“Good day! Tickets please.”
Most of you have probably heard this sentence many times on public transport in Berlin. Usually it’s over quickly. Show your ticket, quick nod, and move on. Sometimes, however, things go a bit differently.
Can’t show your ticket? It happens.
It can happen that you are unable to show your ticket during an inspection. Maybe your phone battery is dead, maybe there was a problem displaying the ticket, or you simply didn’t have it ready at that moment. In such cases, transport companies often issue what is called an increased fare charge.
If you have a valid Germany Semester Ticket, you can usually resolve this afterwards.
What you should do
Contact the S Bahn Berlin student support through their contact form and describe your situation there.
Student support will then issue a confirmation of your Germany Semester Ticket. You can submit this confirmation online to the relevant authority. In most cases, the increased fare charge will then be reduced to the 7 euro processing fee.
If you have already paid the increased fare charge, you can contact student support again. For the refund, S Bahn will need your IBAN as well as proof of payment for the semester ticket fees for the corresponding semester.
Our tip: Send all required information and documents as completely as possible.