Send in false registrations, pay with cash, request expert opinions.
Countless guerrilla tactics to annoy the GEZ are circulating on the internet.
Those are the controversial tricks.
Hamburg – actually everyone has to pay it – the GEZ or broadcasting fee of 18.36 euros per month.
But not everyone sees it.
For many consumers, it's just a nuisance.
And some have even made it their task to outsmart the "system" - with controversial "attrition" games by radical non-contributors.
This is
reported by 24hamburg.de
.
Editor's note:
At this point it should be mentioned that all the "tips and tricks" mentioned against the contribution service of ARD, ZDF and Deutschlandradio are not recommended and often move in a gray area.
Frequent goal of the refusers: simply to create more work for the contribution service and cause costs.
Bypass GEZ: Which controversial tricks refusers use
Because it creates a huge administrative burden, some GEZ protesters pay their contribution in cash as a matter of principle.
As the Federal Administrative Court in Leipzig decided last year, the "exclusion without exception" of cash payments in the contribution statute violates European law and the principle of equal treatment in the Basic Law.
However, this only works for those who can prove that they cannot open a current account.
+
Certain people can be exempted from the GEZ or broadcasting fee.
(24hamburg.de assembly)
© IMAGO Images/Aviation Stock & IMAGO Images/Panthermedia
Other consumers choose a different path, flood the responsible institutes with inquiries and demand that they be advised.
The crude idea behind it: Invoke the obligation to provide advice under Section 25 of the Administrative Procedures Act (VwVfG) – and paralyze the broadcasters with as many stupid questions as possible.
What is the broadcasting contribution, which is still called GEZ?
The public service broadcasters in Germany are financed with the license fee.
These include ARD, ZDF and Deutschlandradio.
Compared to ZDF and Deutschlandradio, ARD has nine state broadcasters that produce various TV and radio programs.
The broadcasting fee has been due since 2013 and came from the fee collection center of the public broadcasters (GEZ fee).
The GEZ was responsible for collecting the license fee
until the end of 2012
.
It has been the contribution service for ARD, ZDF and Deutschlandradio since 2013.
GEZ refusers rely on free self-disclosure from the contribution service for more administrative work
Once a year, contributors can see free of charge what data the GEZ has stored about them.
You guess what contributors do: just that.
Quite a few consumers consider the amount of the broadcasting fee to be inappropriate - and have been hoping for years and days for a ruling from constitutional judges that at some point will declare the broadcasting fees inadmissible.
Their tactic: They pay the radio license fee, but note that the payment is only made subject to a corresponding reclaim.
Action by GEZ refusers: Request an opinion from the Ministry of Finance by post
In 2014, the scientific advisory board of the Federal Ministry of Finance drew up an expert opinion on the subject of "Public law media - task and financing" and concluded that the fee should actually be abolished.
"Trick" used by the GEZ opponents: Request the 33-page report by post and annoy the contribution service with effort and postage costs.
Opponents of the contribution are also encouraged to wait as long as possible before making the payment.
Since there are no default fees, only a problem for the GEZ, so the reasoning.
The fact is: The payment period for the broadcasting fee is four weeks, regardless of whether you receive mail from the GEZ or not.
If an amount in arrears is not paid six weeks after the due date, the contribution service will send out a notice of assessment.
And then it gets expensive...
Sending false registration data in bulk – this is how refusers use tricks for GEZ fees
Contribution saboteurs also do not stop at flooding the service with fake online registrations from fictitious contributors, with made-up names or names fished from the telephone book and random addresses in order to keep the servers busy with unsolvable tasks.
Pay monthly subscriptions: Those who refuse to do so rely on the high administrative costs of the ARD, ZDF and Deutschlandradio subscription service
If the GEZ broadcasting fee is paid monthly instead of quarterly, this causes more administrative work and is therefore not welcomed by the fee service of ARD, ZDF and Deutschlandradio.
However, no legal action can be taken against this.
In principle, there is the possibility in Germany to lodge an objection to the broadcasting fees.
But anyone who refuses to pay the GEZ contribution or does not pay for a long time can even end up in prison.
You should therefore carefully weigh up whether it is really worth the risk or the effort.
Editor's note: The content of the article was adjusted in several places on February 28, 2023. Among other things, it was made clear in language that the methods mentioned make life difficult for the fee collection center and are not recommended.
List of rubrics: © IMAGO Images/Aviation Stock & IMAGO Images/Panthermedia
