After the attack on the Christmas market in Magdeburg, around 200 victims and relatives have so far contacted the psychological counseling hotline of the victim’s office, reporting a high response rate. Rund 400 injured and relatives had received a letter from the federal and state of Saxony-Anhalt’s victim’s office on December 23, three days after the attack, informing them of the help hotline.
Magdeburg is not classified as a terrorist attack like the one in Berlin in 2016, and therefore the victims’ families are likely to receive lower compensation. “The compensation payments will be lower than in the case of a terrorist attack” said the federal victim’s office, Roland Weber, to the “Welt am Sonntag”. “For victims of physical and psychological violence, the Social Compensation Act and the Social Code Book 14 apply. New are quick help measures.”
This includes immediate help in a trauma ambulance. On the other hand, those entitled to benefits will be supported by case managers in the application process for social compensation and in the further administrative process, if desired. However, Weber still holds out hope: “In the Magdeburg case, it must be legally checked whether the liability insurance applies and whether claims can arise for the victims.” Since the perpetrator used a rental car for his fatal journey, the liability insurance may be relevant. For terrorist victims, the “guideline for the payment of hardship benefits for victims of terrorist and extremist acts from the federal budget” with higher benefits applies.
The legal policy spokesperson of the Union faction in the Bundestag, Günter Krings (CDU), is now calling for equal treatment of victims. The legal basis must be “adapted as quickly as possible”, he said to the “Welt am Sonntag”. It is not understandable if the victims of Magdeburg are to be expected to receive less state help because the perpetrator was possibly mentally ill and not a terrorist or extremist. The victims’ suffering is the same, regardless of the perpetrator’s motivation. Krings is the chairman of the NRW state group in his faction.