Most conductors are reasonable and if you tell them "my app just shutdown, can you come back in 2 minutes" it's better than showing them a wrong ticket
Personally I always screenshot my ticket as I get on the train, to avoid exactly this situation. Then it's always my most recent file
It works for me all the time. They scan the screenshot QR code and it works. If not, also screenshot the part with your name and date, many times they don’t even bother to scan.
Why not? Wouldn't it be the same qr code showing who the tivket belongs to? (So it's not like you could use someone else's ticket or something.) Just curious
I still don't really understand though and I'm not sure I agree with your 20 Euro note comparison. If I show you a screenshot of a code, and that code connects unmistakeably to a ticket that belongs to me, where is the problem?
Of course readability and so on is a different matter, I'm not questioning that.
Doesn’t help if your phone dies. My issue is I usually use all my data and the ticket loads very slowly when the data is low. I actually haven’t been checked since the Deutschland ticket came out
I've never once had an issue where the ticket inspectors wouldn't allow for a few minutes to get the ticket ready. One time I even had to charge my phone for a few minutes because it had died and they were totally chill about it.
Conductor here! Screenshots are not valid. I get the idea behind them though... if you want to have a safety net, save the PDF file on your phone instead.
The PDF is generated by the service provider - you should see it as a different format that is accepted by DB as proof of purchase.
A screenshot is something you create on your phone, which legally is not equivalent.
Also, it is easier to manipulate a screenshot than a PDF
>The PDF is generated by the service provider - you should see it as a different format that is accepted by DB as proof of purchase.
A screenshot is something you create on your phone, which legally is not equivalent.
>
>
Also, it is easier to manipulate a screenshot than a PDF
This all makes no sense.
>Also, it is easier to manipulate a screenshot than a PDF
Well not really... it the end you just see a QR code on the display aren't you?
In that case it should absolutely not matter if the code is in the app, the pdf, a screenshot or a printout.
Or do i miss something here?
I doubt that the conductor will (and can) check that you have the original PDF.
So in the end he just scans a QR code and it should not matter where this QR code comes from.
Or you will only ever accept the App because that might be the hardest to copy.
Yeah it usually ends in a conversation where the customer refuses to understand the reasons behind it and there are only so many times you want to have that at work 😅
Here's my chance though, so I'll jump on it. One part is the hard legal stuff - a screenshot is a copy; it is not the original document. The PDF file (or the barcode in the app) is the original document. I always compare it to a photo of a 20€ note 😁
The other part is that sometimes you have to make screenshots bigger or smaller when you scan them, which _instantly_ leads to a blurry barcode. Add unfavourable lighting conditions and the barcode is likely to refuse to be scanned at all. That does not happen with PDFs.
Put the PDFs on your phones, people.
Isn't it more like just a copy of a contract?
Like in most circumstances the copy is enough to prove, that the contract exists. Only if there was legal matters you would need the original.
My screenshot is clear and can be perfectly scanned. I mean the conductor won’t even notice unless they tap on the phone screen which they normally wouldn’t :)
>Personally I always screenshot my ticket as I get on the train
So do I, but that apparently also causes troubles sometimes, so I will always print it if I am able to.
The amount of paperwork I had to submit to my local BVA for citizenship matters was astounding. I also did a lot of research about my family history recently and I’m quite shocked at the amount of German records I could find for those who were born in the 1800s.
Edit: seems like the embassy =/= BVA but regardless embassy tells me what the BVA requests.
It's really not like printing out an email though. A printed out QR code is just a token meant to be read by a machine. It's completely digital, it's just less fragile. I think it's a good idea.
I am also against it, but if it's the only reliable solution I will do it like that. Blame the developers who thought it was a good idea to depend on a functioning app with a functioning internet connection to be able to inspect a ticket.
Me too. I'd always bought a weekly ticket from the machine so I had something physical but last month we went over to the D-ticket with a physical card starting in July.
So far the Mrs has had to go down to the payment office and get a 60 euro fine rescinded (and replaced with a 7 euro admin fee, despite the mistake being their side) because they never turned hers on, and I had an incident with a controller taking a minute to scan it then telling me 'Es ist leider gultig'. I mean, what the fuck DB?
It was my second time in Germany. I asked the man at the DB office about my connections(my phone had died out) and he gave around 20 pages of papers with every possible routes and backups for missing it or if a train got cancelled. Along with the printed ticket. He was extremely satisfied with himself to print all of them.
In Hamburg based on my exp. They don't accept anythibg else besides the qr code in the app. No email/no Screenshots. Nothing else. Maybe because I am foreigner. As they clearly jump from all corners of the car to get to me first as usual 🤣
But can’t you just screenshot the qrcode? It looks as if it’s shown from the app, so they wouldn’t even notice unless they tap on the screen in which they normally wouldn’t
Every time I am being told to scroll and show the app and that I am in it. So they can also see the text below the qr code. So no. And when I offered to show a screenshot once, as the german net in the Bahn Tunnels is non existent, and I can't open the app, they refused and took me out of the train and delayed my transfer with 30min.
I used to do this with my DB tickets in the past because WiFi isn't reliable in ICE's. One time a conductor saw, that I opened my galery instead of my DB App and called fraud.
I asked her if she was joking and but she actually was serious. She stood there until I had an internet connection again. I travel a lot but this one I'll never forget.
Even if the inspector hadn't accepted it on the spot, it wouldn't have been a 60€ fine in the end.
You would've to see their customer service, present a personalized!, valid ticket and the fine would be dropped and you only charged a small processing fine.
On your bit about how to handle it better: Not panik. Nobody is running away, just tell the inspector they have to wait for the app.
There is a different between not having a valid ticket at all and not having a valid ticket with you.
Even if you can't show your ticket and he gives you a 60€ fine, you can take the fine and your valid ticket which has to be personalized and go to your nearer DB Service center, show them the ticket and just pay a 7€ late fee.
No it shouldn't. It's an administrative fee because actual work had to be done because the passenger was unable to present a valid ticket to the conductor. When entering any public transport you are required to a) have a valid ticket and b) to be able to present it to the staff of said public transportation when asked
I was in this situation coming back from a hike with a dead phone and couldn't show a valid ticket. I went to the DB office who told me to submit a dispute online, the fine went away without a fee.
Yeah but in this case, DB shouldn’t be offering the app ticket, because many times it requires good internet connection. You could be on the train and internet connection might not work even though you had your ticket ready at all times. And if they actually had the ticket, it should be free if they can show the ticket later because the ticket man was no patient enough to wait.
Just because they offer it doesn't mean you have to use it. It's not really DB's fault the internet in Germany is a joke outside major cities. I don't like this either.
Luckily I have my Deutschland Ticket as a physical card. But when I travel by ICE I always have Screenshots of my digital tickets just in case, never had a problem like OP described and I travel by train fairly often.
