mke)