The rail strikes mean that many trains are canceled.
How those affected can claim back money for their ticket - and which alternatives they can use.
Strike at Deutsche Bahn
: Members of the German Locomotive Drivers Union (GDL) have been called on Wednesday to
stop
work for 48 hours since 2 a.m.
Passengers should find out in good time * whether their desired connection is available.
If not, you should quickly find other means of transport.
Train connection fails - what happens to the booked ticket?
The railway is accommodating during the strike, as the German Press Agency (dpa) reports:
Long-distance
tickets
that have
already been booked
for the strike period remain valid until August 20 and can be used flexibly.
The
domestic travels in savings rates is omitted
.
Trains other than those indicated on the ticket can also be used to continue your journey.
This also applies to local trains.
If you do not want to travel at a later time, you can have the ticket refunded free of charge using a goodwill form on the DB website or at the DB sales point.
You can also read
: Radio license fee is getting more expensive: Stiftung Warentest explains what you have to pay attention to when registering.
Rail strike: That's how much money you get back if you are delayed
"If you do not arrive at your destination on time because of a train strike, you can get
a part of the fare or even the entire fare back
,
depending on the delay
," informs the consumer advice center on its website.
That regulates the EU passenger regulation.
The
amount of compensation
depends on the
length of the delay
.
"If passengers arrive at least 60 minutes later than planned, they are entitled to a 25 percent reimbursement, with more than 120 minutes it is 50 percent," says Beatrix Kaschel from the local transport arbitration board in Düsseldorf in the dpa report.
According to the dpa, claims can be made online, on the train or in a DB office using the passenger rights form.
In the
event of
a
delay of more than 60 minutes,
the railway company must also offer those affected free refreshments and meals in a reasonable proportion to the waiting time, according to
verbüberszentrale.de,
provided they are available or deliverable on the train or at the station.
Tip from the consumer advice center: "If there is nothing from the company and you buy something on your own, keep these bills as well."
Also read
: Beware of taxes if you sublet your apartment during the holidays
The consumer advice center advises: Document train delays
The consumer
advice center
also advises collecting the
receipts of delays or train cancellations
right there and then: Either you can have delays certified by DB employees at the train station.
However, that could be tedious if thousands of passengers were stranded at a train station during a strike.
Or you can take photos of the
display boards
on which the delay or the train cancellation can be seen, according to the advice of consumer advocates.
Or screenshots of corresponding information in the
DB app
or on the railway company's website.
Possible alternatives when the train is not running
According to the dpa report, rail travelers still have the
following alternatives:
Taxis
: "In the past, Deutsche Bahn has already organized taxi rides from larger train stations and distributed appropriate vouchers in local transport," says Beatrix Kaschel according to dpa. “If travelers are looking for a taxi on their own, however, there are restrictions - the company does not have to take over every taxi invoice afterwards. The railway company only has to reimburse the costs for a taxi up to a maximum of 80 euros if the planned arrival at the destination is between midnight and 5 a.m. and travelers arrive by train at least 60 minutes later. The same applies if the last scheduled train of the day is canceled and travelers do not reach their destination any other way by midnight. "
Long-distance traffic:
"If it becomes apparent that passengers will only reach their destination with local trains with a delay of more than 20 minutes, they can take a long-distance train at no extra charge," explains Kaschel, according to the dpa. However, before passengers can board the long-distance train, they must purchase a valid ticket. “You can have the railway company reimburse you for the extra work that arises later. However, this right only exists if the original route is not more than 50 kilometers long or does not take longer than an hour. This regulation does not apply to a significantly reduced ticket, for example a national or semester ticket. "
Own car:
Costs for journeys by private car, however, are not reimbursed by the railway, as the consumer advice center informs. But: "Anyone who gets stranded at a train station and who cannot get to their destination by other means, the company has to find accommodation and organize the way there and back to the train station the next day"; it says on
verbrauchzentrale.de
. The consumer advocates advise: “If you want to book a hotel room in the city on your own, make sure you get confirmation beforehand that the railway company will not operate any more journeys that day and cannot help you with accommodation for the night. Then keep the hotel bills for submitting them later. "
The strike is expected to end on Friday night.
If you don't have to, you shouldn't take the train until then, advises Deutsche Bahn.
Tens of thousands of commuters really have to improvise these days to get to their destination at all.
Also interesting
: you want money back from the tax office?
Then don't make this mistake.
These seven tips will save you a lot of money in everyday life
These seven tips will save you a lot of money in everyday life
