GIANTS ON THE ROAD
the exemptions will be that you have for the vehicle ; when you are checked the chassis number must correspond with the number on the application . So it is important that the damaged vehicle is repaired and put back into service as quickly as possible . And what ’ s more , as a company you will want to be compensated as soon as possible if the damage is caused by third parties .’
CORRECT ASSESSMENT In Germany – an important sales market for Nooteboom and therefore the everyday working area of Thijssen – damages are settled a bit differently than in the Netherlands . ‘ If it concerns damage that you have caused yourself , you will be assigned an independent damage expert ’, explains Thijssen . ‘ This so-called Gutachter assesses the size of the damage and estimates how much it will cost to repair it . He then passes on this information to the insurer . In this case it is always sensible for us as manufacturer to be present , so that we can help the damage expert to correctly assess the damage .’
DIRK ANBERGEN , MANAGING DIRECTOR ROLF RIEDEL TRANSPORT- UND MONTAGE-SERVICE
‘ OUR TRAILER WAS QUICKLY AND EXPERTLY REPAIRED ’
‘ One of our Nooteboom trailers had been submerged during a flood and was damaged by the salt water . Soon it became clear to us that it was sensible to involve an expert of Nooteboom to have a look and inspect the vehicle to assess what damage had been done to the vehicle and what sort of problems this could cause in the future . One day later Erik Thijssen was already on site in Hamburg to assess the damage . Ultimately he was able to convince the independent damage expert that it was necessary to carry out certain repairs and that it was best to have these repairs done in the Nooteboom service workshop in Wijchen . All the visible and invisible damages were , professionally , meticulously and quickly , repaired by Nooteboom . We have been using the trailer for a while now and we are extremely satisfied with the result : 100 % reliable and no malfunctions at all . We can therefore recommend Nooteboom to everyone . A professional service carrying out repairs of any kind and as little down-time of the trailer as possible : these are very important to us . At Nooteboom they deliver both and more .’
UNANIMOUS ADVICE ‘ However , it may be that the damage was caused by third parties ’, Thijssen continues . ‘ In that case , being the injured party , you can choose your own damage expert . In Germany Nooteboom works together with two experts in this field : Berger and Fahrkom . If customers report damage to us we assign one of our permanent damage experts to them . The three of us – the customer , the damage expert and I – inspect the damage and then the independent damage expert and I decide together what the advice is for the insurer . Nooteboom can then , based on this comprehensive advice , quickly start to expertly repair the trailer . The inspection is nearly always done on the spot ,’ says Thijssen . ‘ However many photographs you see , you will always get a better picture if the damage is right there in front of you . Particularly if you take into account that , as mentioned before , our vehicles have become more complex over the last few years . Not all damage will be visible from the outside : underneath the surface many clever bits and pieces and certain electronics are incorporated . Because of course we , as the manufacturers , know our vehicles best
■ Wheel bearings affected by salt water
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