Train delay rights in Germany

If your DB train was late, you're probably owed money. That's not a marketing line — it's the law. Under Germany's Fahrgastrechte rules, Deutsche Bahn must pay back a portion of your ticket price for delays of 60 minutes or more. Most passengers never claim it. DB is fine with that.

The process is designed to be just annoying enough that most people give up. You need your booking reference, the delay duration, and to fill out a form at bahn.de/fahrgastrechte (or queue at a service point, or send it by post). Then you wait up to 30 days. Sometimes DB offers a Gutschein instead of money. You're allowed to refuse and ask for a bank transfer — but they won't volunteer that information.

If DB rejects your claim or doesn't respond, you can escalate for free to the söp — Germany's independent transport ombudsman. This step resolves many cases DB had already turned down. Almost nobody knows it exists.

TrainOwed handles the claim for you: right rules for your specific journey, paperwork submitted, voucher pushback included. No win, no fee.