DB train problems: refunds?

They, and any railway, don't have to get you to the place you bought the ticket for in the accommodation you wish if operational problems cause changes. They just have to get you there. You were provided an alt-ernative which you chose to decline. Everything after that is on your plate, I'm afraid. When trains get out of place and traincrew get out of place because of major events such as the impressive flooding, landslips, and ATC problems (yes, that too) the knock-on consequences can be network wide. It is possible that your train developed a fault. It is also possible that it had to be swapped so that it could make an attempt to return to its booked diagram. In times of perturbation train companies, including the one I work for, do everything they can to minimise delays and problems, and return to the normal timetable as quickly as possible. While floods and landslips may not be as impressive as the Bay Bridge falling down the consequences can be huge. It is a shame you didn't take the CNL you were originally booked on.

Hi Nigel, I had to truncate my original post, which might have resulted in some important details left out. I did not take the City Night Line train as scheduled because no one in Paris could confirm whether trains between Hanover and Berlin were actually operating. On bahn.de, all the scheduled trains from Hanover to Berlin were flagged with the orange "warning" icon indicating disruptions. I did not want to end up stuck on a platform in Hanover at 6:00 without a clear idea of what the onward transportation would be, or when it would be leaving. Instead, I bought a new walk-up ticket, since my original CNL ticket was listed as non-refundable or changeable from the first day of validity, and "only valid on CNL." I took the daytime ICE journey for the next day (Paris-Frankfurt-Berlin). From Hanover to Berlin, there was significant flooding near the tracks, including some partially submerged forests (it was a bit west of Potsdam). All I really want is for DB to refund my original City Night Line ticket, which they said they would do in 2-3 business days, although I'm still waiting over a week later. I'm fine with paying the cost of the higher walk-up ICE fare and hotel, I just don't want to have paid for two tickets for the same journey.

Look at the bottom of this page: http://www.bahn.com/i/view/GBR/en/flooding_in_austria_and_germany.shtml

It's very hard to read through all this - and comprehend. Therefore let me try to recap - and please confirm or correct me if I'm wrong: You bought a non-flexible ticket on CNL. You didn't use it (for whatever reason) and bought a walk-up fare (=expensive) ticket on another connection instead. You arrived more than one hour late at your destination which would have entitled you to a 25% discount of your one-way fare for that leg - however, the delay was caused by "Act of God" and therefore DB insists you're not getting and reimbursement. However, DB did reimburse you for your restricted CNL ticket. You ended up having to pay for 100% of the walk-up fare for the other train. Is that right?

Hi Andreas, Sorry for the confusion. Yes, your understanding is correct. Upon arrival at Berlin Hbf, I talked to DB customer service agent in the main ticket office. He offered to refund 100% of my City Night Line ticket due to the flooding exemption. I filled out the form, stated reason stated was "hochwasser," and stapled it to my original unused ticket. He told me the refund would post in 2-3 days to my original credit card (it hasn't yet). However, he said there would be no compensation for the more expensive ICE ticket, because delays were due to "Acts of God." Thus, I still had to pay 100% of the more expensive ticket.

Hi,
I travel by DB's ICE from berlin to koln and arrived koln at 17:40( the original arrival time should be 14:09). Can I apply any compensation for the delay? Thank you for your kindly assistance. KC

Just to update, they did refund my unused saver fare for City Night Line back to my original credit card. It took two weeks to get the refund, but at least it wasn't a hassle. I thought about sending in the compensation form for the ICE Paris-Frankfurt train, however I purchased the ticket through SNCF, so I'm not sure whether DB or SNCF compensation rules would apply.

kc, was that a delay regarding your original ticket, or related to the post-flood timetable? DB is not refunding delays caused by the timetable adjsutments post-flood, though it was allowing people travelling on those trains with modified schedules to get a refund.

Andre L I think the delay is caused by flooding. The original train should be ICE from berlin to koln, the actual train is ICE from berlin to hamm, then change IC from hamm to koln.