Bus or train late again?NRW Mobility Guarantee made easyTake a taxi – use the NRW Mobility GuaranteeStill make it there on timeTaxi/Miles/ICE instead of waitingPublic transport 20 min late again?Make the most of your Deutschlandticket – taxi includedBus, U-Bahn, S-Bahn, RE or RB 20 min late?Bus or train late again?

The NRW Mobility Guarantee does not apply in certain cases. This is the case when the origin or destination is not in NRW, or when there is no departure delay of at least 20 minutes at the boarding stop. Entitlement lapses, for example, if the delay is shorter, if the line in question runs at intervals of less than 20 minutes, or if an alternative line serves the same journey within this time window. The guarantee is also initially excluded when a rail replacement service (SEV) is in place – although the replacement service itself can in turn fall under the provisions of the NRW Mobility Guarantee.

In addition, the guarantee entitlement lapses in the following special cases:
– Severe weather from warning level 3 issued by the German Meteorological Service (DWD)
– Bomb warnings, discoveries of unexploded bombs or upcoming bomb disposals
– Strikes at the transport company concerned
– The effects of forces of nature

Please note that these specific reasons for disruption must have been officially communicated by the affected transport company.

With RechtMobil: We support you in determining for yourself whether these exclusion reasons apply. To do this, we retrieve the current real-time data from VRR, which includes state-wide information for all of NRW, and use further official data interfaces.

In short: almost all of them. Nearly all local public transport in NRW is covered – city buses, trams, light rail, underground trains, S-Bahn trains, regional trains (RB) and Regional Express lines (RE).

Only a few lines are excluded: the Weserbergland-Express, the Dortmund Airport Shuttle or Airport Express, public transport in the city and district of Osnabrück, and lines within the Euregio Meuse-Rhine in Belgium and the Netherlands. Long-distance trains (IC, EC, ICE) are not your original mode of transport – but you may use them as a substitute (see below).

All NRW network tickets and all tickets of the NRW tariff – whether single ticket, season ticket or subscription, and yes, even the Deutschlandticket. eezy.nrw is included too; here, the price of a regular single trip is deducted from the reimbursement, unless you have already reached the daily or monthly cap anyway.

No – that is the most common misunderstanding. You don't have to wait until 20 minutes have actually passed. If the DB app, a network app or the display at the stop already announces a delay of at least 20 minutes, you may switch from the scheduled departure time onwards. In that case, take a photo or screenshot of the display as evidence – created no earlier than the scheduled departure time and clearly showing a deviation of at least 20 minutes.

With RechtMobil: For your specific origin–destination connection, we retrieve the data showing whether the 20-minute threshold has been reached, and capture the right screenshot for you at the right moment.

One of three options: DB long-distance trains (IC, EC, ICE), a taxi or a sharing or on-demand service (rental bike, rental scooter, rental car (Miles), e-scooter or an on-demand shuttle run by the transport companies). A combination – for example first a taxi, then a long-distance train – is not reimbursed. Choose the nearest transfer point you can reach on foot within a few minutes and travel to the actual destination of your planned trip; that can also be a specific address.

With RechtMobil: We suggest which of these alternatives currently fits your route best and take you straight to the provider.

The application must be submitted within 14 days – the easiest way is digitally via the online form (it automatically reaches the right transport company) or directly with the company operating the affected line. You need two things: the receipt for your substitute trip (taxi receipt, sharing receipt or long-distance ticket with the price printed on it) and your original local transport ticket. A taxi receipt should include the name, date, time and route – for intermediaries such as FreeNow, also the invoice, tax and licence numbers. Keep the originals for around six months, as they may be requested later.

With RechtMobil: We help you gather everything. After your trip, you receive an email from us with all the details for the application form and the screenshots of the real-time information – all that's left is to send off the application.