Vienna Lines Must Pay: Students Receive Difference for Semester Ticket Back

Students without a primary residence in Vienna had to pay 150 euros for the semester ticket for years – twice as much as those with a primary residence in the federal capital. This pricing has now been definitively classified as unlawful.

Consistent Legal Ruling: Wiener Linien Lose in Semester Ticket Dispute

As the platform ticketerstattung.at announced on Wednesday, several panels of the Regional Court for Civil Matters in Vienna have legally decided that such unequal treatment is inadmissible.

In total, there are now seven decisions from five panels – all in favor of the students, not a single case was decided in favor of the Wiener Linien. Thus, a "consistent legal ruling" applies at the Regional Court in Vienna, and an appeal to the Supreme Court is legally not possible.

As recently as spring 2025, a panel of the Regional Court had made a decision in favor of the Wiener Linien – however, in a case that did not concern ticketerstattung.at. Now, the same panel has also ruled in a new decision (63 R 66/25h) in favor of the platform and thus the students.

Million Dollar Claims: Students Are Entitled to Refunds

For ticketerstattung.at, the legal situation is therefore clear. The refund of the price difference must be granted to the affected students – including many EU citizens – without a doubt.

Despite the clear legal situation, according to ticketerstattung.at, Wiener Linien recently tried to withdraw from the proceedings through settlement offers with high discounts. "With the now uniform case law, this train has proverbially left the station," said the platform.

It now appeals to Wiener Linien to follow the court decisions, settle all claims, and avoid further processes. It concerns claims worth millions – further legal disputes would incur additional costs, which would ultimately have to be borne by the public sector.

Wiener Linien has not yet commented on the current development.

(Red)

This article has been automatically translated, read the original article here.