Stopped by the German police: here's what you need to know

Being stopped by police in a foreign country can be nerve-wracking: you don't know what the police can and can't do, or what your rights are. So here are a few tips for anyone visiting Germany, just in case.

Chapters:
00:00 I am not a lawyer!
00:32 How good are the German police?
01:51 General traffic check
02:49 Should you refuse a breath test?
03:25 Should you give a urine sample?
04:03 Other random stops
05:34 Must you answer their questions?
06:42 Watch what you say

Music:
"Style Funk" and "Hot Swing"
Creative Commons Attribution licence

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[SomePotato]

One more thing. In Germany it is actually illegal to insult someone. And while most people won't call the police if you call them an idiot, if you say it to a police officer, they are most of the time more than happy to fill out the paperwork and get you fined.

[frauleintrude]

The only time in my life I had an encounter with police was during the late seventies. Missed the last train and walked home in a not very populated area. They stopped at the roadside and asked me what I am doing all alone in this area late at night. Told them that I missed the train and that it was just a 15 minutes walk and they gave me a ride home! Seriously nice guys.

[olli]

The best story of being stopped by the German police happened to a friend of mine many years ago. He was 17 at that time, riding his bicycle on his way back home from a party. It was late at night an he was just coming out of a forest on a small path with no other traffic around. The last thing he had expected in that moment was a police patrol and so he was very surprised when two officers stopped him.
He didn't behave suspicious, but the fact that he was riding his bicycle without any lights on and free-handed might have been the reason they stopped him and the obvious smell of alcohol might have led them to the assumption that he was not very fit to ride.
So when asked "did you drink alcohol recently" he didn't even deny and when they told him it was not save to ride hands-free through the dark forest without the lights on, he answered "but you always tell people to keep their hand off the wheel when drunk!" The officers burst out laughing and after checking his ID and noticing that he had only a few hundred meters left to go home they let him go without any consequences. He only had to promise to push the bicycle the rest of the way and of course not to ride when drunk in the future.

Sometimes it can be that easy.

[xred_ray]

My dad regularly gets stopped in his car. He goes fishing on Sunday morning. Unfortunately, at the time he gets on his way the last partygoers from the night before are on their way home, and they are often not sober.
Police have a routine control point on the main roads out of the city. He just rolls down his window, says good morning, tells them where he‘s coming from and that he is going fishing and has not been drinking, all before they get a word out. „How do you know what I was going to ask?“ „You‘re here every Sunday morning, aren’t you?“
They usually wish him good luck and that’s it.

[ohauss]

Real interaction reported in a newspaper: Police observe a t-junction notorious for people not stopping to watch for cross traffic. Asking one lady if she knows why they stopped her, she replies "Oh, I'm sorry, I know I shouldn't have used my mobile while driving..." And that's how she got fined for two traffic offenses instead of one...

[rogermoyer]

I approached a police officer in Essen and said "Excuse me, may I ask you a question?" She answered my question and then asked me why I asked her permission. I explained that where I came from (USA), police are not known for being open and polite. My only other direct contact (outside of border control and customs) with German police during 8 years living here was during my first month of driving in Germany. I was stopped by a cop walking his beat. After determining my nationality and listening to my lame excuse for not wearing my seat belt, the officer explained the rules, handed me a ticket and said "welcome to Germany."

[therealdante]

The "Did you know why we stopped you?" advice is doubly important, because even if you know what you did wrong, you might get into more trouble just by admitting it. There is something called "Vorsatz" (intent), which can give them grounds to DOUBLE the fine. Stopped because of excessive speed? If you say "I know, I was a little too fast" -> you know it was wrong, but you did it anyway (as opposed to missing a sign, or not checking the speedometer at that moment) -> twice the fine.

[fariesz]

i'd make one exception to the "don't tell them anything they didn't ask for" and that is when they do search you and you have any medical equipment with you (i for instance am a diabetic and at times i had ADHD medication with me) it is better to tell them ahead of time instead of having to explain when they find it. typically that makes them friendlier too in my experience (probably makes them think i'm just a poor sod and don't want to be mean to me)

[pillmuncher]

Once I walked through the underground floor of the Stachus S-Bahn station in Munich when I was stopped by two pubescent police officers. They asked me "Shouldn't you be at school right now?". They were a little embarrassed when they found out I was 30.

[forestmanzpedia]

I was on my way to school. With the car of the grandfather of my brother-in-law. It was a car with a Dutch licence plate. One day, I did end up in a Verkehrskontrolle. They did ask me for my drivers licence and Zulassungsschein. I was scared getting a fine because there wasn't one that could be given to the police. So I gave them every Dutch document that were in the car and told them I borrowed this car from my brother-in-law's grandfather. The police officers were very confused and didn't know what to do with the Dutch documents since they cant understand Dutch. Eventually, they said it's all good, they checked the licence plate online to see if it was stolen and they let me go. The car obviosuly wasn't registered as stolen.

