Automotive Right to Repair: why OEM gateways remain a mirage
EU regulation 2018/858 guarantees independent shops access to technical data. In practice, access remains slow, expensive, and incomplete on connected vehicles.
Custom software for garage & auto repair.
Garages handle complex repair orders, a tight workshop schedule, and customer reminders essential for profitability. Market DMS are either too expensive or poorly suited to independents.
01What we solve
Three recurring problems.
The same in most firms.
Before talking software, we talk pain points. If you don't recognize any of these three, we are probably not the right partner for you.
- 01
Customers forget their service, they go elsewhere
No automated reminders for service, inspection, seasonal tyre change. The customer goes to a competitor who remembers them. That's 30% of your recurring revenue evaporating.
30% recurring revenue lost for lack of reminders
- 02
Repair orders drag in the workshop
Paper ROs, photos taken on the foreman's personal phone, quotes validated by phone. The customer waits, the RO sleeps, the part isn't ordered. Slipping deadlines and unhappy customers.
20-30% of workshop time lost waiting for admin
- 03
Workshop scheduling is a puzzle
How many bays, how many mechanics, who can do what: it's all in the foreman's head. When they're absent, chaos. Overbookings, specialist underuse, equipment conflicts.
15-20% workshop-bay underuse on average
02Complex or critical software
The systems that
cannot fail.
When your processes require a replayable audit trail, sagas with compensation, or compliance by construction, we ship an event-driven architecture (DDD + CQRS + Event Sourcing), not a CRUD layered with audit logs.
Replayable 2-year legal warranty
Every intervention on a vehicle (parts replaced, labour, advice given) is kept tamper-proof. In a warranty dispute 2 years later, exact reconstruction of the diagnosis and acts, evidence admissible to the conciliator or court.
Local courtDGCCRF
Right to Repair and OEM tool access
Management of OEM technical-portal access (RMI, OBFCM, emissions data), traceability of vehicle security-code purchases, compliance with EU regulation 2018/858 on independent right to repair (tightened in 2026). Avoids repair blockages from missing OEM-data access.
RMIOBFCMTecdocEtai
Insurance-claim steering
Full cycle Claim → Expertise → Quote → Insurer validation → Repair → Billing, with clean rollback if expertise rejects a service mid-way. History replayable to GTA Assurance or in case of alleged fraud.
GTA AssuranceMobiliansSinistroscope
EV reconditioning and batteries
EV-specific intervention tracking: high-voltage battery diagnosis, B2L / IRVE electrical-certification management, traceability of removed batteries (LOM law and EU Battery Regulation 2027), invoicing of eco-bonus services with ASP audit. Avoids ASP sanctions on bonus fraud and secures your garage's EV transition.
ASPEU Battery RegulationB2L certifications
03Mobile and web applications
The day-to-day apps,
screen by screen.
For everything else (CRM, portals, scheduling, billing), we ship a custom application, on your design system and with your existing integrations.
Digital repair orders
RO created in 5 minutes at the counter, photos from the app, customer electronic signature, quote sent by SMS for validation. Every RO is traced: who, when, what, how much.
YousignSMS Factor
Workshop scheduling per bay
Workshop Gantt view: bays, mechanics, specialties. Skill-based assignment (electrical, mechanical, body), shared-equipment management (lift, diagnostic computer). Conflicts detected at creation.
Outlook
Service and inspection reminders
Automatic detection of next services by mileage and brand, SMS / email reminders for inspection, seasonal tyre changes. Customer engagement over 3-5 years.
SMS FactorBrevo
Fleet tracking for business customers
For business customers (companies, lessors): fleet-tracking portal, planned next services, invoice consolidation, maintenance contracts. Strong B2B retention.
Stripe
04Regulations & integrations
What we handle natively,
no add-ons.
Business compliance and key integrations are not options, they are prerequisites built in from the start.
Legal & commercial warranty
2-year legal, traced manufacturer warranties
Vehicle inspection
Inspection reports and counter-visits
VAT anti-fraud law
NF525-certified POS software
Consumption code
Mandatory quote above €150
Seasonal tyres
Mountain law, winter alert
End-of-life vehicle recycling
VHU, traceability
05Frequently asked questions
Answers to the questions we get in meetings.
- Do you replace Winmotor / GIPA / iGarage?
- Yes in most cases. Customer / vehicle migration included. We keep your parts catalogue as is and sync with manufacturer databases (Tecdoc, Etai).
- Are inspection and service reminders GDPR-compliant?
- Yes. Explicit consent at customer-record creation, 1-click opt-out, segmentation by communication type. The customer stays in control.
- We have 2 garages, single app for both?
- Yes. Native multi-establishment, with consolidated planning and group reporting. Each garage keeps its day-to-day autonomy.
- How much does it cost for an independent garage?
- Swoft pricing is on scope, not per user. For a 4-8-person garage with RO + planning + reminders, typically €18-30k initial then €3-5k/year maintenance.
- Does the app work on a workshop tablet?
- Yes, that's the main usage. Rugged tablet attached to the bay, photo capture, customer signature, step validation, all without going back to the office.
06Related industries
On the boundary?
Mixed firms (accounting + audit, accounting + advisory, accounting + legal) draw from several industries. Here are those that share the most challenges.
07Articles & veille
L'actualité Garage & Auto repair, décryptée.
Réglementations, virages business, sous-domaines en mutation : ce que notre pôle veille publie sur le secteur Garage & Auto repair.
Automotive Right to Repair: why OEM gateways remain a mirage
A garage wanting out of Winmotor or Excel?
30 minutes, no sales pitch.
30 minutes to scope the perimeter, see manufacturer links and price the solution.