Rejsekort: Danish travel card ordered to change terms and conditions
Denmark’s consumer ombudsman has ordered the Rejsekort travel card, used on public transport services across the country, to change several terms and conditions following around 250 complaints.
The ombudsman, Forbrugerombudsmand, confirmed in a press statement that the Rejsekort og Rejseplan company, which operates the travel card, have received its orders and will comply with them.
The electronic card is used on trains, buses and light rail services across Denmark as well as on the Copenhagen Metro. Users check-in by holding the card over a sensor on platforms or inside buses and must check-out again at the end of their journey.
The card can be used in two main forms: an anonymous version which must have at least 70 kroner in pre-paid credit at the start of a journey (600 kroner for long distance travel), and a personal card bearing the user’s ID, which can be topped up online or automatically. A third version, Rejsekort Flex, combines some of the features of each.
Several elements of the card’s terms have not made it easy enough for passengers to use services fairly, the ombudsman concluded, and has now ordered these to be updated.
“The electronic Rejsekort was meant to make it easy for passengers to take public transport. It has done so, but technological advances do not justify disregarding important consumer protection laws,” the ombudsman, Christina Toftegaard Nielsen, said in the statement.
One point of criticism was the difficulty for customers to obtain returns of outstanding balances on their travel cards, should they wish to withdraw them.
Currently, users of the anonymous Rejsekort can only withdraw outstanding balances at a limited number of locations, or by sending an application form to the company. A fee was also applied to withdrawals.
This must now be changed so that balances can be returned without a fee at all sale points until one year after the card expires.
That cards have an expiry date at all must also be made clearer, the ombudsman ordered. The Rejsekort expires and must be replaced after five years but this is not currently displayed on the cards themselves or on receipts.
Expiry dates will in future be displayed on the cards, the ombudsman press statement said.
Additionally, the Rejsekort will no longer be automatically blocked if its owner fails to check out three times. If a journey is incorrectly registered by the card, burden of proof will no longer be placed on the user.
Rejsekort og Rejseplan said in a statement it will comply with all the ombudsman’s demands and that its service should be “easy and transparent” for users.
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The ombudsman, Forbrugerombudsmand, confirmed in a press statement that the Rejsekort og Rejseplan company, which operates the travel card, have received its orders and will comply with them.
The electronic card is used on trains, buses and light rail services across Denmark as well as on the Copenhagen Metro. Users check-in by holding the card over a sensor on platforms or inside buses and must check-out again at the end of their journey.
The card can be used in two main forms: an anonymous version which must have at least 70 kroner in pre-paid credit at the start of a journey (600 kroner for long distance travel), and a personal card bearing the user’s ID, which can be topped up online or automatically. A third version, Rejsekort Flex, combines some of the features of each.
Several elements of the card’s terms have not made it easy enough for passengers to use services fairly, the ombudsman concluded, and has now ordered these to be updated.
“The electronic Rejsekort was meant to make it easy for passengers to take public transport. It has done so, but technological advances do not justify disregarding important consumer protection laws,” the ombudsman, Christina Toftegaard Nielsen, said in the statement.
One point of criticism was the difficulty for customers to obtain returns of outstanding balances on their travel cards, should they wish to withdraw them.
Currently, users of the anonymous Rejsekort can only withdraw outstanding balances at a limited number of locations, or by sending an application form to the company. A fee was also applied to withdrawals.
This must now be changed so that balances can be returned without a fee at all sale points until one year after the card expires.
That cards have an expiry date at all must also be made clearer, the ombudsman ordered. The Rejsekort expires and must be replaced after five years but this is not currently displayed on the cards themselves or on receipts.
Expiry dates will in future be displayed on the cards, the ombudsman press statement said.
Additionally, the Rejsekort will no longer be automatically blocked if its owner fails to check out three times. If a journey is incorrectly registered by the card, burden of proof will no longer be placed on the user.
Rejsekort og Rejseplan said in a statement it will comply with all the ombudsman’s demands and that its service should be “easy and transparent” for users.
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