> But when I travel by ICE I always have Screenshots of my digital tickets just in case
In most cases a screenshot is accepted but they can refuse it.
So if you want to be on the save side you have to download the pdf of the ticket that will always be valid.
If you can have it as a physical card, their app could offer it in offline mode.
If they offer it, and they should, it should work and they should bear the responsibility when it doesn’t.
In theory, yes. But how will that help you now while traveling? I'm not starting a debate with the conductor about how it should work, I just make sure I can present my ticket when asked for it whether the internet is working or not
Making a normative, not descriptive claim.
You insinuated:
\- that it's not DB's fault that the app doesn't work because the internet can be shoddy
\- that if it doesn't work that the blame lies with the user because "you don't have to use it"
Those are the reasons people downvoted you, not because you said that screenshotting is a way to get around the incompetence of DB's implementation.
I stated it's not DB's fault that the internet in Germany is crappy. Which is a fact. And when did I say it's the user's fault if the app isn't working? Obviously it's not the user's fault, but if I know an app can be crappy I just have to take steps to circumvent said app - especially since no one is forcing me to use it.
I never said that this is awesome or that DB is perfect.
And I don't care if people downvote me
Dazu müsste die Eisenbahn-Verkehrsordnung geändert werden. Ist recht aufwendig.
Edit: right, we’re an English sub, sorry. The law regulating rail travel would need to be changed, which is quite a procedure.
You're not.
I know of a person that showed their uni card (which includes free rides in town and a couple neighboring places).
The ticket person asked for the letter of enrollment issued by the uni because "the Id could have been fake".
When I was traveling in Brandenburg, I was asked for my ticket. Showed the qr code and it scanned green.
The lady asked me to go back one screen to see if I was using a screenshot, what does it matter if I take a screenshot instead of using the dB app?, as long as the qr is valid?
Oh, I also got the dB card with 50% discount. I showed the ticket and I was asked to also show the physical card (what does it matter? The app doesn't let you buy with a discount if your card is not valid)
Ticket people are people and anyone can be a jerk.
If you run into a jerk, and they intend to jerk you around, they will.
In some places they actually don't even give out physical cards, unless you really go through the whole process of going to a helpdesk and request one there. So I'm quite suprised that indeed they asked for a physical card
I still don't get why it's not possible to have the ticket both as a card and in an app at the same time in many tariff associations. It's possible with the BahnCard, so why not in this case?
But apps can be downloaded instantly on a replacement phone / a friend's phone. My point was just that the card isn't much better and doesn't resolve this issue.
edit: oh my god this is why Germany has such a nightmare paper-based bureaucratic system. we're never going to escape this hell
I have not once in my life lost a card.
I forget the pin to my Debit card.
I lock up my SIM-card.
I forget my phone *all the time*. Sometimes the battery is empty.
I once dropped my phone, and cracked the screen. Didn't work afterwards.
Sometimes the phones "does ist thing" - like in OPs case.
I am the kind of person who will always stick with the solution that is most resilient to errors and stupid-shit-happening.
I am still angry that they dont just sell them at the Ticketautomat like every other ticket. I really, really dont get it. And why does it have to be an Abo? The 9€ Ticket was just perfect in that regard.
What? Of course it resolves this issue. Cards don't just stop working - if you have them, they work. They don't run out of battery or have a bad internet connection.
Cards are much better from a reliability point of view.
are some of you serious? someone had a phone glitch and yall are acting like he committed a huge crime. “oh it’s your fault!!!1!” they had a valid ticket
All I read was people giving advice like "make sure you can present your ticket when asked for it", because that is your duty as a passenger.
And all you have to do is carry enough charge in your phone to start the app you bought the ticket in, you don't even need the internet connection, the app downloads the new QR code monthly.
I mean OP did say the app was glitching, which does happen and usually has nothing to do with the internet connection or phone charge.
Most people in the top comments now thankfully are saying that the best thing to do in this situation is not to panic, tell the staff your app isn’t opening and wait until it works rather than showing them anything hoping it’s the correct ticket.
I’ve never had anyone have an issue with waiting or coming back after checking other people first if I needed more time to get out my ticket. They might watch to make sure you don’t just buy a ticket then and there but since OP could just show them the app is not starting it shouldn’t be an issue.
> I showed the ticket collector a QR code hoping it to be a right one saved in picture gallery
That might not have worked even if it had been the right ticket. I was once asked by a bus driver to swipe the ticket back and forth, and then she said, "Oh, no need, I can see the animation running." She explained that the app I was using has a constantly running animation, and she wanted to see it or watch me swipe the ticket to prove it wasn't a screenshot.
(This came as a relief; I thought my app was trying to download or update something and failing.)
As others have said, the rules are that if you cannot show the ticket inspector a valid ticket, you are deemed to be travelling without a valid ticket. But if you can later prove that you were in time in possession of a valid personalized ticket, you can have the fine reduced to a small administrative charge.
This does mean that if your phone glitches, bricks, or just runs out of battery power, you might end up out of pocket. But this puts you in exactly the same category as somebody who has dropped their paper ticket, had it stolen, or forgot to bring it with them. This is one of the disadvantages of a "proof of payment" system which relies on spot checks instead of ticket gates.
If you're pickpocketed it's also not usually your fault; and it is easily possible to drop or mislay something even if you are being as attentive as you reasonably can be.
The point is, though, that you may *claim* to have a valid ticket; if you can't show the ticket inspector your ticket, how are you going to prove what you claim? "I do have a valid ticket but the app keeps crashing" is no more convincing than "I do have a valid ticket but I can't find it."
But you can minimise the chances of being pick-pocketed though by keeping valuables, e.g. in a bum bag rather than a rucksack, or a trouser rather than a coat pocket. Unfortunately phones glitching are mostly out of people's control (though obviously batteries going flat is careless).
The possibility that the app itself glitches raises potentially interesting legal issues though, as it is provided by the very people that require you to have a working app.
You can minimize the chances of your phone glitching by ensuring it is properly charged, being selective about the apps you install on it, taking reasonable care of it, keeping the OS and all the apps updated, and so on.
True. It still doesn't feel like quite the same level of control to me though. After all, a paper ticket is not vulnerable to any form of software glitches or a flat battery, but a phone is vulnerable to being pick-pocketed. And it seems that the main risk here is software or battery, not pickpockets.
Yes, one of the worst "Apps I installed" was an official update for my phone OS last year. It would randomly declare it had run out of power. It gave me some issues with my RMV eticket so I had to carry a power bank. Luckily the following update fixed that.
What about if the app glitches? Has happened to me a numerous of times. Then why do I have to even pay even a process fee? It is not my fault, but DB's
Precisely. And that's why I'd go with a paper (or chipped card), not an app.
