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Rent reduction for power or gas outages: court rulings and percentages

In 11 rulings in our table, courts allowed a rent reduction of 3.5 % to 100 %. How much depends on how far the defect restricts the use of the apartment.

Updated: October 2026 · 119 court rulings

Typical reduction by severity

Minor

8 %

median of 7 rulings

Partial outage, one area, limited supply (e.g. hot water only after a delay)

Moderate

20 %

1 ruling

Outage in the whole apartment for one to several days, e.g. no hot water

Severe

100 %

median of 3 rulings

Long-term total outage: no light, no heating, no hot water

Median reduction rates of the court rulings in our rent reduction table, per severity level. The figures update with every new ruling; individual cases may differ.

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11 rulings found

Defect: Power / Gas Outage?

Create a free defect notice with a rent reduction demand — backed by these court rulings.

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DefectReductionDescription
100 %Total gas supply failure Sep–Feb
100 %Total electrical failure after a cable fire; no light, hot water or stove
85 %Total gas supply failure: no heating, no hot water, no cooking (85% in winter)
20 %Landlord cut off water and gas; 20% for the missing water supply alone
10 %Brown water from several taps, cold water in the bathroom cannot be regulated
10 %Phone and internet connection dead for 14 months due to faulty in-house wiring
10 %TV reception promised in the lease was discontinued
7.5 %No hot water between 10 pm and 7 am
5 %New building: hot water reaches 55 °C only after 65 seconds (DIN 1988-200)
5 %Hot water reaches 40 °C only after about 50 seconds and never reaches 55 °C
3.5 %Hot water at 40 °C only after a long run-off time