Rail passenger rights: Refunds for delays and cancellations

Barcelona, Rome, Brussels or Paris? Whether you are travelling by train in the EU or in Germany: Thanks to Europe, you have rights if your train is cancelled or delayed, or if your checked baggage is damaged or lost. 

We tell you what rights you have and how you can enforce them.

• Free food and drink
  If you are delayed for more than 60 minutes, the railway company must provide you with food and drink. (if available on the train or at the station, or if it can be reasonably provided)

• Free rebooking
  You can be rebooked on a later train free of charge. This also applies if you have not yet left but the delay is foreseeable.
  
  From 7th June 2023
  The railway company can rebook you on the train operated by another railway company.
  
  You can also organise the rest of your journey yourself and charge the railway company for the cost. However, this only applies if the railway company agrees to this or if the railway company has not rebooked you on another train within 100 minutes after the scheduled departure time. In this case, you can continue your journey by coach for example.

• Compensation for rebooking and delays 
  If the train you to which you have been rebooked arrives at its destination between 60 and 119 minutes too late, you can claim 25 % of the ticket price as compensation. If the delay is 120 minutes or more, you can claim 50 % of the ticket price.
   

  From 7th June 2023
  The railway company will not have to pay compensation if the cancellation of the train is due to force majeure,e.g. extreme weather conditions, the fault of the passenger, the behaviour of a third party, e.g. people trespassing on the tracks or acts of sabotage.

  However, the railway company can only claim for this if the incident was unavoidable despite all its efforts.
  
  Strikes by the staff cannot be considered as force majeure.

• If the journey has become pointless: refund of the fare
  If it makes no sense for you to start the journey because you will miss an important appointment due to the delay for example, you can claim the full fare back from the railway company. This also applies if you have not yet left but the delay is foreseeable.

• If you cancel your journey: refund of the unused part of the journey
  If you do not want to continue your journey because of the delay, you can interrupt it and ask to be taken back to the station of departure free of charge. You will then be reimbursed for the part of the journey not made.

• If is not possible to continue your journey: overnight stay in a hotel at the expense of the railway company

  If you are unable to continue your journey because of the delay, the railway company must pay for an overnight stay in a hotel, as well as for the journey to the hotel and later back to the station. Condition: This can be arranged by the railway company.

  From 7 June 2023
  If delays are caused by force majeure, such as extreme weather conditions, the behaviour of a third party, e.g. sabotage or people on the tracks, and an overnight stay in a hotel is necessary, the railway may limit it to three nights.

• Free rebooking
  You have the option of being rebooked on a later train.
  
  From 7th June 2023
  The railway company can rebook you on a train of another railway company.
  
  You can also arrange the rest of your journey yourself and charge the railway company for the cost. However, this only applies if the railway company agrees or if the railway company has not rebooked you on another train within 100 minutes of the scheduled departure time. In this case, you can continue your journey by coach for example.

• Reimbursement of the fare
  You have the right to demand a full refund if you would arrive at your destination station more than 60 minutes after the scheduled arrival time on an alternative connection.

• Free food and drink
  If your train is cancelled and you have to travel on another train and there is a delay of more than 60 minutes, the railway company must provide you with food and drink (if available on the train or at the station, or if it can be provided at a reasonable cost).

• Compensation
  If the train on which you have been rebooked on arrives at your destination between 60 and 119 minutes late, you can claim 25 % of the ticket price as compensation. For delays of 120 minutes or more, you can claim 50 %.
  
  From 7th June 2023 
  The railway company does not have to pay compensation if the cancellation of the train is due to force majeure, e.g. extreme weather conditions, acts of third parties, e.g. people trespassing on the tracks or acts of sabotage. However, the railway company can only claim this if the incident was unavoidable despite all its efforts. Consequently, strikes by the railway company staff cannot constitute force majeure.

• Free return transport to the station of departure
  If the train connection is cancelled, you can be brought back to the starting station free of charge if the delay is more than 60 minutes, and you can claim back the full fare if the train journey has become pointless for you.

• If the onward journey is not possible: an overnight stay in a hotel at the expense of the railway company
  If you are blocked from continuing your journey due to the delay, the railway company must pay for an overnight stay in a hotel as well as the round trip to the hotel, if this can be organised by the railway company.
  
  From 7 June 2023
  If delays are caused by force majeure, such as extreme weather conditions, sabotage or people on rails, and an overnight hotel stay is required, the railway may limit this to three nights.

When long-distance passenger rail services and local passenger rail services are operated by the same railway company, the railway company must offer a 'through' ticket. This is considered to be a single transport contract. 

Passenger rights only apply per booking. The advantage of a through ticket: For longer journeys with several changes, passenger rights apply for the whole route. On the other hand, if you had bought individual tickets and missed your connection, you could only claim your rights for the part of the journey for which you would have had the individual ticket.

If the through ticket was bought from a railway company and the connection is missed, the railway company is liable for reimbursement, re-routing, compensation and assistance, as usual.

If the through ticket was bought from a ticket seller or tour operator and the connection is missed, the ticket seller or tour operator must refund the full ticket price. In addition, they must pay 75% of the ticket price as compensation.

Rights on local trains: train journeys within Germany

Rail passenger rights are uniformly regulated in the EU and therefore also apply in Germany. In addition, you are entitled to further rights in local transport.

• Predictable delay of 20 minutes
  If you are expected to arrive at your destination with a 20-minute delay, you can also use another higher-class train that does not require a reservation.
  Warning: This does not apply to passengers who have purchased a budget price rail ticket

• Expected delay at destination station of at least 60 minutes: Railway pays taxi costs
  If the scheduled arrival time is between 0 o'clock and 5 o'clock, you can take a taxi or another means of transport. Up to 120 euros can be refunded by the railway. The condition is that the railway company does not provide an alternative means of transport for the onward journey. This also applies if the last train connection of the day was booked, the train is cancelled and the destination is not reached before 0 o'clock.

For Deutsche Bahn AG season tickets, e.g. the monthly ticket or the annual ticket, different rules apply.

Compensation is only paid for delays of at least 60 minutes.

Once you have checked in your luggage, the railway company is liable for damage, delay or loss.

This is why you should check your luggage immediately when you receive it and have any damage confirmed by the railway company.

You can find detailed information on our website Luggage service and luggage shipping.