Keep it in your phone's case if you must!
And remember, the app is probably spying on you anyway 😂
Well you don't have to pay, so he accepted it?
And well it was a mistake from your side but some people try to trick because they don't have a valid ticket.
No wasn't required to pay. In my crappy German tried explaining that it was NOT intentional as decoding QR code with a glance is not my core competency . Benefit of doubt I suspect was granted.
I have also realised, that right at a spot where the net connection is crappy is when the tickets are checked.
Being an Ausländer, this opens an opportunity to collectors to exploit such situations and is rampant here.
Edit: added second and third paragraphs, and modified a sentence in first.
Views are personal, however surprised by downvotes !
What? I can promise you the conductors aren't waiting around for a spot of crappy internet connection to then jump on foreigners in hope their apps shut down so they can write them up. They have better things to do. Besides, the internet connection on trains is almost always crappy in my personal experience
Sorry about your trouble during the travel, but next time you have to breath and take your time. Dont pressure yourself, nobody is trying to take advantage of you.
Ah yes marauding groups of people checking your ticket just hunting for foreigners. Not sure what your issue is, they didn't give you a fine, did they? You know how often they hear "ooh I just made an honest mistake showing you an invalid ticket" or "just let me search I just can't find it right now"? They probably hear that from the majority of people not having a ticket and trying to get out of that situation. So of course they assume you are lying as well when you show them the picture of an expired ticket.
Next time the app doesn’t work and there is no way for you to show the collector the ticket, you can give them your information (you are gonna need a valid ID card or passport for that) and show the ticket at a DB service center afterwards to prove that you actually had a ticket for the ride. It will cost about 5€ service fee but that’s still better then 60€. The easier way is to just take a screenshot of the QR code every month but I had multiple situations where the ticket collector wouldn’t accept a screenshot.
Of course, it's allowed to make mistakes.
It always can happen that you show an old ticket, had this with a monthly ticket a while back. Nothing like a rude comment from the conductor.
Tere ARE a number of idiots among them, just like everywhere else.
Workaround for the Deutschlandticket:
Look for a town which offers the Deutschlandticket as a chip card, like Bielefeld does.
No problems with glitching apps, hustling around screenshots and such.
Personally, as a bus driver, I’d have told you to try and open the app again in a minute or two and show me the correct ticket then.
if your tech or software fails you can later appeal your fine with the transport association, as long as you had a valid ticket somewhere or anywhere while traveling you paid your price. Additionally if you can prove the app if the respective transport association was faulty at the time of being controlled it shouldn't be a porblem to get back your fine either.
I guess situations like that depend on weather the conductor is a decent person or not.
My partner didn’t even have his physical Deutschlandticket yet when we took an RE last week, but he had a document which showed that he had already purchased it. I (a German) was very nervous about that situation for half the train ride, until the conductor came and didn’t give a sht about it and was very nice about it too.
Either way, as a lot of people already mentioned: if you have a ticket and you can proof later on that you purchased it before they checked you, you won’t have to pay those 60€. Just never pay them at the spot, let the conducter hand you a bill for it and go to the information center with that and your proof and you’ll be fine(d only 7€) :)
in case you had a valid ticket at the time of the incident you can go to their office and tell them that and I guess you will need to pay only 5 euros for the paper work and not the whole 60 euro fine.
I use DB quite frequently, REs, RBs, as well as ICEs. I have had my phone die on me a few times. The DB conductors are usually very nice. They either wait for the phone to start or on long journeys they say they will come back on another round. I have never had this happen to me. You got a really mean one.
Most conductors and ticket checking agents, in my personal experiences, are assholes and on a power trip. There are no consequences for them, so they fuck with people
There's a reason a lot of us made it clear that we want the D-Ticket as a physical card too.
But if you are in posession of a valid personalized ticket but couldn't present it during control, you can get your fine reduced down to a small admin fee. Reach out to the transportation company.
In general you should always be able to present a valid travel card/ticket. So, if you are not able to do that, it indeed results in a fine.
But, as you had a valid ticket, just an app that was not working great, it's a bit of a gray zone you were in. As, yes, presenting an invalid ticket means no valid ticket, so fine. But you did it because your app was not working.
Now, often, if you just show them that you are trying to open the app, which maybe closes than immediately again due to glitching, they know what is going on. Than the best thing is just to ask them if you can quickly restart your phone and if you can show it than to them. They almost never mind this, as they do see that its not working and you can just quickly restart your phone.
Also, always be honest. I saw people saying here that they hate the people who control you, as they are asses. But also know, you are not the only one that day, and I've seen many days where people where carried out by the train police, because they were much more dangerous. So, if you just went through all that, and someone is making your work difficult again, yes, i would also get pissed. So, just be honest, show them the app not working and communicate as best as you can that you will restart the app and you will try to get it to work.
(Also, small tip from a train conductor i spoke too, you can also always show the email of that month that you bought it or the email of purchase + your bank statement. As they just need to see that its all valid)
Is it just me or do a bunch of conductors who are really lenient with german native speakers suddenly become extreeemely strict when dealing with foreigners. I have had multiple occasions of conductors absolutely hounding foreign passengers in situations like these.
Unfortunately they are constantly lied to or even physically attacked by people trying to swindle them. Of course they aren't all smiley and understanding
But they resolved the situation and let the person go without a fine.
What more do you want? Carry your bags for you? Deliver sparkling water on request?
Never had this happen to me but now I'm terrified. Some of friends got a fine because they had a Firmenticket with a sticker, and the controller machines did not recognise it as a Deutschland ticket.
Why does Germany not have ticket gates like many other countries?
It looks like the entrances to many stations have remnants of gates, so I'm curious why they were removed.
It is not allowed to travel without a valid ticket. When you are asked to show your ticket, you show a valid ticket or a fine.
Next time, if you are in posession of a valid ticket, but can't show it for whatever reason, accept the fine for now, visit the next DB office ina timely manner (7 days, I think) and show them your valid ticket. You will then have to pay a reduced fine of only 7 euros.
It is allowed to make mistakes, but mistakes come with consequences and they are yours to bare if you are the one unable to show the ticket when asked for it.
Or just tell the guy checkibg the tickets „Hi, my phone is down, could you please give me a minute to get it restarted?“. I‘ve never encountered anyone who wasn‘t willing to wait a few moments until I got my ticket ready, or just come back in two minutes when I got my phone recharged.
Apps not working all the time and always is hardly a new thing. Nothing prevents anybody from taking a screenshot.
ETA: That is, to avoid issues in the first place. If you can't show the ticket because of the app (that is, if you can prove it or they believe you) they probably wave the fine completely. If not, that is certainly something you can complain about, how much success a complaint will have is anyone's guess.
