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What happens if you board a train, metro or bus in Denmark without a ticket?

Most people who travel on public transport in Denmark use an app, like Rejsekort's or DSB's, but you can still easily buy paper tickets, so Danish ticket inspectors tend to be quite strict if they catch you without one.

Published: 29 May 2024 10:59 CEST
What happens if you board a train, metro or bus in Denmark without a ticket?
A DSB train departing from Copenhagen Central Station. Photo: Astrid Maria Busse Rasmussen/DSB

What happens if you are caught without a ticket on a DSB train, an S-train commuter train, or metro train? 

Denmark has a “self-service principle” for tickets on public transport, which applies to all public transport, trains, the metro, or buses, regardless of the operator.  

This means that while there are no ticket gates to get onto either platforms or trains, you are responsible for having a ticket before you board, and are likely to receive a fine from a ticket inspector if caught without one. 

Ticket inspectors in Denmark are not only empowered to hit you with a 750 kroner fine, but are required to do so, so you are unlikely to be able to get out of paying by pretending not to understand the rules, for example.  

After you’ve received the fine, you can continue your journey, and have 14 days to either pay up or prove you had a valid ticket for the journey in question.

If you did have a valid reason for not having a ticket, like you forgot to renew your monthly pass which expired the day before, for example, you can in some cases appeal your fine and get a discount, but this is by no means guaranteed.

Can you board a train, then buy a ticket on an app before the inspector comes to you? 

This depends on the type of train you have taken.

If you are on an InterCity train, you will find the DSB and Rejsekort apps do not permit you to buy a ticket after the train has departed. For some trains the deadline is five minutes before departure, so it’s always better to buy your ticket well in advance to avoid missing this deadline.

If you find yourself in a rush and end up jumping on a train before you manage to buy a ticket, your best bet is to try and buy a ticket from the next stop, although any ticket conductors would be perfectly within their rights to issue you a fine if you do this, as legally, you’re not allowed to step onto the train without a valid ticket.

If you are on a regional DSB train, the situation is slightly different. These use Zone Tickets or Zonebilletten, which are not linked to a specific departure time.

This means once you’ve boarded your train you may be able to quickly buy a ticket on one of the apps before the inspector comes. Occasionally, ticket inspectors show mercy and let you buy a ticket if they check you soon after departure, but don’t count on this.

Zone tickets give you the right to travel for a specific period over a specific number of zones, either in Zealand, Lolland, Falster and Mon, or else in Jutland and Funen. 

Do you need a seat reservation? 

Domestic trains in Denmark never need a seat reservation, so while the cheaper Orange tickets can be sold out, you can always buy a standard ticket for any departure, even if it is completely booked up. You may end up not getting a seat, however.

Very occasionally, if a train is extremely crowded – for example after a festival or football match – the guard may ask some of those without seat reservations to leave the train. If this happens you can use your ticket on the next train. 

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SAS

Airline SAS announces end of restructuring and leaves bankruptcy protection

Scandinavian airline SAS is no longer undergoing a bankruptcy protection process which has overshadowed the company for two years.

Published: 28 August 2024 10:16 CEST
Airline SAS announces end of restructuring and leaves bankruptcy protection

Airline SAS said on Tuesday its immediate future was secure and confirmed the appointment of a new board.

In a statement, the company said it had emerged from the restructuring process as a “a competitive and financially robust airline with a strengthened capital structure”.

Since 2022, SAS has been embroiled in a bankruptcy protection (Chapter 11) process in the United States, obliging the company to report accounting figures each month.

The airline’s new principal owners are Castlelake, Air France-KLM, Lind Invest and the Danish State, with the new chairman of the board named as Kåre Schultz, whose CV includes a spell as deputy CEO with pharmaceutical giant Novo Nordisk.

The airline’s restructuring has meanwhile involved a move from the Star Alliance to SkyTeam code-sharing network.

READ ALSO: EXPLAINED: How SAS’s decision to switch airline alliance will affect travellers

“SAS has done a truly impressive job in navigating through the restructuring proceedings, and in building a competitive business positioned for growth,” Schultz said in the statement. 

“Together with SAS’ new investors, board and management, as well as with our partners in the SkyTeam alliance, we will continue to collaborate with partners and customers to drive transformative changes in aviation,” he said.

The end of the bankruptcy protection procedure had been expected. SAS previously announced it would see the process through by the end of this summer, and the company was delisted from the stock exchange on August 13th.

The airline’s corporate restructuring has been approved by the United States and the EU as well as the Swedish legal system.

Some 1.2 billion dollars have been injected into the company by its new owners.

SAS can now begin to focus its efforts elsewhere, aviation analyst Jacob Pedersen of Danish bank Sydbank said in a comment to the Ritzau newswire.

“After a big rescue operation, SAS is now in a significantly better financial position,” he said.

“The company has far less debt, far lower costs, and more money in its coffers from the new ownership group,” he said.

Schultz’ first and most important task will be to plan the airline’s future growth, Pedersen added.

“SAS has almost permanently shrunk during the last 20 years, but we are likely to now see a SAS with more of an appetite for growth,” he said.

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