Workshop demanded

20 euros processing fee for the repair bonus

The Linz bike repair shop (symbolic image above) wanted to charge the customer a processing fee for applying for the repair bonus. (symbolic image)

(Bild: Christian Jauschowetz)

A bike repair shop in Linz wanted to charge 20 euros for the time spent applying for the repair bonus. A man from Linz (20) did not accept this, as according to the information hotline there was no provision for a processing fee. In the end, it was waived for him.

My bike had a problem with the braking system, so I took it to the workshop," reports a 20-year-old from Linz who wishes to remain anonymous. "They were very friendly there, gave me good advice straight away and made an appointment, so I left the bike there," says the customer, who had been highly satisfied until then.

Fee seemed strange to him
But then a text message arrived: "It said how much the repair would cost, plus a 20 euro processing fee for the repair bonus, which had to be paid in cash." Because this seemed strange to the cyclist, he called the repair bonus hotline several times. "I got several answers. But the consensus was that partner companies are not allowed to charge a handling fee to customers who want to make use of the repair bonus."

This text message made the 20-year-old suspicious

(Bild: Krone KREATIV)

Waived after discussion
When the bike was finally finished, the Linzer confronted the mechanics with his research. "I had to argue for a long time and refer to what the hotline staff had said," says the customer. However, these extra costs were only waived when he offered to call the telephone service together with the mechanic responsible. "They then grudgingly waived the 20 euros for me," says the 20-year-old. "But I think it's a shame that this discussion was necessary in the first place - after all, the repair bonus was supposed to be a financial incentive and not create additional costs."

Ministry: fee not planned
When asked, the Climate Ministry in Vienna also stated: "Our funding system does not provide for the charging of a funding fee. The partner company submits the application on reparaturbonus.at." The voucher is checked and redeemed there. The partner company then has four weeks to submit the refund application. Once the application has been approved, the subsidy is paid out to the customer.

Workshop defends itself
It's not quite that simple, the bike workshop defends itself when asked by "Krone": "The bonus represents a lot of extra work for us. We have to submit everything individually. If it doesn't work, we have to look for mistakes, help older customers with their applications and so on. Instead of increasing all prices like other companies, we charge a processing fee for each application - after all, it costs us working time."