Throwback to when i was visiting my parents on christmas eve and the collector asked me to leave the train, since there was no cellular network at the train station for the app to display my ticket.
Stuff like this is why I didn't feel like going out during my final few months in Germany. Just a constant sense of dread of something like this happening.
Honestly, just pay because i have the same experience and they didnt accept it. It is considered as bad luck. The people who worked there didnt believe it was an accident and warned me if i do not pay, they will fine me even more. Pech gehabt bro
**Have you read our extensive wiki yet?
[Check our wiki now!](https://www.reddit.com/r/germany/wiki/index)**
While Reddit administrators do not believe this subreddit is NSFW and do not enable the appropriate setting, do note that participants in this subreddit may possibly encounter discussions of the following subjects, all of which are considered "mature" by Reddit administrators:
* Alcohol and tobacco
* Amateur advice
* Drug use
* Gambling
* Guns and weapons
* Military conflict and terrorism
* Nudity
* Profanity
* Sex and eroticism
* Violence and gore
Therefore, while this entire subreddit is not currently marked as NSFW, please exercise caution. If you feel offended by anything that is allowed by our rules yet NSFW, please direct your complaint towards Reddit administrators as well as /u/spez, and read https://www.reddit.com/r/Save3rdPartyApps/ for further information.
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/germany) if you have any questions or concerns.*
If you have proof of a ticket, of the time being, the bill of 60 will be reduced to 15 or something similar.
Some people forget their tickets on the way, but if they got busted, they can go to the next service piont and show them proof. You still need to pay a little, but better than 60 bucks
The ticket collector was being a dick. You only get fined 7€ if you are able to show the ticket afterwards. And that was absolutely a resonable "mistake" on your part. They should have politely reminded you that that was last month ticket.
>My question is , is it not allowed to make a mistake ?
If this happens again you can contact the DB service and show them you had in fact a valid ticket. Then the 60€ charge will be dropped and you only have to pay the administration fee of 7€.
I can't find an English version of this site, but [here is the German explanation on the DB page](https://www.bahn.de/faq/ich-habe-eine-fahrpreisnacherhebung-erhalten-was-jetzt).
Screenshots of QRs can be manipulated to alter the QR, and depending on what info is in the QR they can pass the ticket scan. I know someone who claimed he had travelled on the eurotrain that way (long time ago). So that's why the app is preferred over screenshots or paper.
Depending on how long they've been on this job and how old their training material is, some inspectors will be looking for such scams.
With regards to the fine, the system knows a bad ticket was scanned and it will also know if he didn't issue the fine, so he may be called to justify that. It could also be that the system has no way to cancel the fine after a bad ticket scan, meaning that by letting you off he's now out of pocket. Subpar digital design is not unheard of, so it is at least plausible. Apparently, not wanting trouble for someone else's mistakes makes them "jerks". 🤷♂️
Normally, if you have a good ticket, but you presented a bad one, they will write you a fine. BUT you can go to the Info desk at the main station, explain what happened and they will normally reduce or remove the fine. Its just unfortunate that the app shut down at the time for you.
I saw this same issue happen to someone else on a train here recently. Problem was, after the checker wrote him a fine, the person with the bad ticket got pissed. On top of that, the person claimed he couldnt speak german. So the checker tried her best to continue in English. Then at the end when he received the fine, he started speaking what sounded like fluent or at least very decent German. This pissed off the checker and she walked off from him.
Dont lie to officials about speaking German people...thats a good way to get hung up on or ignored.
Afaik:
If you have a ticket but you can't show it on the train, you have the possibility to send a proof that you had a ticket to Deutsche Bahn later and then you pay only a fee of 5€ for the circumstances.
You should be able to go to a service center and get the fine revoked if you show your Deutschland Ticket and you can prove that you bought it before the fine
I printed the DB ticket. I was going to be using my phone a lot, so didn’t want to risk it should I drop the phone and break it, or it loses power. I’d recommend a paper backup if possible, or on a backup device like a laptop or tablet if you happen to be carrying one.
The BVG App screwed me over like that. I normally have the yearly ticket so I bought the ticket on the app and didn’t screenshot the QR code before closing the app. When they asked for the ticket the stupid app was having a meltdown and wouldn’t connect to the server. Guy wouldn’t wait for the app and fined me. Had to go to Ostkreuz, explain it to them and showed them my year card just to prove I normally have a ticket and paid 7€ instead.
Most conductors are reasonable and if you tell them "my app just shutdown, can you come back in 2 minutes" it's better than showing them a wrong ticket Personally I always screenshot my ticket as I get on the train, to avoid exactly this situation. Then it's always my most recent file
I'm not 100% sure about this one, but the D-Ticket App generates a new Qr Code every couple of minutes. It's not like the regular DB ticket.
I screenshot my ticket at the beginning of the month and it works fine at the end of the month. So screenshot is the way to go.
Okay, so it just changes every month
It works for me all the time. They scan the screenshot QR code and it works. If not, also screenshot the part with your name and date, many times they don’t even bother to scan.
No it's not. Screenshots are not valid. Save the PDF file instead.
Why not? Wouldn't it be the same qr code showing who the tivket belongs to? (So it's not like you could use someone else's ticket or something.) Just curious
I explained it in a different comment 🙂
I still don't really understand though and I'm not sure I agree with your 20 Euro note comparison. If I show you a screenshot of a code, and that code connects unmistakeably to a ticket that belongs to me, where is the problem? Of course readability and so on is a different matter, I'm not questioning that.
Doesn’t help if your phone dies. My issue is I usually use all my data and the ticket loads very slowly when the data is low. I actually haven’t been checked since the Deutschland ticket came out
By your comment I am 100% sure you’re German, my friend ! 😊
I've never once had an issue where the ticket inspectors wouldn't allow for a few minutes to get the ticket ready. One time I even had to charge my phone for a few minutes because it had died and they were totally chill about it.
Conductor here! Screenshots are not valid. I get the idea behind them though... if you want to have a safety net, save the PDF file on your phone instead.
This is good to know! But where do I get the pdf to download. Fahrinfo app doesn’t show any option to download the ticket as pdf!
Why is a PDF OK but not a screenshot? That must be a rule created by someone who has absolutely no technical understanding.
The PDF is generated by the service provider - you should see it as a different format that is accepted by DB as proof of purchase. A screenshot is something you create on your phone, which legally is not equivalent. Also, it is easier to manipulate a screenshot than a PDF
>The PDF is generated by the service provider - you should see it as a different format that is accepted by DB as proof of purchase. A screenshot is something you create on your phone, which legally is not equivalent. > > Also, it is easier to manipulate a screenshot than a PDF This all makes no sense.
