OGH: Termination of a student dorm room due to Distance Learning
The Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, OGH) has decided that the switch to distance learning at a university entitles the student to terminate a student dormitory prematurely.
In the case at hand, the student from Slovakia had rented a room in the dormitory of the defendant dormitory operator. Under the terms of the contract, the student had the option to terminate the contract on December 15 (winter semester) and April 30 (summer semester). Due to the lockdown of her University of Applied Sciences, the student spent the following weeks in Bratislava. International train and bus connections between Vienna and Bratislava were also cancelled.
The student terminated the tenancy agreement for good cause. The lower courts dismissed her claim for repayment of usage fees paid after termination.
The OGH, on the other hand, ruled in favour of the student:
To begin with, the renting of student accommodation is subject to the Student Accommodation Act (Studentenheimgesetz, StudHG) as a special tenancy and leasehold right. Nevertheless, large parts of the Austrian General Civil Code (Allgemeines Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch, ABGB) remain applicable. Although Section 12 StudHG provides for separate grounds for termination, Sec. 1117 ABGB remains applicable. Section 1117 ABGB entitles the tenant to terminate the contract if she cannot use the rented object as agreed for reasons for which she is not responsible or which are not attributable to her sphere of influence. In addition to the wording, other important reasons that make the continuation of the contractual relationship unreasonable also entitle the tenant to do so.
The OGH considered the corona-related change from face-to-face teaching to distance learning at the University of Applied Sciences, including the travel restrictions between the place of study and the student's place of residence, as an important reason, which is also not within the student's control.
In the case of early termination, the purpose of the specific contract is of central importance. The purpose of renting student dormitory places is to offer students who do not live at the place of study the opportunity to participate in the teaching at a higher education institution on site in personal exchange with the teachers and other students. This purpose of the contract of use was not achieved under these circumstances. The student could not reasonably be expected to use her dormitory room.
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