Unlike classic partner switching institutes, online platforms such as parship have an implicitable claim to temper. The supreme civil judges of the Federal Court of Justice (BGH) in Karlsruhe decided on Thursday. Users who do not want to pay for a fee-based membership, so have to expect to be asked to be charged with legal funds to the cash register. (AZ. III ZR 125/19)
Special control for "marriage agency"
Background is a paragraph in more than 100 years old bourgeo law (BGB), according to which a for "marriage agency" promised pay is not indispensable. The BGH had transferred this provision to a dating agency advertisement. The institutes therefore often collect high sums in advance from their customers.
The BGH had always buried this that a legal dispute over the consumption was affected by the Intimesphare of the Customers. Now, however, the judges look a new direction overlooking online mediators: Here, customers were primarily unrestrained access to a platform where they "Make a contact with possible partners from our own initiative" could. Partner proposals were based on electronic adjustment, an individual, personal evaluation can not take place. Therefore, an intervention in the Intimsphare is not to be fired here.
In the concrete case, a customer had a two months ago with parship "Premium membership" Finally completed for 265.68 euros and get the first proposals and access to the platform. One day later, she recorded the contract. Parship had wanted to have almost 200 euros for the services already provided, the customer called for the BGB paragraph. Although the BGH was deciding that this PARSHIP does not apply and therefore is therefore required to require fundamentally so-called compensation. Numbers must pay the customer after the Karlsruhe judgment but only 1.46 euros – because it was only one of 365 days a member.