Scams and payment recovery

A convincing logo, fluent German or a high search position does not prove that a seller, bank message or public-service website is genuine. Check the organisation independently before sending money or identity documents.

Before buying from an unfamiliar shop

Check the full address, operator details and independent reviews. Compare the actual domain with the organisation’s known site; copied legal details and trust seals are not proof. Use the free Fakeshop-Finder as an extra check, not a guarantee. Leave if advertised payment choices disappear at checkout and only advance bank transfer remains. A marketplace listing does not make every seller trustworthy, and private sales do not always give the same rights as purchases from a business.

Bank, parcel and authority messages

Open the known app or type the official website yourself instead of following a message’s login or payment link. Check unexpected requests using an independently obtained contact number. Never disclose a password, PIN or TAN to a caller, or approve a payment you do not understand. Urgency and threats of immediate account closure are reasons to pause and verify.

If you entered credentials on a fake page, contact the bank or account provider immediately, block affected access or cards as appropriate, and change compromised and reused passwords through the real service. Keep messages and transaction details; report suspected crime to the police. Use the police’s linked online-banking checklist for further steps.

If money has already gone

Tell the bank or payment provider immediately, accurately describing whether you authorised the payment or someone used your account without permission. Preserve the advertisement URL/screenshots, order, chats, emails, invoice and payment record. A police report does not itself recover money or preserve a provider’s dispute deadline.

• Bank transfer: request an immediate stop or recall. An executed transfer you authorised cannot simply be reversed; a recall attempt does not guarantee recovery.
• SEPA Core direct debit: for an authorised debit, section 675x(2) gives a right to demand a refund without giving reasons, and section 675x(4) requires that demand within eight weeks of the debit. For an unauthorised debit, section 676b(1) and (2) require you to notify the bank without undue delay (unverzüglich) after you notice it. Thirteen months after the debit is the outer cut-off, not a period you may wait out. That cut-off runs from the debit date only if the bank has given you the transaction information section 676b(2) requires; otherwise it starts when the bank gives that information. Returning a debit does not cancel a valid underlying debt.
• Card: ask the issuing bank about chargeback, its deadline and required documents. Eligibility depends on the circumstances and scheme rules.
• Payment service: open the formal dispute/buyer-protection process before its deadline and check exclusions. Sending money as a private transfer may remove purchase protection.

Unauthorised account use has separate statutory refund rules, including section 675u. The eight-week demand under section 675x(2) and (4) is the no-questions refund for an authorised SEPA core direct debit. The unverzüglich notice in section 676b, with the thirteen-month outer cut-off, is the clock for an unauthorised debit. Whether authorisation or customer liability is disputed needs individual assessment; a transfer you approved after deception is not automatically treated the same way. If the bank refuses, request written reasons and obtain advice promptly.

Official-looking paid services

Reach a public service through the authority’s own website, then check the operator, service description and total price before submitting. An intermediary may sell assistance or only an information pack. Private assistance is not automatically fraud; its fee is separate from any real authority fee. The broadcasting service provides its own forms directly. The police-clearance and SCHUFA guides give their specific official routes and fee distinctions. If you already ordered unwanted assistance, retain the terms and seek withdrawal/refund advice promptly; do not assume a refund is automatic.

Locked out: agree the whole price first

Save a verified local locksmith’s number before an emergency. Ask where the technician comes from, describe whether the door is just shut or locked, and agree a complete price including travel and time surcharges before dispatch. Limit the work ordered; a whole new lock may be unnecessary. Request an itemised invoice and keep the quote and receipt. There is no single national price for all times and jobs.

For a disputed bill, seek consumer or legal advice. If a technician threatens or coerces you, for example by threatening to lock you out again, call 110. A normal price disagreement belongs with advice services, not the emergency line.