At A1 and Magenta

First successful lawsuits against flat-rate service fee

Six customers have taken legal action against the flat-rate service fee charged by mobile network operators A1 and Magenta and won in court. These mobile operators must refund the service fee. Previously, there had already been successful legal reclaims against the provider "Drei". However, mobile and landline customers still have to wait for a final ruling on the admissibility of the service fee.

One case is legally binding, in the other the appeal period is running. In a statement to krone.at, A1 emphasized that it considers itself to be in the right and that the flat rate is offset by services such as blocking options against "shock bills". "It is true that there are a few first-instance rulings in which A1 was obliged to repay the service fee." However, no decision has been made on the admissibility of the fee. They are waiting for the Supreme Court's ruling in an ongoing case that the Chamber of Labor is seeking. This will "still take some time", expects an A1 spokesperson.

No voluntary refunds to be expected
Customers of other providers should also not hope for voluntary refunds. Although "Drei" does not want to comment on the verdicts against A1 and Magenta, it is also waiting for the outcome of the ongoing Chamber of Labor lawsuit. "The service fee was agreed for years in consultation with the regulatory authority and on the basis of applicable case law. There is therefore no legal basis for any repayment claims." The company is confident that the fee will stand up to legal scrutiny. Magenta argues along similar lines, stating that, as with A1: "These are purely individual judgments from which no general validity can be derived." 

Hundreds of refunds after lawyers' letters
In more than 250 cases, the mobile operators A1, Magenta and Drei had previously averted judgments by paying back the flat rate, said lawyer Matthias Strohmayer, trusted lawyer of the Association for Consumer Information. He is handling over 1000 cases, he told the "Kurier" and "Tiroler Tageszeitung" newspapers. In January, the Chamber of Labor also filed an association lawsuit against the service fee. The verdicts are still pending.

Flat-rate service fee already passé for new tariffs
Most mobile phone providers - discount providers such as HoT or Spusu are an exception - charge a service fee once a year. They introduced this in 2011 with the approval of the regulatory authority RTR. After the Supreme Court overturned a similar charge for fitness studios a year and a half ago, the discussion about flat-rate service fees for mobile telephony flared up again.

After initial legal setbacks - litigation financiers are already offering customers online reclaim options, see link box - for the providers, the hated fee was abolished for most new contracts or transferred to a higher monthly fee. However, existing customers still pay the annual flat fee.