A creditor of your tenant serves you with an order. It concerns their claim for return of the deposit against you. You are to respond as the garnishee (Drittschuldnerin). The file therefore does not simply belong in the normal rent reminder file nor should it be left unnoticed in the deposit folder until the next move-out.
First establish what was actually served
Keep the order, attachments and proof of service together. Record the named persons, the garnished claim and the time of service. Arrange for an expert review at an early stage if the allocation, scope or individual directions are unclear.
Pursuant to § 829 ZPO the court prohibits the garnishee from paying the debtor; the garnishment is deemed effected upon service on her. [PFAENDUNG] A planned payment to the tenant must therefore not continue unchecked according to the previous procedure. The decisive factor is the claim actually recorded.
Treat the request for a declaration as a separate deadline task
If the request under § 840 is transmitted together with the garnishment order, a declaration must be made to the creditor on request within two weeks of service. The provision asks, among other things, about acknowledgement and willingness to pay, claims of other persons and any existing garnishments. It provides for liability for damages arising from failure to fulfil this duty. [ERKLAERUNG]
Therefore do not note only a later payment date. Organise the review and reply within the specific deadline. The declaration should reflect the position actually reviewed; this article does not replace it with a blanket acknowledgement.
Prepare the deposit file for the reply
Place the security agreement, payment receipts, current balance and contractual status side by side. Which person is entitled, what security was actually provided and which claims or prior dispositions are documented? An existing cash amount alone does not yet answer every question about the alleged repayment claim.
Our editorial recommendation: Separate documented facts from open legal questions. Whether and when which amount is owed, what objections exist and how other entitlements operate will be clarified on a professional basis using these documents. Where there are multiple tenants, the claim named in the order must not be equated without review with the entire deposit balance.
Fictional case: The reply cannot wait until move-out
Lea receives the service during an ongoing tenancy. Her initial working note reads: deal with deposit later. However, in the documents she also finds the request for a declaration.
She records the receipt, has the specific deadline determined and submits the deposit file for review. In the prepared reply secured information and open points are addressed correctly. The order is not ignored simply because no handover of the flat is yet planned; at the same time the entire deposit is not transferred immediately merely because the order was received.
Link the later payment route with the reviewed position
§ 835 distinguishes between transfer of the garnished claim for collection and as payment in lieu. [UEBERWEISUNG] Therefore have it established which direction actually exists and what a possible performance would entail.
Keep the result of the reply, outstanding reviews and the confirmed payment route together in a comprehensible way. When the deposit file is finalised later this procedure will be referenced again. An old payment routine must not override the effectively clarified garnishment status. The result is a garnishee task handled within the deadline with a reviewed claim status, not an unexamined immediate payment.