BERLIN/FRANKFURT (dpa-AFX) - According to the German Association of Judges (DRB), more than 125,000 complaints were filed against airlines by passengers in the courts at the 20 largest airports in Germany last year. That was more cases than ever before, it said. Compared to the previous year, the number of cases nationwide had risen by around 80 percent, the association explained. It referred to a survey conducted by the "Deutsche Richterzeitung", which it publishes. Customers mostly demand compensation for canceled or delayed flights.

According to the data, the Koln district court had the highest number of cases at just under 37,300. This was almost twice as many as in the previous year. Lufthansa has its legal headquarters in the cathedral city. It is followed by Frankfurt/Main with a good 15,000 cases (2022: more than 11,300) and the district court responsible for the capital's BER airport in Konigs Wusterhausen with just under 14,000 cases (2022: more than 7,000). According to the association, proceedings at the court in Brandenburg now account for 93% of all civil lawsuits.

"Many local courts are groaning under a new wave of passenger proceedings," DRB Federal Managing Director Sven Rebehn told the German Press Agency. The association of judges sees portals that allow passengers to assert their claims quickly and easily as a major reason for the development in the courts./mvk/DP/zb