Not an isolated case

ORF fee: a reminder instead of a payment slip

Since the beginning of the year, all Austrians who do not have an exemption are now supporters of ORF - whether they like it or not. But it seems that the many new fee payers pose a challenge for the infrastructure.

"I signed up for the ORF contribution as soon as I received the letter, but I didn't agree to a direct debit authorization," a "Krone" reader tells us in an interview. "Then nothing came for weeks and suddenly the letter carrier brought a payment reminder including a late payment surcharge and a payment slip."

Late payment surcharge of 23.88 euros
Why didn't he want a direct debit authorization? "I don't trust the ORF enough to give them automatic access to my account. Besides, a payment slip gives you a better overview of your finances," explains the reader. "The cheeky thing is the late payment surcharge. We always look through the post carefully, including the advertising, and nothing has ever arrived." 

This was the first letter the reader found in the post.(Bild: zVg, Krone KREATIV)

His wife had also registered again as a precaution so that the fee would work out. "We waited the whole time for the payment slip. In fact, we should have received two letters," says the reader. Nevertheless, the first letter after registration was a payment reminder. "Ten percent late payment surcharge of 23.88 euros is simply too much. I know that this is regulated by law, but we haven't done anything wrong," the reader clarifies.

On hold for an hour and a half
Next, he tried customer service. "On the first day, I gave up after a good 90 minutes on hold. On the second day, I got through to an advisor after 30 minutes. The lady was understanding and offered to waive the late payment surcharge if I issued a direct debit authorization," reports the man from Klagenfurt. "The Chamber of Labor couldn't help me either, as it was an administrative fee."

Our reader has now paid the fee by payment slip, but without the late payment surcharge: "I have handed the matter over to my legal protection. That's a cheek and it's probably the same for others." A quick internet search proves him right. There are reports on various forums about people waiting forever for ORF letters and receiving reminders straight away.