Build specialist knowledge
Use the book and knowledge library to create a consistent technical, commercial and role-based foundation.
German automotive claims practice · Management perspective
From claim intake to controlled claims management.
A practical management system for dealerships and repair businesses that combines specialist knowledge, workforce training, operational diagnostics and digital case handling — with clear boundaries between consulting and live customer-case processing.
One systemTwo clearly separated operating levels.
Management and controlBusiness level
Operational execution
The specialist book is currently available in German. This English website provides a fully localised overview of the method, services and key knowledge topics.
One system, four functions
Knowledge, capability, management control and digital execution.
The four components are deliberately separated. The book explains the system. Training standardises how the team works. R-SOS analyses the repair business and its profit leakage.
Qualify the team
Train service advisors, claims managers and management teams to work to one documented operating standard.
Neutralise profit leakage
Use R-SOS to identify process weaknesses, quantify commercial exposure and prioritise implementation.
Commercial management
Claims handling is working-capital management.
A technically correct repair does not automatically create a commercially controlled process. Missing approvals, incomplete evidence, undecided deductions and absent follow-up ownership tie up cash and consume management attention.
Clarityclaim route, roles and next action
Evidencecomplete, traceable and linked to the vehicle
Controldeadlines, responsibilities and escalation
Cashinvoice readiness and Days to Cash
Living demonstration case
Demo claim file SN-2026-0529-0047 · Weber.
The fictitious Weber case — a third-party liability claim — also runs through the German specialist book. Here it demonstrates the operational role of a digital claims file: from vehicle-document scan and RKÜ to customer signature, assignment of the partners the customer has instructed, and a traceable digital evidence chain.
Two lines of cover. Two responsibilities. The Weber case family runs through the whole book as a continuous worked example — with third-party liability claims and comprehensive-cover claims, each case in its own right. The demo file on this page is a liability claim. Which line of cover applies is settled at the outset of every claim — and it decides who writes.
In a liability claim
The law firm leads. You provide evidence.
- The customer instructs the firm — documented in the case file.
- The dealership establishes technical facts: photo, measurement, manufacturer specification, timestamp.
- If the assessment service deducts, the file passes to the firm ready for handover — with no legal assessment of its own.
The dealership does not write here.
In a comprehensive claim
You reply. In your own right.
- The customer has assigned the claim to the business by way of security assignment — whether a business works this way is its own commercial decision.
- The business submits evidence on the necessity of its own work — labour value, manufacturer specification, measurement record. That is a statement of fact, not a legal service.
- Every reduced item is evidenced individually rather than disputed in the abstract. Whatever remains technically unclear is the business’s own decision.
Here — and only here — the business writes itself.
The line between the two is not a precaution, it is the basis of the business: we provide no legal services. The RDG traffic light draws it item by item.
Model case · Third-party liability · all figures invented
File SN-2026-0529-0047 · Weber
Mid-size estate car, first registered 03/2023, 62,000 km. Rear-end collision at a traffic light on Friday 29 May 2026. Liability 100 % with the other party, undisputed. Repaired in-house, handed back on Friday 12 June 2026 — with Corpus Christi in between, on which the business was closed. Assessment by the expert the customer instructed.
The claim
| Repair invoice (€7,319.00 net) | €8,709.61 |
| Assessor's fee | €1,094.80 |
| Loss of use, 15 days × €50 (group F) | €750.00 |
| Diminished market value | €600.00 |
| Flat-rate expenses | €25.00 |
| Total claim | €11,179.41 |
What the assessment report deducts
| Referral to lower hourly rates | −€679.49 |
| Parts surcharges “not recoverable” | −€442.68 |
| Transfer costs “not customary locally” | −€211.82 |
| Paint material reduced to index | −€108.29 |
| Assessor's ancillary costs | −€71.40 |
| Loss of use, 15 → 11 days “repair duration not plausible” | −€200.00 |
| Diminished value €600 → €350 | −€250.00 |
| Flat-rate expenses €25 → €20 | −€5.00 |
| Total deduction · 17.6 % | −€1,968.68 |
And now the dealership writes not a single sentence. All eight items go to the law firm the customer instructed — it conducts the dispute with the insurer. The dealership supplies what only it can supply: photographs taken before disassembly, manufacturer specifications, labour records, transfer documentation, repair start and finish with timestamps. And the public holiday. Corpus Christi is not a nationwide holiday in Germany — whether it counts depends on the federal state the business sits in. The system holds it by date and postcode, so nobody has to look it up. The same eight items in a comprehensive-cover claim — and the business replies itself.
Before and after
From fragmented information to an operationally controlled file.
The same case can either depend on individual memory or be managed through documented roles, evidence and next actions.
