Wheelchair user Norbert (70) told to pay ORF company fee: 'I am not a company'

TVS News AI, editorially supervised, presents Wheelchair user Norbert (70) told to pay ORF company fee: 'I am not a company'.

Imagine: you need care because your body no longer cooperates the way you want it to in everyday life – and then you're treated like a business. That's exactly what Norbert Hofer is currently experiencing. The 70-year-old is in a wheelchair due to paraplegia and depends on care workers. Now he's being told to pay the ORF company fee – because he employs care workers.

Who is Norbert Hofer?

Norbert Hofer is 70 years old and confined to a wheelchair. The reason is paraplegia, which makes him dependent on support in everyday life. To make daily life work, he employs care workers who assist him at home.

What's being demanded of him?

As Focus reports, Norbert Hofer is being asked to pay not the regular ORF household fee, but the ORF company fee. The background is that he employs care workers – which apparently categorizes him as a "company" in the Austrian fee system, even though he doesn't run a business himself.

His response

His reaction to the notice is direct:

I am not a company.

What the case shows

The case raises a fundamental question: how does the fee system treat people who depend on care and must employ staff for it – without running a company themselves? Those who depend on help at home generally have no choice whether they "employ" care workers or not. For Norbert Hofer, it's simply a prerequisite for managing everyday life.