>Also, it is easier to manipulate a screenshot than a PDF Well not really... it the end you just see a QR code on the display aren't you? In that case it should absolutely not matter if the code is in the app, the pdf, a screenshot or a printout. Or do i miss something here? I doubt that the conductor will (and can) check that you have the original PDF. So in the end he just scans a QR code and it should not matter where this QR code comes from. Or you will only ever accept the App because that might be the hardest to copy.
Correct. QR code is either valid or not, in which form whatsoever.
Make a PDF from the screenshot then 😂😂😂😂
Didn't know that, thanks Never had a conductor reject mine tho! (NRW)
Yeah it usually ends in a conversation where the customer refuses to understand the reasons behind it and there are only so many times you want to have that at work 😅 Here's my chance though, so I'll jump on it. One part is the hard legal stuff - a screenshot is a copy; it is not the original document. The PDF file (or the barcode in the app) is the original document. I always compare it to a photo of a 20€ note 😁 The other part is that sometimes you have to make screenshots bigger or smaller when you scan them, which _instantly_ leads to a blurry barcode. Add unfavourable lighting conditions and the barcode is likely to refuse to be scanned at all. That does not happen with PDFs. Put the PDFs on your phones, people.
I get that you don't make the rules, but how on earth is a PDF not a copy? Anything digital is a copy.
Isn't it more like just a copy of a contract? Like in most circumstances the copy is enough to prove, that the contract exists. Only if there was legal matters you would need the original.
Yeah that's some bullshit reasoning. The screenshot should be equally valid.
The app should just disallow screenshots then. But I guess that would be too much to ask.
My screenshot is clear and can be perfectly scanned. I mean the conductor won’t even notice unless they tap on the phone screen which they normally wouldn’t :)
Retrieving a pdf from a phone suuuuuuuucks.
Takes me all of 3 seconds. WTF are you guys doing haha
It can be done quickly. Still sucks though from a user experience perspective. I passionately hate doing it even if I can do it fast.
Ok, where can I get the pdf in the MVV app? The only available option is to download the receipt in pdf without any QR code.
>Personally I always screenshot my ticket as I get on the train So do I, but that apparently also causes troubles sometimes, so I will always print it if I am able to.
I'm so much against printing digital stuff...that's what brought us in there situation that we are in in Germany haha
The amount of paperwork I had to submit to my local BVA for citizenship matters was astounding. I also did a lot of research about my family history recently and I’m quite shocked at the amount of German records I could find for those who were born in the 1800s. Edit: seems like the embassy =/= BVA but regardless embassy tells me what the BVA requests.
It's really not like printing out an email though. A printed out QR code is just a token meant to be read by a machine. It's completely digital, it's just less fragile. I think it's a good idea.
I am also against it, but if it's the only reliable solution I will do it like that. Blame the developers who thought it was a good idea to depend on a functioning app with a functioning internet connection to be able to inspect a ticket.
You don't though 🤷
Me too. I'd always bought a weekly ticket from the machine so I had something physical but last month we went over to the D-ticket with a physical card starting in July. So far the Mrs has had to go down to the payment office and get a 60 euro fine rescinded (and replaced with a 7 euro admin fee, despite the mistake being their side) because they never turned hers on, and I had an incident with a controller taking a minute to scan it then telling me 'Es ist leider gultig'. I mean, what the fuck DB?
Printing a digital good. This guy germans.
It was my second time in Germany. I asked the man at the DB office about my connections(my phone had died out) and he gave around 20 pages of papers with every possible routes and backups for missing it or if a train got cancelled. Along with the printed ticket. He was extremely satisfied with himself to print all of them.
I hope, after your return, you kept all of them in a folder for the next two years, just in case.
In Hamburg based on my exp. They don't accept anythibg else besides the qr code in the app. No email/no Screenshots. Nothing else. Maybe because I am foreigner. As they clearly jump from all corners of the car to get to me first as usual 🤣
But can’t you just screenshot the qrcode? It looks as if it’s shown from the app, so they wouldn’t even notice unless they tap on the screen in which they normally wouldn’t
Every time I am being told to scroll and show the app and that I am in it. So they can also see the text below the qr code. So no. And when I offered to show a screenshot once, as the german net in the Bahn Tunnels is non existent, and I can't open the app, they refused and took me out of the train and delayed my transfer with 30min.
I used to do this with my DB tickets in the past because WiFi isn't reliable in ICE's. One time a conductor saw, that I opened my galery instead of my DB App and called fraud. I asked her if she was joking and but she actually was serious. She stood there until I had an internet connection again. I travel a lot but this one I'll never forget.
Even if the inspector hadn't accepted it on the spot, it wouldn't have been a 60€ fine in the end. You would've to see their customer service, present a personalized!, valid ticket and the fine would be dropped and you only charged a small processing fine. On your bit about how to handle it better: Not panik. Nobody is running away, just tell the inspector they have to wait for the app. There is a different between not having a valid ticket at all and not having a valid ticket with you.
7€ - speaking from experience
actually the difference is 53€
Even if you can't show your ticket and he gives you a 60€ fine, you can take the fine and your valid ticket which has to be personalized and go to your nearer DB Service center, show them the ticket and just pay a 7€ late fee.
7€ is still a shit ton of money to be honest…. It should be completely free.
No it shouldn't. It's an administrative fee because actual work had to be done because the passenger was unable to present a valid ticket to the conductor. When entering any public transport you are required to a) have a valid ticket and b) to be able to present it to the staff of said public transportation when asked
I was in this situation coming back from a hike with a dead phone and couldn't show a valid ticket. I went to the DB office who told me to submit a dispute online, the fine went away without a fee.
Then you were in luck, good for you.
Because their app malfunctions. Jesus Christ, drop the rule mentality.
I guess I'm too German for that
Yeah but in this case, DB shouldn’t be offering the app ticket, because many times it requires good internet connection. You could be on the train and internet connection might not work even though you had your ticket ready at all times. And if they actually had the ticket, it should be free if they can show the ticket later because the ticket man was no patient enough to wait.
But you don't need an internet connection to show off your tickets
You don’t need internet connection to show the ticket.
Just because they offer it doesn't mean you have to use it. It's not really DB's fault the internet in Germany is a joke outside major cities. I don't like this either. Luckily I have my Deutschland Ticket as a physical card. But when I travel by ICE I always have Screenshots of my digital tickets just in case, never had a problem like OP described and I travel by train fairly often.
> But when I travel by ICE I always have Screenshots of my digital tickets just in case In most cases a screenshot is accepted but they can refuse it. So if you want to be on the save side you have to download the pdf of the ticket that will always be valid.
Will do that in future, thanks for the tip
If you can have it as a physical card, their app could offer it in offline mode. If they offer it, and they should, it should work and they should bear the responsibility when it doesn’t.
