Tickets please!
You are probably familiar with this from public transport. We all develop a personal strategy to deal with this situation, whether it means being especially nice or not letting it show that the inspection is getting on your nerves, while at the same time making it as clear as possible that you would rather be doing something else.
Forgetfulness and bad luck won’t let you off paying a fine!
Everybody forgets their ticket at home at some point or loses their wallet or has it stolen. In such cases, you are unable to present a valid ticket during the inspection. However, if afterwards you can produce a ticket valid for the time of the inspection and present it within a certain period, the respective transport companies usually do not charge the higher fine (‘erhöhtes Beförderungsentgelt’, EBE for short), but only an additional service fee. This is only possible with a personalized ticket. If you feel they want you to pay a fine that is not in line with the conditions of carriage, please contact us for advice.
Through personal experience (and also because of some complaints), it has come to our attention that some ticket inspectors want students to pay the EBE even if these students hold a valid student ID. We do not know why this is. Regardless, no charge needs to be paid in such cases.
Fellow students! If you believe you received an unjustified EBE, please contact us. The best way to do so is by email or by calling during our office hours so that we can arrange an appointment. If you can produce a valid ticket at the time of the inspection, you are not obliged to pay service fees, whatever the ticket inspector might tell you!