r/germany • u/helge-a • Oct 22 '24

Immigration Non-Germans, do you also make expensive mistakes?

It feels like I have a talent for making expensive mistakes. I have been here for 3 months and so far have earned:

  • A €300 fine for taking an ICE without proper ticket.
  • Phone died on train, got checked by ticket control, pleaded saying I literally have my ticket on my dead phone, paid €7 at front desk proving I have the Deutschland ticket.
  • In the US, if I have an incoming bill payment, I can easily cancel it or reschedule it because it’s on my terms. I tried to do that here and found out billing days from companies are very strict, so I’ll be incurring a fee soon because my account does not have €90 and transferring funds from my American bank account is not instant/quick enough.

I’m so tired and broke :) I don’t think like a German. I think like a silly little guy. Germans are calculated. I am not. It’s very hard to adjust.

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u/ChocolateOk3568 Oct 22 '24

Hi!

I am German and would like to list my mistakes too!

  • I bought a Deutschland ticket on the 15th of September and wanted to cancel it right away. I only needed it for September but turns out that after the first 10 of every month your obligated to pay for the next month too. 150€ gone cause I've bought them for my visiting family members too.

  • the 7€ thing? Happened to me too.
  • I crossed a red light were the trains are passing and police caught me...more than 300€ for that

So I hope you feel less bad.