Overview

• The Federal Court of Justice invalidated Sparkasse Nürnberg’s interest-adjustment clauses and pointed to Deutsche Bundesbank monthly rates or 15‑year‑near Umlaufrenditen as the reference, recommending the proportional method for recalculation.
• Judges held that claims for underpaid interest generally become time-barred only when the savings contract ends, enabling recovery for earlier years for qualified claimants.
• Roughly 3,000 customers joined the vzbv’s model lawsuit, and many of them could receive four‑figure back payments according to the consumer group.
• The court clarified termination law by allowing ordinary termination where customers implicitly accepted new terms, while ruling that 99‑year contracts cannot be ordinarily terminated during that period.
• Sparkasse Nürnberg said the outcome largely confirms its legal position and asserted that for most savers almost nothing changes.