Online Reviews in Germany: Google Flags Removed Ratings Amid Defamation Complaints

Online reviews hold substantial sway over customer choices for restaurants and hotels, with star ratings frequently serving as the initial deciding factor. Professor Steffen Kroschwald, Director of the Institute for Consumer Research and Sustainable Consumption at Pforzheim University, emphasizes the "economic factor" for businesses, as online reputation directly impacts demand.

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The importance of Google reviews can hardly be underestimated.

A recent sample analysis by the German Press Agency (dpa) of over 3,700 restaurants and hotels revealed that many profiles had reviews removed after complaints. This notice, now displayed by Google, highlights a transparency measure in response to a high volume of defamation complaints under German law. Google defines "defamation" to include untrue factual claims or unsubstantiated opinions, and businesses can also contest reviews if the author was not a customer.

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Often the first glance is the star rating, and that plays a decisive role in decisions.

The frequency of review removal varies by city. In major hubs like Berlin, Cologne, and Frankfurt, nearly one in three businesses had reviews removed. Munich and Nuremberg saw about one in four establishments affected, while Leipzig and Hamburg had roughly one in five. Smaller cities generally reported lower rates, with Dresden and Magdeburg showing removals in about 15 percent of profiles.

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For companies, this is an economic factor.

Google states that this notice does not affect a business's ranking or placement in local search results. For affected businesses, approximately half had between one and 20 reviews removed, with another 20 percent experiencing the removal of 21 to 50 reviews. This indicates a notable, though not overwhelming, impact on online profiles in response to user complaints and legal challenges.

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And they affect demand.