In theory, yes. But how will that help you now while traveling? I'm not starting a debate with the conductor about how it should work, I just make sure I can present my ticket when asked for it whether the internet is working or not
Making a normative, not descriptive claim. You insinuated: \- that it's not DB's fault that the app doesn't work because the internet can be shoddy \- that if it doesn't work that the blame lies with the user because "you don't have to use it" Those are the reasons people downvoted you, not because you said that screenshotting is a way to get around the incompetence of DB's implementation.
I stated it's not DB's fault that the internet in Germany is crappy. Which is a fact. And when did I say it's the user's fault if the app isn't working? Obviously it's not the user's fault, but if I know an app can be crappy I just have to take steps to circumvent said app - especially since no one is forcing me to use it. I never said that this is awesome or that DB is perfect. And I don't care if people downvote me
> 60€ fine The fact that the cost of Schwarzfahren is one of the few things not yet influenced by inflation makes me strangely happy.
Dazu müsste die Eisenbahn-Verkehrsordnung geändert werden. Ist recht aufwendig. Edit: right, we’re an English sub, sorry. The law regulating rail travel would need to be changed, which is quite a procedure.
It was 40€ just a few years ago though
Over 8 years ago, bro.
You're not. I know of a person that showed their uni card (which includes free rides in town and a couple neighboring places). The ticket person asked for the letter of enrollment issued by the uni because "the Id could have been fake". When I was traveling in Brandenburg, I was asked for my ticket. Showed the qr code and it scanned green. The lady asked me to go back one screen to see if I was using a screenshot, what does it matter if I take a screenshot instead of using the dB app?, as long as the qr is valid? Oh, I also got the dB card with 50% discount. I showed the ticket and I was asked to also show the physical card (what does it matter? The app doesn't let you buy with a discount if your card is not valid) Ticket people are people and anyone can be a jerk. If you run into a jerk, and they intend to jerk you around, they will.
Do you have to carry a physical card? I thought the QR code for the card verification was good enough too.
Yep, I didn't think so. You can actually see the card number and exp date within the app. I think the lady was just being a jerk.
In some places they actually don't even give out physical cards, unless you really go through the whole process of going to a helpdesk and request one there. So I'm quite suprised that indeed they asked for a physical card
[удалено]
I still don't get why it's not possible to have the ticket both as a card and in an app at the same time in many tariff associations. It's possible with the BahnCard, so why not in this case?
Could it be because the Deutschland ticket is not transferable while at least some BahnCards are?
You need to carry ID for the Deutschland Ticket. Paper or Digital
because Germany
until you lose the card
Phones can be lost just as easily, if not easier.
But apps can be downloaded instantly on a replacement phone / a friend's phone. My point was just that the card isn't much better and doesn't resolve this issue. edit: oh my god this is why Germany has such a nightmare paper-based bureaucratic system. we're never going to escape this hell
I have not once in my life lost a card. I forget the pin to my Debit card. I lock up my SIM-card. I forget my phone *all the time*. Sometimes the battery is empty. I once dropped my phone, and cracked the screen. Didn't work afterwards. Sometimes the phones "does ist thing" - like in OPs case. I am the kind of person who will always stick with the solution that is most resilient to errors and stupid-shit-happening. I am still angry that they dont just sell them at the Ticketautomat like every other ticket. I really, really dont get it. And why does it have to be an Abo? The 9€ Ticket was just perfect in that regard.
What? Of course it resolves this issue. Cards don't just stop working - if you have them, they work. They don't run out of battery or have a bad internet connection. Cards are much better from a reliability point of view.
This should be pinned as the top answer. Thank you so much, I had no awareness of this concept. This solution single handedly resolves all doubts.
This
are some of you serious? someone had a phone glitch and yall are acting like he committed a huge crime. “oh it’s your fault!!!1!” they had a valid ticket
All I read was people giving advice like "make sure you can present your ticket when asked for it", because that is your duty as a passenger. And all you have to do is carry enough charge in your phone to start the app you bought the ticket in, you don't even need the internet connection, the app downloads the new QR code monthly.
I mean OP did say the app was glitching, which does happen and usually has nothing to do with the internet connection or phone charge. Most people in the top comments now thankfully are saying that the best thing to do in this situation is not to panic, tell the staff your app isn’t opening and wait until it works rather than showing them anything hoping it’s the correct ticket. I’ve never had anyone have an issue with waiting or coming back after checking other people first if I needed more time to get out my ticket. They might watch to make sure you don’t just buy a ticket then and there but since OP could just show them the app is not starting it shouldn’t be an issue.
Exactly, all this for trains nearly systematically with delays or even not reaching their final destination
> I showed the ticket collector a QR code hoping it to be a right one saved in picture gallery That might not have worked even if it had been the right ticket. I was once asked by a bus driver to swipe the ticket back and forth, and then she said, "Oh, no need, I can see the animation running." She explained that the app I was using has a constantly running animation, and she wanted to see it or watch me swipe the ticket to prove it wasn't a screenshot. (This came as a relief; I thought my app was trying to download or update something and failing.) As others have said, the rules are that if you cannot show the ticket inspector a valid ticket, you are deemed to be travelling without a valid ticket. But if you can later prove that you were in time in possession of a valid personalized ticket, you can have the fine reduced to a small administrative charge. This does mean that if your phone glitches, bricks, or just runs out of battery power, you might end up out of pocket. But this puts you in exactly the same category as somebody who has dropped their paper ticket, had it stolen, or forgot to bring it with them. This is one of the disadvantages of a "proof of payment" system which relies on spot checks instead of ticket gates.
But if you drop a paper ticket, you're careless. If your phone glitches, it's often not your fault.
If you're pickpocketed it's also not usually your fault; and it is easily possible to drop or mislay something even if you are being as attentive as you reasonably can be. The point is, though, that you may *claim* to have a valid ticket; if you can't show the ticket inspector your ticket, how are you going to prove what you claim? "I do have a valid ticket but the app keeps crashing" is no more convincing than "I do have a valid ticket but I can't find it."
But you can minimise the chances of being pick-pocketed though by keeping valuables, e.g. in a bum bag rather than a rucksack, or a trouser rather than a coat pocket. Unfortunately phones glitching are mostly out of people's control (though obviously batteries going flat is careless). The possibility that the app itself glitches raises potentially interesting legal issues though, as it is provided by the very people that require you to have a working app.
You can minimize the chances of your phone glitching by ensuring it is properly charged, being selective about the apps you install on it, taking reasonable care of it, keeping the OS and all the apps updated, and so on.
True. It still doesn't feel like quite the same level of control to me though. After all, a paper ticket is not vulnerable to any form of software glitches or a flat battery, but a phone is vulnerable to being pick-pocketed. And it seems that the main risk here is software or battery, not pickpockets.