[GBlockbreaker]

as a german i've not once been stopped by the police or even talked to any officer directly, closest i ever got was when one came to our class to tell us that drugs are bad and another time during bycicle class where they just rode with us

[HenryLoenwind]

You missed one very important point: It is ok to initiate contact with the police. You can ask them for directions or other advice without having to fear them retaliating for being bothered.

Also, I'd suggest engaging in smalltalk when you are the subject of the interaction. For one, it has a chance to put the officer in a good mood, but it also shows that you are relaxed and not antagonistic. Last but not least, allows you to steer the conversation, reducing the number of questions the officer can think of.

[gordonmilligan]

One small addition for completeness sake. Although there is no *general* requirement to carry an ID document with you, this requirement does exist under the "verschärfte Ausweispflicht" regulations for those engaged in certain occupations while at work where illegal working is often a problem: construction, catering etc

[Arlo]

I’m Canadian but go to visit my Grandpa in Germany on occasion.. Have been approached by Polizei (mostly at train stations) several times and by the time they see Canada on the front of my passport they’re on their way telling me to have a good trip. Never a bad experience at all.

[buck]

It's not super common, but sometimes criminals pose as policemen in order to con people, especially tourists, so it's very helpful to know what the police may and may not demand from you.

[bananenmusli]

I was once stopped by the police here in Bavaria as I was riding my bike without a rear light because the battery was empty and when they stepped out of their vehicle one officer said he smells weed and then they searched me and a friend of mine who was with me at that time. Of course they found nothing, because I was quite young back then and didn't even know how weed smells. All in all it was an interesting experience

[maikek.]

In my experience, being friendly mostly does the trick. I notice that uniforms are increasingly surprised when you nod a friendly greeting to the officers on the beat or smile when stopped in a traffic check. 😊 And, obviously, don‘t drink and drive. Helps a lot.

[clausohlhoff]

As a former german policeman I must say, that everything, that you said in this video, is completely right. I am surprised, that a man from UK is informed so good about the rights of the police and the rights of the "normal" citizens in Germany. All your suggestions seem to be very reasonable for me. By the way: I find it very interesting to hear about the perception of people from other countries about Germany, as you perform in this and other videos. That changes my own perception sometimes. Sorry, if I made mistakes in my comment, I am not very well versed in writing in english.

[coyotelong]

As an American I was stopped and frisked by police in Berlin while out for a walk in Kreuzberg along the Landwehrkanal and it terrified me… Turned out it was a case of mistaken identity because they were looking for a suspect in a red t-shirt (I was wearing a red t-shirt) and they let me go

[bummionterra]

There are some missing/wrong issues:
1.) There's a federal and a state police. The federal police works expecially at airport, railway station and near borders - the have the right to inspect and search you within these areas (or nearby).
2.) Refusing the breathalyzer at a traffic stop is a good idea: The test of the police (in Magdeburg, Germany) shows up nearly 50% wrong results - but if a breathalyzer shows more alcohol than you are allowed it must not be confirmed by blood test. It's already an evidence of your guilty at court.
3.) Remaining silent is no reason of being suspicion or evidence of being guitly. BUT: remaining silent only at a "special" questions is a reasonable suspicion and evident hint of guilt- not only at interactions with police but also at the court.
4.) Police will often ask you for permission: can I ask ... can I look into ... with your once given OK they can do a lot of things - the better way is: "I don't want this. Do you order me to ... ?" - Then it's a "Verwaltungsakt" (=adminisitrative act) which they must justify for - with your "permission" they must not justify any more.
5.) Insulting or filming police is not ok in Germany: Insulting is always a crime (when it's not done by both sides). Filming or taking pictures of police officers in the public is no problem - but at recording voices it's not so easy: it's not clear if police have got a private sphere even on duty ... and recording the "private word" is a crime.
6.) You must NEVER sign anything. By signing some "marks" you may give permission to unlawful actions of the police - see 4.) ... and they must not justify them. Every act can be handled later on and nothing needs your sign. The only signs that must be given are by the police on protocols or confirmations about confiscated things.
7.) If you are taken to a police station the justification is to ensure your identity - and to trick you into self acclamation by your own testify ... go to the station - let them check your identity - and then say goodby immediatelly. If you will be arrested (because you killed somebody...) they will arrest you: but thats far out of the normal situation (hopefully) and also a judge must be involved as far as possible ... and you are allowed to get the advise of your lawyer at ANY point of investigation, ANY point of accusation by the attorney and ANY interaction with court and judge.