Before
- Information split across email, paper and verbal notes
- Claim route not documented
- Approval status unclear
- Photographs without a consistent vehicle link
- No accountable next action
- Deductions and receivables remain unresolved
After
- One digital claim file with unique case ID
- Claim route and customer instruction recorded
- RKÜ and digital signature in the evidence chain
- Partners assigned from the case file
- Open tasks and next responsibility visible
- Operational status ready for management review
R-SOS management diagnostics
Neutralise profit leakage in the repair business.
R-SOS is a consulting and management tool. It is not a customer claims portal and is not used to process an individual claim. It analyses workflows, responsibilities, cost drivers, control weaknesses and implementation priorities within the dealership or repair business.
R-SOS · Management cockpitBusiness diagnosis, not a customer claim
Process deviationRelease logic inconsistent
Commercial impactmedium–high
Working capitalReview pre-financing
AccountabilityService management
Priority1 · immediate
Management KPIDocumented releases
Illustrative diagnostic output
- Cause
- No mandatory release status
- Commercial impact
- Uncontrolled pre-financing and invoicing risk
- Priority
- High
- Countermeasure
- Introduce a release traffic light with owner and evidence requirement
- Management output
- Week 1 action · owner: service management · KPI: documented releases
Training and specialist advice
Different target groups. One shared understanding of the process.
Dealership teams require a common operating standard. Automotive damage assessors need a commercially viable business model. Motor claims law firms need a practical understanding of dealership economics, documentation and handovers.
01Dealership / repair businessCustomer contact, repair capacity and pre-financing
02Automotive damage assessorTechnical findings, evidence and damage assessment
03Motor claims law firmLegal evaluation, communication and enforcement
Clear roles · complete handovers · shared file logic
Claims-management training
For service teams, claims managers and management: liability and comprehensive routes, role separation, evidence, deductions and Days to Cash.
Consulting for automotive damage assessors
For technically qualified professionals preparing self-employment or developing an existing vehicle damage assessment practice.
Dealership operations workshop for law firms
A one-day operational programme for motor claims law firms that want to understand dealership processes and develop credible automotive client relationships.
Specialist book
A 61-chapter operating reference for the claims process.
Schadenmanagement im Autohaus follows the process from counter intake to payment receipt. It combines technical documentation, German claims practice, role separation, deduction management, Days to Cash and the digital evidence chain. The book is currently available in German.
Chapters
Structured across ten parts plus supporting material.
Pages
Designed for practical use by dealership and repair-business teams.
Editorial status
German-law content reviewed to August 2026; market data as at July 2026.
Specialist knowledge
German claims practice translated into operational decisions.
The English knowledge library covers technical, commercial and legal-interface topics. Each page identifies the operational consequence for dealerships while reserving individual legal assessment for authorised professionals.
Evidence-ready digital claims file
Identity, claim route, approvals, photographs, communication and next responsibility in one traceable record.
Claims deduction management
Classify deductions, test the evidence chain and reach a documented commercial decision.
Days to Cash
Measure the time and working capital between service delivery, invoice readiness and payment.
ADAS and high-voltage work
Integrate safety-critical operations into estimating, evidence and billing.
Professional responsibility
F. Roll, MSc, MBA
Automotive claims management specialist working at the interface between dealerships, insurers, automotive damage assessors and legal professionals since 1998. Author of Schadenmanagement im Autohaus and developer of the R-SOS management consulting system.
Last reviewed: September 2026 · The specialist book is currently available in German.
Frequently asked questions
Clear separation creates a controllable system.
The English website is designed for international decision-makers working with German automotive claims practice.
Is R-SOS part of the customer claim file?
No. R-SOS is a management consulting diagnostic for the dealership or repair business. It analyses the operating process, not the individual case.
Is the specialist book available in English?
The complete specialist book is currently available in German. An English overview and selected translated materials are available on request.
Does the website provide legal advice?
No. The legal knowledge pages relate to German law and automotive claims practice but do not replace case-specific advice by authorised legal professionals.
Central third-party liability-claim route
Report a third-party liability claim through.
This protected process is exclusively for injured third parties in a motor liability claim. The form is available in German and English, with seven additional language options: French, Italian, Spanish, Polish, Turkish, Dutch and Ukrainian.
Liquidity model · Days to Cash
What could fewer outstanding days mean mathematically?
This model makes tied-up liquidity visible. It uses only your assumptions and is neither a business analysis nor a performance forecast.
Modelled reduction0 days
Mathematically earlier available liquidity€0
Formula: monthly volume ÷ 30 × positive day reduction. Model only, not a guarantee; case mix, partial payments, disputed amounts and payment routes are excluded.
Next step
Clarify the right route for your business.
Request the German book sample, discuss a training format, or enquire about an R-SOS process analysis. We respond personally, usually within one working day.
The English-language website explains the complete system. The specialist book is currently available in German. English-language training and materials are available by individual agreement.