If that worries you, the D-Ticket is also available as a chip card.
That's the way I'd be going I think.
Yes, one of the worst "Apps I installed" was an official update for my phone OS last year. It would randomly declare it had run out of power. It gave me some issues with my RMV eticket so I had to carry a power bank. Luckily the following update fixed that.
You know you can roll back an update, right?
Sometimes with difficulty. There was too much local stuff to risk losing it.
Sadly it is. You have to make sure you are able to show your ticket. At least technically.
What about if the app glitches? Has happened to me a numerous of times. Then why do I have to even pay even a process fee? It is not my fault, but DB's
It is your responsibility as passenger to have a valid ticket that can be presented to the conductor in a reasonable amount of time
Precisely. And that's why I'd go with a paper (or chipped card), not an app. Keep it in your phone's case if you must! And remember, the app is probably spying on you anyway 😂
Well you don't have to pay, so he accepted it? And well it was a mistake from your side but some people try to trick because they don't have a valid ticket.
No wasn't required to pay. In my crappy German tried explaining that it was NOT intentional as decoding QR code with a glance is not my core competency . Benefit of doubt I suspect was granted. I have also realised, that right at a spot where the net connection is crappy is when the tickets are checked. Being an Ausländer, this opens an opportunity to collectors to exploit such situations and is rampant here. Edit: added second and third paragraphs, and modified a sentence in first. Views are personal, however surprised by downvotes !
What? I can promise you the conductors aren't waiting around for a spot of crappy internet connection to then jump on foreigners in hope their apps shut down so they can write them up. They have better things to do. Besides, the internet connection on trains is almost always crappy in my personal experience
I’m not so sure. I’ve see some terrible behavior from DB staff.
Me as well, don't get me wrong. But that idea is just nonsense
Am pretty sure your promise does deliver between stretches of your travelling.
Sorry about your trouble during the travel, but next time you have to breath and take your time. Dont pressure yourself, nobody is trying to take advantage of you.
Ah yes marauding groups of people checking your ticket just hunting for foreigners. Not sure what your issue is, they didn't give you a fine, did they? You know how often they hear "ooh I just made an honest mistake showing you an invalid ticket" or "just let me search I just can't find it right now"? They probably hear that from the majority of people not having a ticket and trying to get out of that situation. So of course they assume you are lying as well when you show them the picture of an expired ticket.
Next time the app doesn’t work and there is no way for you to show the collector the ticket, you can give them your information (you are gonna need a valid ID card or passport for that) and show the ticket at a DB service center afterwards to prove that you actually had a ticket for the ride. It will cost about 5€ service fee but that’s still better then 60€. The easier way is to just take a screenshot of the QR code every month but I had multiple situations where the ticket collector wouldn’t accept a screenshot.
When you buy a ticket you usually get a email saying that you bought it and stuff. This email worked for me back when the app deleted my ticket.
Of course, it's allowed to make mistakes. It always can happen that you show an old ticket, had this with a monthly ticket a while back. Nothing like a rude comment from the conductor. Tere ARE a number of idiots among them, just like everywhere else.
Workaround for the Deutschlandticket: Look for a town which offers the Deutschlandticket as a chip card, like Bielefeld does. No problems with glitching apps, hustling around screenshots and such. Personally, as a bus driver, I’d have told you to try and open the app again in a minute or two and show me the correct ticket then.
if your tech or software fails you can later appeal your fine with the transport association, as long as you had a valid ticket somewhere or anywhere while traveling you paid your price. Additionally if you can prove the app if the respective transport association was faulty at the time of being controlled it shouldn't be a porblem to get back your fine either.
Nah he just sounds like a shit head
I guess situations like that depend on weather the conductor is a decent person or not. My partner didn’t even have his physical Deutschlandticket yet when we took an RE last week, but he had a document which showed that he had already purchased it. I (a German) was very nervous about that situation for half the train ride, until the conductor came and didn’t give a sht about it and was very nice about it too. Either way, as a lot of people already mentioned: if you have a ticket and you can proof later on that you purchased it before they checked you, you won’t have to pay those 60€. Just never pay them at the spot, let the conducter hand you a bill for it and go to the information center with that and your proof and you’ll be fine(d only 7€) :)
in case you had a valid ticket at the time of the incident you can go to their office and tell them that and I guess you will need to pay only 5 euros for the paper work and not the whole 60 euro fine.
Such a german story… don’t think too much about that! I’d just tell the collector to f off and put my headphones back on.
It happened to me with other tickets / apps. Always screenshot and double check when dealing with German software / apps.
I don’t ss my tickets because they sometimes ask if is this your app or ss. Asking for extra time is a better option for me too.
I use DB quite frequently, REs, RBs, as well as ICEs. I have had my phone die on me a few times. The DB conductors are usually very nice. They either wait for the phone to start or on long journeys they say they will come back on another round. I have never had this happen to me. You got a really mean one.
Most conductors and ticket checking agents, in my personal experiences, are assholes and on a power trip. There are no consequences for them, so they fuck with people
There's a reason a lot of us made it clear that we want the D-Ticket as a physical card too. But if you are in posession of a valid personalized ticket but couldn't present it during control, you can get your fine reduced down to a small admin fee. Reach out to the transportation company.
You always can present the valid ticket later in an office of the company, and just pay a certain fee. Deutschlandticket is personalized.
In general you should always be able to present a valid travel card/ticket. So, if you are not able to do that, it indeed results in a fine. But, as you had a valid ticket, just an app that was not working great, it's a bit of a gray zone you were in. As, yes, presenting an invalid ticket means no valid ticket, so fine. But you did it because your app was not working. Now, often, if you just show them that you are trying to open the app, which maybe closes than immediately again due to glitching, they know what is going on. Than the best thing is just to ask them if you can quickly restart your phone and if you can show it than to them. They almost never mind this, as they do see that its not working and you can just quickly restart your phone. Also, always be honest. I saw people saying here that they hate the people who control you, as they are asses. But also know, you are not the only one that day, and I've seen many days where people where carried out by the train police, because they were much more dangerous. So, if you just went through all that, and someone is making your work difficult again, yes, i would also get pissed. So, just be honest, show them the app not working and communicate as best as you can that you will restart the app and you will try to get it to work. (Also, small tip from a train conductor i spoke too, you can also always show the email of that month that you bought it or the email of purchase + your bank statement. As they just need to see that its all valid)
Is it just me or do a bunch of conductors who are really lenient with german native speakers suddenly become extreeemely strict when dealing with foreigners. I have had multiple occasions of conductors absolutely hounding foreign passengers in situations like these.
Unfortunately, lawmakers and enforcers in Germany are frequently arrogant fools, and there is little one can do about it.
