Mulled wine and cups: is that really legal?

Mulled wine and cups: is that really legal?

In the fascinating world of Christmas markets, once again a central question arises: Can you take the pretty mulled wine cups home with you? This was recently initiated by singer Sandra Hesch when she enjoyed a punch in her sweet boot Häferl on the Christkindlmarkt on the campus and asked her followers on Instagram, whether taking the cup with them was legal or not. The answers to this are split. Over 80 percent of their followers believe that taking the cup is allowed, while the comments on the platform "Today" are being discussed. A lawyer, on the other hand, found that it is legally theft, even if many do not consider this to be punishable - and for good reason.

deposit and legal gray zones

As the criminal law expert Martin Soukup explains, the deposit is usually so high for the cups that nobody actually achieves a profit if they simply take the cup. Providers of Christmas market stalls rarely pursue such “cup thieves” because criminal prosecution requires an active advertisement on the part of the stand operator. In practice, he sees little chance of taking legal consequences for taking away - a fact that is supported by other lawyers such as Jürgen Möthrath. The latter made it clear that although it is legally a embezzlement in accordance with Section 248a of the Criminal Code, the cups are often considered a "souvenir" in practice. In cities such as Frankfurt and Leipzig, they have agreed on a kind of goodwill: taking away is tolerated and even celebrated.

Even if the legal foundations appear somewhat complex, the fact remains that many people in the Christmas markets have fewer moral concerns after a few mulled wines. Both the stand operators and the cities seem to have a relaxed attitude towards this phenomenon. They even encourage their visitors to take home these special cups as a souvenir, which further questions the conventional ideas of "theft". However, if you are still unsure, you should always ask whether a cup can be taken with you to be on the safe side. This could relieve your own morality and enjoy the stall operators - according to the festive time of charity. Like the reporting on the website of as well as the analysis on Situation when taking the cup remains an exciting topic of conversation on the markets.