Attention: Advertising with commission-free dwellings warnable

Key Facts

The Higher Regional Court of Brandenburg ruled that commission-free brokerage of rental apartments is anti-competitive.
This has been a matter of course since 2015 due to the existing buyer principle.
Estate agent fees do not apply to tenants of private apartments.
Operators of internet platforms may not advertise with commission-free offers.
Advertising with self-evident statements is generally not permitted.
This also applies to advertisements with rights of withdrawal in online trading.
Similar consumer rights may also not be advertised.

The Brandenburg Higher Regional Court ruled at the end of last year that offering a commission-free brokerage service for rental apartments on an online platform is anti-competitive.

The reason for this is that the court considers this to be advertising with self-evident facts due to the Bestellerprinzip, which has already been in effect since 2015. In the case of private apartments, brokerage fees are generally not incurred by the tenant.

This also applies to operators of Internet platforms who would draw attention to commission-free offers of brokers advertising there.

Incidentally, advertising with self-evident facts is generally inadmissible. For example, it is also not permitted to advertise a right of withdrawal in online trading or similar consumer rights.

Author: Marian Härtel

Marian Härtel ist Rechtsanwalt und Fachanwalt für IT-Recht mit einer über 25-jährigen Erfahrung als Unternehmer und Berater in den Bereichen Games, E-Sport, Blockchain, SaaS und Künstliche Intelligenz. Seine Beratungsschwerpunkte umfassen neben dem IT-Recht insbesondere das Urheberrecht, Medienrecht sowie Wettbewerbsrecht. Er betreut schwerpunktmäßig Start-ups, Agenturen und Influencer, die er in strategischen Fragen, komplexen Vertragsangelegenheiten sowie bei Investitionsprojekten begleitet. Dabei zeichnet sich seine Beratung durch einen interdisziplinären Ansatz aus, der juristische Expertise und langjährige unternehmerische Erfahrung miteinander verbindet. Ziel seiner Tätigkeit ist stets, Mandanten praxisorientierte Lösungen anzubieten und rechtlich fundierte Unterstützung bei der Umsetzung innovativer Geschäftsmodelle zu gewährleisten.

Tags: Commission Consumer Fire internet