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CIT/UIC Passenger Claims Conference 2025 in Copenhagen
The Passenger Claims Conference 2025 took place on 24 September in Copenhagen, co-organised by the CIT and UIC with DSB as the hosting railway. Participants from across Europe met to exchange legal and practical experience on claims handling, with this year’s special focus on alternative dispute resolutions.
Morning session: mediation, conciliation & force majeure
The conference, which has traditionally been held in person, brought together around 70 participants from across Europe. It was opened by Isabelle Saintilan (Eurostar), with welcome speeches from Alberto Gallo (Trenitalia, Member of the CIT Executive Committee), Bertrand Minary (UIC Passenger Director) and Jens Visholm Uglebjerg (DSB, Executive Vice President, Commercial Division).
Oliver Hirschfeld (DB) opened the thematic block with a legal analysis of how alternative dispute resolutions differ from standard court proceedings, explaining the difference between mediation, conciliation and arbitration. This was followed by national contributions: Willem Maarten van Luijn (NS) discussed the Dutch experience, Ulrike Fiedler (DB) reported from Germany, and Lone Fruerskov Andersen (DSB) described Danish practice and the function of the DSB Customer Ambassador.
The innovation session included Kim Bøgholt Max Petersen (DSB), who presented DSB’s automation/AI project and Bertrand Minary, who outlined UIC’s work on multimodality and real-time data.
Finally, the topic of force majeure was discussed. Nina Scherf (CIT) explained the legal implications, while Jessica Hamburger (DB) illustrated DB’s operational application.
Afternoon workshop: interactive survey & case analyses
As in previous years, the afternoon began with an interactive Mentimeter survey. Results showed strong interest in “ombudsman-type” models—particularly the DSB Customer Ambassador, and a generally positive view of the potential of alternative dispute resolution to deliver fair outcomes. The workshop then analysed a number of cases in depth, focusing on issues such as competence, re-routing, reimbursement of costs, as well as the roles of issuing undertakings, successive (contractual) carriers and ticket vendors.
Conclusions and next steps
The conference validated the crucial role of face-to-face exchange among railway undertakings and recognised the essential day-to-day work of colleagues handling passenger claims. The next Passenger Claims Conference is expected to take place in Luxembourg on 30 September 2026, with CFL as the hosting railway (to be confirmed in due course).