Legal advice and reality in Germany are 2 different things. The truth is that dealing with any kind of legal situation in Germany is a huge headache and all you get in the end is to prove you are right and get what should be yours anyway, without any additional compensation for your trouble. And many companies use this to abuse the system. The landlord can steal a small part of your deposit, you can only sue. But nobody's going to go through this hell for, say, €100, so the landlord gets to keep €100. Of course you can sue, but it will cost you a lot more than 100€ (even with insurance there is usually a deductible of 300€+) and it will take at least a year. And pretty much everything works this way.
In theory. But if the landlord is hiding (or, more accurately, if the bailiffs don't do their job), you end up paying for everything. But good news! The court order is valid for 30 years, so you might get it all back in the end (probably not).
