Recht im Alltag: Restaurantrechnung: Muss der Letzte alles zahlen?

In the world of everyday life, a question arises: does the last person always have to pay the restaurant bill? Frédéric Prinz von Anhalt claimed this happened to him at the Wiesn fairgrounds, but it's not uncommon for groups to disperse after a meal, with the final diner settling their tab while others leave unpaid. Rechtsanwalt Christian Bereska clarifies that if multiple guests order individually, separate bills are typically issued.

The person remaining at the end of the meal should not be forced to pay for everyone else. The bill is only considered a collective invoice if someone initially suggests paying everything from their own account. The waiter's individual billing of each guest, without a joint agreement on a shared bill, means each diner has a separate contract with the host and owes only what they ordered.

The host cannot insist that the last diner pay the remainder, according to Bereska. Thus, general contract laws apply, depending on how the contract was formed. While it may seem that the final guest often bears the brunt of the unpaid amount, they may be able to recover from others who didn't pay their share, legally. The Anwalt emphasizes that intentionally refusing to pay one's share constitutes fraud.

Christian Bereska, a Fachanwalt for Handels- and Gesellschaftsrecht in Celle, Niedersachsen, and chairman of the Zivilrechtsausschuss at the Deutschen Anwaltverein, emphasizes that simply standing up and not paying one's portion is more than just inconsiderate; it's also fraudulent if done intentionally.