Automotive sector use case
From workshop invoice to data, in one call
A used-car retailer buys vehicles, prepares them and sells them. Before a car sells it picks up invoices for transport, workshop labour, tyres, the roadworthiness test and the registration agency. Five to ten per unit, each from a small supplier with its own format. Someone keys them in by hand.
Per unit sold
- 5–10 invoices per vehicle
- 6 supplier types, no shared format
- 0 templates to configure
Document → API → JSON
One workshop invoice, fully broken out
| DESCRIPTION | QTY | PRICE | AMOUNT |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oil filter | 1 | 12.40 | 12.40 |
| Engine oil 5W-30 synthetic | 4.5 | 9.80 | 44.10 |
| Air filter | 1 | 18.75 | 18.75 |
| Front brake pad set | 1 | 68.90 | 68.90 |
| Front brake disc 288 mm | 2 | 51.25 | 102.50 |
| Brake fluid DOT-4 | 1 | 11.60 | 11.60 |
| Mechanical labour | 3.5 | 42.00 | 147.00 |
| Electronic diagnostics | 1 | 35.00 | 35.00 |
| Waste disposal | 1 | 4.50 | 4.50 |
- Net amount
- 446.05
- VAT 21 %
- 93.67
- TOTAL (EUR)
- 539.72
INVOICE
EX-2026/0001 · 01/01/2026
Tax ID 00000000 · Town (Province)
NUMBER PLATE
1234 AEI
the vehicle to allocate the cost to
9 LINE ITEMS
| description | qty | price | amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oil filter | 1 | 12.40 | 12.40 |
| Engine oil 5W-30 synthetic | 4.5 | 9.80 | 44.10 |
| Air filter | 1 | 18.75 | 18.75 |
| Front brake pad set | 1 | 68.90 | 68.90 |
… +5
each with quantity, unit price and amount
TOTAL (EUR)
539.72
net 446.05 + VAT 93.67 — and it reconciles
{
"document_type": "workshop_invoice",
"invoice_number": "EX-2026/0001",
"issue_date": "2026-01-01",
"supplier": {
"name": "SAMPLE WORKSHOP LTD",
"tax_id": "00000000"
},
"vehicle": {
"plate": "1234 AEI",
"vin": "XXXZZZ0XX0X000000"
},
"line_items": [
{
"description": "Oil filter",
"quantity": 1,
"unit_price": 12.4,
"amount": 12.4
},
{
"description": "Engine oil 5W-30 synthetic",
"quantity": 4.5,
"unit_price": 9.8,
"amount": 44.1
},
{
"description": "Air filter",
"quantity": 1,
"unit_price": 18.75,
"amount": 18.75
},
{
"description": "Front brake pad set",
"quantity": 1,
"unit_price": 68.9,
"amount": 68.9
},
{
"description": "Front brake disc 288 mm",
"quantity": 2,
"unit_price": 51.25,
"amount": 102.5
},
{
"description": "Brake fluid DOT-4",
"quantity": 1,
"unit_price": 11.6,
"amount": 11.6
},
{
"description": "Mechanical labour",
"quantity": 3.5,
"unit_price": 42,
"amount": 147
},
{
"description": "Electronic diagnostics",
"quantity": 1,
"unit_price": 35,
"amount": 35
},
{
"description": "Waste disposal",
"quantity": 1,
"unit_price": 4.5,
"amount": 4.5
}
],
"totals": {
"net": 446.05,
"vat_rate": 0.21,
"vat": 93.67,
"total": 539.72
},
"currency": "EUR"
} Issuer, tax ID, plate and VIN are fictitious and match no real record. One POST and a webhook, no templates.
The line items are the hard part
The plate is a loose field: it turns up in the invoice body or handwritten on the docket, and it tells you which car to allocate the cost to. But the work is in the lines. Nine rows with description, quantity, unit price and amount, all of which have to come out complete and reconcile against the net, the VAT and the total.
That is what tells you what the car actually cost, separates parts from labour and lets you compare prices between workshops. It is also where generic OCR gives up, usually settling for the header and the final amount.
What Invofox does
Ready to enter the DMS or the ERP
It reads these documents and returns structured data with the lines broken out, ready to enter the DMS or the ERP. No templates, no manual transcription.
- 99.2% Accuracy guaranteed in the contract
- <3s Per document
- 10M+ Documents processed every month
- 0.4% Need review
Accuracy is committed per document type and per field. Only correctly processed pages are billed.
Why this is an opportunity
-
The car sells sooner
Once paperwork stops delaying the listing, it spends fewer days in stock. In used-car retail the margin comes from turnover.
-
Opening sites does not mean growing the back office
Administrative work stops scaling at the same rate as sales.
-
The real cost is known in stock
The real cost of each car is known while it is still in stock, not at month-end close.
Who this fits
- Multi-brand used-car retail
- Retailers running their own finance
- Marketplaces holding stock
- Auctions and remarketing
- Dealer groups with a used-car operation