Consumer advocates win in court against Berliner Sparkasse

Consumer advocates win in court against Berliner Sparkasse

Berliner Sparkasse has suffered a defeat in court after consumer advocates filed a lawsuit over unannounced cost increases. The court ruled in favor of the customers, who now have the opportunity to request a refund. According to the decision of the Berlin Chamber of Commerce, Berliner Sparkasse was not allowed to introduce new fees or increase existing ones without the express consent of customers.

Berliner Sparkasse had increased costs several times without obtaining customer consent, which led to dissatisfaction. A specific situation was the conversion of the “Comfort current account” to “Giro flat rate” at the end of 2016, accompanied by a unilateral increase in the monthly fee by three euros. Around 1,200 customers joined a class action lawsuit because the savings bank refused to repay the amounts wrongly collected. Although the court determined that the claims were time-barred, consumer advocates are considering revising the ruling.

The judge's ruling could also impact customers of other banks that have implemented similar unannounced fee increases. Banks such as Postbank, Deutsche Bank, ING Diba, Commerzbank and Sparkasse Ulm could be affected. Customers are advised to review their account statements since January 2018 to determine whether any unauthorized fee increases have occurred. The consumer advice center provides sample letters to claim back the overpaid money from the banks. Niels Nauhauser from the Baden-Württemberg consumer advice center emphasized that the unauthorized fee increases in recent years were ineffective and that customers had the right to demand a refund.