Schadenfreiheitsklasse (SF-Klasse)

The Schadenfreiheitsklasse, usually shortened to SF-Klasse, is the German no-claims class that records how many consecutive claim-free years a driver has accumulated in German vehicle registration and insurance. It sets the percentage of the base premium the owner actually pays. Each claim-free year moves the policy up one class — SF 1 after a first year, SF 2 after two, and so on up to SF 35 — and each class carries a Schadenfreiheitsrabatt, a discount factor. A driver in SF 25 might pay around 25 % of the base rate, while a new driver in SF 0 pays well over 100 %. An at-fault claim causes a Rückstufung, dropping the policy several classes at once, and the higher premium then persists for years. Two points matter for international owners. Foreign no-claims history is sometimes recognised, but only at the insurer's discretion and usually with written proof from the previous insurer. And an SF class belongs to a person and a vehicle combination, not to the car alone — when a company such as a keeper-service UG is the policyholder, the class attaches to that company's fleet policy rather than to the client.