Anyone who booked an online coaching programme whose provider lacks ZFU accreditation may demand full repayment under § 7 FernUSG — including business clients.
The German Distance Learning Protection Act (FernUSG) requires distance-learning courses to be accredited by the Federal Office for Distance Learning (ZFU). Where accreditation is missing, the contract is void under § 7 (1) FernUSG — payments already made can be reclaimed under § 812 (1) BGB. Outstanding instalments fall away for the future.
The BGH made clear in its judgment of 12 September 2024 (III ZR 176/23): the FernUSG also applies vis-à-vis business clients. What matters is not whether you contracted as a consumer or as an entrepreneur, but whether the offering qualifies as distance learning — spatial separation and learning-progress monitoring being the core criteria.
The fixed fee is based on a fee agreement under § 3a RVG. The amount may exceed the statutory fee under RVG; in return you receive predictable total cost and accelerated processing through the use of AI. In a successful outcome, the opposing party generally only reimburses the statutory RVG fee — you bear the difference to the fixed fee yourself.
Free initial review of your coaching contract within 48 hours of receiving the documents.
Counsel's letter of demand with a deadline to the coaching provider; fixed-fee model.
Filing of suit upon refusal to pay; processed in our standardised mass-litigation format.
Enforcement of the title; coordination with insolvency law in case of provider insolvency.
A distance-learning course within the meaning of § 1 FernUSG requires accreditation from the Federal Office for Distance Learning (ZFU). Where accreditation is missing, the contract is void under § 7 (1) FernUSG. You may reclaim payments made under § 812 (1) BGB. The precondition, however, is that the offering falls within the scope of the FernUSG at all — what matters in particular is spatial separation and learning-progress monitoring.
Yes. By judgment of 12 September 2024 (III ZR 176/23), the BGH made clear that the FernUSG also applies to business clients. What matters is not your status as a consumer or entrepreneur, but whether the offering qualifies in substance as distance learning (learning-progress monitoring, spatial separation).
Claims for repayment under § 812 BGB generally become time-barred after three years to year-end, calculated from awareness. Anyone who contracted in 2023 should have the matter assessed by 2026 at the latest. For older contracts, suspension and standstill grounds need to be assessed individually.
Where the contract is void under § 7 FernUSG, the obligation to pay falls away for the future. SEPA direct debits can be revoked — under counsel's guidance. We discuss the approach individually in the introductory call.
With legal expenses insurance: EUR 0 own contribution, provided the insurer approves coverage — we submit the coverage request for you. Without insurance, our fixed fee of EUR 1,000 gross applies for the complete out-of-court handling. Any necessary court enforcement is billed separately under RVG.
BGH case law interprets the criterion of learning-progress monitoring broadly — regular feedback in coaching calls, individual reviews of assignments or structured module completions are sufficient. We assess the specific design of your contract against the current case law.
We have analysed six typical coaching categories — online marketing, trading, mindset, real estate, crypto and business mentoring — each with a FernUSG indicator (high / medium / situational). Our individual case assessment always remains decisive.
Filing the claim with the insolvency table is possible. In parallel, we examine liability options against the acting managing directors (§ 826 BGB, § 15b InsO) and against intermediaries.
Out of court: 4–10 weeks from receipt of the documents. In court: 6–18 months to a first-instance judgment. We communicate status proactively every three weeks.
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Call +49 170 9926903 or write to kanzlei@eastkap.de.