Summary of various cost items in operating cost statements only permissible in exceptional cases

The Hamburg District Court clarified in its ruling of August 12, 2024 – 49 C 535/23 that a summary of various cost items is only permissible in exceptional cases. This applies exclusively when the operating costs are similar in their origin. The billing must generally be based on the types of costs as agreed in the rental contract. Only in this way can tenants reliably and easily recognize whether only the agreed costs are being billed.

For example, costs for janitorial services and garden maintenance must be billed separately, even if the janitor performs gardening work. A formally invalid billing leads to the complete deletion of the summarized items, regardless of whether the tenants could have understood the actual costs by inspecting the receipts. This ensures that only the costs agreed in the rental contract are allocated.

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