Cancellation Address for Bahncard

You are right, they DO hide it well on their website and that has been subject of many, many German consumer protection TV shows, magazines, websites. The mailing address is: DB Fernverkehr AG
Bahncard-Service
60643 Frankfurt am MainGermanyThey also offer a fax number but that's an 1805-number which costs extra: +49 1805-121998.The e-Mail-address is [email protected] but better insist on a written confirmation or at least ask them to fax you their confirmation.

Andreas, you are my hero! I need to find some place we could prominently post this address on the internet for anyone who runs into this same situation but for now, thank you, thank you, thank you!!!

In the past I've warned people about this nasty feature (Abonnement) of Bahn cards. I believe that if you purchase the Bahn card at a station, they have the form for you to fill out and an address to send it to so that the Abonnement feature can be stopped.

Use this form. Just fill in the blanks, i.e. your full mailing address, the 16-digits BahnCards number (and any extra card numbers if applicable as well as your E-Mail address and of course the date). It has proven to be effective many, many times before.http://www.schuerrle.com/downloads/bahncard-cancellation-form.pdf

Thank you for the link to the form but now you have raised a new issue - the receipt we have does not have a 16 digit number on it so now I am not sure we know her bahncard number. I was wrong before - it was purchased in March 2007 - so perhaps they used shorter numbers then? The only numbers I can decipher are the Order (Auftrag) number, which is 9 digits or the VU number, which is 10 digits. Maybe someone could tell me where the number would be on the receipt? I am so sorry to keep bothering everyone and I truly do appreciate the assistance!

If you only have those numbers than put all of them in letter making sure you label them the way they did back in 2007. The problem with Auftrags-Numbers is that they changed those completely and you can now no longer pick up your pre-ordered cards with Auftrags-numbers at the kiosks anymore. Nonetheless they probably still have access to their older computer systems. Make sure you tell them when the card was ordered/issued. If you want to be on the save side try with emailing them your cancellation and see if they can process the information...

Good idea - we will try that. Thank you again for all your help - it has meant a lot!

Thanks for this heads-up, as I plan to buy a Bahncard later on this summer!

Warning - I'm going to drag this post slightly off-topic.

Lee used the word "nasty" to describe the automatic renewal features of BahnCards. I recently read "Culture Shock: Germany" and it discusses this practice. Apparently it's a widely used practice in Germany for many consumer businesses, such as insurance, magazine subscriptions, etc. Here it was front-page news when a cable company used "negative billing" where you had to actively refuse a higher-paid service add-on or you got billed for it. There, it's normal practice. It is presented as a convenience to consumers (though, according to Andreas, not all consumers agree!)

Point is - this is perhaps one of those cultural differences we should know about but not necessarily assign a negative value judgment to. Having Andreas' letter template and specific instructions was a huge help to me, but I didn't see cancellation as a large burden or I wouldn't have bought the card.

The cancellation address is in several places on the website, but ONLY in German. It's buried in a paragraph on each "Konditionen" (conditions of sale) page. The English translation does not give the address anywhere.

Just a philosophical point for thought or discussion...

Ummm, apparently some people are very tolerant with "Cultural differences".
To me this is a total rip-off that should basically be ilegal.
I bought a bahncard25 which I used during a few days.
Next thing I know is a dutch-based company is claiming me 57,50€ I supposedly owe to Deutsche Bahn plus 37€ for "Collecting fee", and a paragraph threatening me if I do not pay within the next 5 months. Oh they are very kind and understanding since they offer me to pay in terms (ROFL).

First of all, when I bought the card in a train station the clerk never told me I had to cancel it or it would automatically renew, in fact I do not even remember if I paid with a bank card or cash. She spoke English pretty well, at least well enough to understand me and sell me the card.

Then, when I opened the letter I only found a card and an German-only text (even though my address is out of Germany) which I can understand if they are a German based company. Apparently not even in this letter they mention the card will auto-renew. I don´t understand German so I just threw it on a drawer along with the card.

Worst thing is, since there is absolutely no chance I will pay them a single dime because of their "cultural pecularity" I will probably not be able to buy any card in the future.
Bravo Deutsche Bahn, yet another reason to stick to lowcost air companies and carpooling...