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Gelsenkirchen Sparkasse break-in: 18 lawsuits filed seeking full compensation
🇩🇪 Germany /Crime & Justice

Gelsenkirchen Sparkasse break-in: 18 lawsuits filed seeking full compensation

From Die Zeit · () German

Translated from German, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Sources not specified In the courts
  • Following a multi-million euro break-in at a Gelsenkirchen Sparkasse bank in late 2025, more customers are filing lawsuits seeking full compensation for their safe deposit box contents.
  • Currently, 18 lawsuits are pending, with the next trial scheduled for September 10, as plaintiffs allege security flaws and demand reimbursement beyond the contractual limit of 10,300 euros per box.
  • The bank claims to have made over a hundred payouts, while a lawyer representing many plaintiffs criticizes the process, stating no insurance sums have been fully paid out in cases he knows.

An increasing number of customers are suing Sparkasse Gelsenkirchen to recover the full value of their safe deposit box contents after a major break-in at the end of 2025. The bank is now facing 18 lawsuits, with the next court date set for September 10.

Currently, 18 such lawsuits are pending.

— Sparkasse spokespersonConfirming the number of legal actions filed against the bank following the break-in.

Plaintiffs accuse the bank of security deficiencies, demanding compensation that exceeds the contractual limit of 10,300 euros per safe deposit box. The sophisticated burglary saw thieves break into over 3,000 safe deposit boxes. They gained access through a parking garage into an archive room and then used a specialized drill to penetrate the vault. The estimated total damage is in the tens or even hundreds of millions of euros.

Initial civil lawsuits against the bank began in mid-June at the Essen Regional Court. However, the court later suspended the proceedings to commission an expert on the bank's security measures. The search for such a specialist is ongoing, according to a court spokesperson.

The next trial is scheduled for September 10.

— Court spokespersonAnnouncing the date for the next legal proceeding related to the case.

Sparkasse stated in early July that it had begun initial payouts from safe deposit box insurance. However, Daniel Kuhlmann, a lawyer representing several hundred plaintiffs, sharply criticized this, claiming that in his experience, the insurance sum has not been fully paid out in any known case.

The court suspended the proceedings because it wants to commission an expert on the bank's security measures.

— Court spokespersonExplaining the reason for the delay in the initial civil lawsuits.

A Sparkasse spokesperson refuted these claims, stating that "well over a hundred payouts have been made, and further affected individuals are being contacted continuously. Even those represented by lawyers have been contacted and received compensation." The spokesperson added that there have been "overwhelmingly positive feedback" regarding the bank's damage management. The plaintiffs allege inadequate security in the bank building, vault, and adjacent parking garage, while the bank maintains that the safe deposit boxes were secured according to the state of the art.

To my knowledge, in no case known to me has the insurance sum actually been paid out.

— Daniel KuhlmannA lawyer representing hundreds of plaintiffs, criticizing the bank's payout process.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Die Zeit in German. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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