Deutsche Bahn’s [policy on compensation for cancellations and delays](https://www.bahn.com/en/booking-information/passenger-rights/passenger-rights-in-rail-transport) seems exclusively based on how late you arrive at your destination compared to your original schedule.
But what about when a booked train is canceled just hours prior to departure and you don’t have the option of taking a later train (thus arriving “later than scheduled”), so you have to leave 90 minutes earlier to make a connection which would get you to your destination at the same time as the original booking?
Although you’re not arriving late, per se, your journey has still been lengthened by 90 minutes due to their cancellation, and have probably faced considerable inconvenience as a result.
Unfortunately, this is not a hypothetical situation, and I could not find a clear answer when searching. I’m assuming this is effectively a loophole situation in which I’m not owed any compensation, but wanted to double check. The line at the info desk was too long and DB simply ignored the last question I sent them in writing, which is why I’m trying to crowdsource an answer first.
Dankeschön!
1 comment
The fact that my alternate, lengthier journey also involed standing in the doorway of a completely full train for much of three hours and making a transfer that wasn’t necessary in my original itinerary is not relevant to my question or whether I would get compensation, but I just wanted to add it because I’m still annoyed.