Consumers can’t be denied contracts based on auto SCHUFA score, court rules

A court in Bremen has criticised Germany’s automatic credit scoring system, SCHUFA, in what is being seen as a win for consumers across the country.

Man wins case against SCHUFA in Bremen court

A man in Bremen has won a case against SCHUFA Holding AG, the company which runs Germany’s only automatic credit scoring system. The man complained to the court that he had been disadvantaged by SCHUFA’s automatic scoring system.

Consumers in Germany need a SCHUFA report to sign a new rental contract, open a bank account, take out a loan, or buy a car on finance. SCHUFA Holding AG collects data from over 10.000 companies to compile credit reports, including banks, credit card companies, mobile phone providers, insurance companies and utilities.

Because of his SCHUFA score, the complainant had been unable to secure new contracts for renting a house or obtaining insurance coverage. The Bremen Regional Court ruled in the man’s favour and awarded him 1.000 euros in damages.

Why is the Bremen SCHUFA case significant for other consumers?

The second part of the Bremen court’s ruling is significant for all consumers in Germany. The court ruled that an automated SCHUFA score is not permitted if it has a negative legal impact on the person being scored.

In March 2025, a regional court in Bamberg ruled that a previous automated scoring system used by SCHUFA was unlawful. Speaking to WDR, Christian Solmecke, a lawyer at Kanzlei WBS in Cologne, said the Bremen ruling was a great success for consumers more broadly. “Even if SCHUFA likes to play down the rulings, countless decisions now show a clear direction in German case law against SCHUFA’s practices," Solmecke explained.

The rulings in Bremen and Bamberg are supported by another ruling, issued by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) in 2023. The ECJ ruled that credit scoring companies operating in the European Union can issue automated scores, but banks, landlords or other financial institutions cannot accept or reject a prospective customer purely based on their automated score. However, this ECJ ruling is yet to be adopted into German law.