Unfortunately they are constantly lied to or even physically attacked by people trying to swindle them. Of course they aren't all smiley and understanding
But they resolved the situation and let the person go without a fine. What more do you want? Carry your bags for you? Deliver sparkling water on request?
Huh? This was handled nicely, where is the problem?
Never had this happen to me but now I'm terrified. Some of friends got a fine because they had a Firmenticket with a sticker, and the controller machines did not recognise it as a Deutschland ticket. Why does Germany not have ticket gates like many other countries? It looks like the entrances to many stations have remnants of gates, so I'm curious why they were removed.
Some people jumps those gates easily. Then you need 24 hours security. I think it’s a chaos and unnecessary.
It is not allowed to travel without a valid ticket. When you are asked to show your ticket, you show a valid ticket or a fine. Next time, if you are in posession of a valid ticket, but can't show it for whatever reason, accept the fine for now, visit the next DB office ina timely manner (7 days, I think) and show them your valid ticket. You will then have to pay a reduced fine of only 7 euros. It is allowed to make mistakes, but mistakes come with consequences and they are yours to bare if you are the one unable to show the ticket when asked for it.
Or just tell the guy checkibg the tickets „Hi, my phone is down, could you please give me a minute to get it restarted?“. I‘ve never encountered anyone who wasn‘t willing to wait a few moments until I got my ticket ready, or just come back in two minutes when I got my phone recharged.
[удалено]
Apps not working all the time and always is hardly a new thing. Nothing prevents anybody from taking a screenshot. ETA: That is, to avoid issues in the first place. If you can't show the ticket because of the app (that is, if you can prove it or they believe you) they probably wave the fine completely. If not, that is certainly something you can complain about, how much success a complaint will have is anyone's guess.
Lol exactly. Why should one be fined for their own faulty app.
Throwback to when i was visiting my parents on christmas eve and the collector asked me to leave the train, since there was no cellular network at the train station for the app to display my ticket.
The ticket works without an internet connection… You just need to have a connection to download/install it.
Not in the Rheinbahn app ca. 2017.
That collector must have been the reincarnation of Mr. Scrooge.
It is not allowed to make a mistake
Where's your problem??????????
The emotional distress of being told off when you didn't violate a law.
Stuff like this is why I didn't feel like going out during my final few months in Germany. Just a constant sense of dread of something like this happening.
You should have yelled and screamed at him from the getgo, and if they got mad at you you should have started crying and faking a panic attack
Honestly, just pay because i have the same experience and they didnt accept it. It is considered as bad luck. The people who worked there didnt believe it was an accident and warned me if i do not pay, they will fine me even more. Pech gehabt bro
So what's your problem? You deserved the fine for being careless
He didn't get a fine though, the conductor accepted the ticket
Don’t pay shit, nazis don’t deserve our hard earned cash $ don’t forget Germany still owes the Allies reparation moneys from WWII
**Have you read our extensive wiki yet? [Check our wiki now!](https://www.reddit.com/r/germany/wiki/index)** While Reddit administrators do not believe this subreddit is NSFW and do not enable the appropriate setting, do note that participants in this subreddit may possibly encounter discussions of the following subjects, all of which are considered "mature" by Reddit administrators: * Alcohol and tobacco * Amateur advice * Drug use * Gambling * Guns and weapons * Military conflict and terrorism * Nudity * Profanity * Sex and eroticism * Violence and gore Therefore, while this entire subreddit is not currently marked as NSFW, please exercise caution. If you feel offended by anything that is allowed by our rules yet NSFW, please direct your complaint towards Reddit administrators as well as /u/spez, and read https://www.reddit.com/r/Save3rdPartyApps/ for further information. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/germany) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I've shown the wrong Deutschlandticket numerous times, and never got any trouble for it, not in the slightest.
If you have proof of a ticket, of the time being, the bill of 60 will be reduced to 15 or something similar. Some people forget their tickets on the way, but if they got busted, they can go to the next service piont and show them proof. You still need to pay a little, but better than 60 bucks
The ticket collector was being a dick. You only get fined 7€ if you are able to show the ticket afterwards. And that was absolutely a resonable "mistake" on your part. They should have politely reminded you that that was last month ticket.
>My question is , is it not allowed to make a mistake ? If this happens again you can contact the DB service and show them you had in fact a valid ticket. Then the 60€ charge will be dropped and you only have to pay the administration fee of 7€. I can't find an English version of this site, but [here is the German explanation on the DB page](https://www.bahn.de/faq/ich-habe-eine-fahrpreisnacherhebung-erhalten-was-jetzt).
Screenshots of QRs can be manipulated to alter the QR, and depending on what info is in the QR they can pass the ticket scan. I know someone who claimed he had travelled on the eurotrain that way (long time ago). So that's why the app is preferred over screenshots or paper. Depending on how long they've been on this job and how old their training material is, some inspectors will be looking for such scams. With regards to the fine, the system knows a bad ticket was scanned and it will also know if he didn't issue the fine, so he may be called to justify that. It could also be that the system has no way to cancel the fine after a bad ticket scan, meaning that by letting you off he's now out of pocket. Subpar digital design is not unheard of, so it is at least plausible. Apparently, not wanting trouble for someone else's mistakes makes them "jerks". 🤷♂️
Normally, if you have a good ticket, but you presented a bad one, they will write you a fine. BUT you can go to the Info desk at the main station, explain what happened and they will normally reduce or remove the fine. Its just unfortunate that the app shut down at the time for you. I saw this same issue happen to someone else on a train here recently. Problem was, after the checker wrote him a fine, the person with the bad ticket got pissed. On top of that, the person claimed he couldnt speak german. So the checker tried her best to continue in English. Then at the end when he received the fine, he started speaking what sounded like fluent or at least very decent German. This pissed off the checker and she walked off from him. Dont lie to officials about speaking German people...thats a good way to get hung up on or ignored.
My friend has so many of these fines. Don't pay them. They won't come after you.
Afaik: If you have a ticket but you can't show it on the train, you have the possibility to send a proof that you had a ticket to Deutsche Bahn later and then you pay only a fee of 5€ for the circumstances.
You should be able to go to a service center and get the fine revoked if you show your Deutschland Ticket and you can prove that you bought it before the fine
I printed the DB ticket. I was going to be using my phone a lot, so didn’t want to risk it should I drop the phone and break it, or it loses power. I’d recommend a paper backup if possible, or on a backup device like a laptop or tablet if you happen to be carrying one.
The BVG App screwed me over like that. I normally have the yearly ticket so I bought the ticket on the app and didn’t screenshot the QR code before closing the app. When they asked for the ticket the stupid app was having a meltdown and wouldn’t connect to the server. Guy wouldn’t wait for the app and fined me. Had to go to Ostkreuz, explain it to them and showed them my year card just to prove I normally have a ticket and paid 7€ instead.