Jameda Review Removal: Procedure, Duration and the One Mistake

For many patients, Jameda – Germany’s leading physician review portal – is the first port of call when looking for a doctor. For many doctors, it is a recurring source of frustration whenever an unjustified review appears there. Unlike Google, Jameda operates an established verification procedure shaped by German case law. Those who know it can assess their chances realistically. Those who do not are highly likely to make the one mistake that irretrievably destroys the strongest ground for removal. Let us take it step by step.

The legal basis: the Federal Court of Justice’s duty to investigate

In its Jameda decision, Germany’s Federal Court of Justice (BGH, case no. VI ZR 34/15) spelled out the obligations of review platforms. The core of the decision: where a doctor raises a substantiated objection to a review – in particular the objection that the alleged treatment contact never took place – the platform may not retreat to a superficial plausibility check. It must actively investigate the facts: the reviewer is to be contacted and asked to describe the treatment contact as specifically as possible and to substantiate it, for instance with appointment confirmations, prescriptions or invoices.

And here is the point that matters most for doctors: if the reviewer fails to provide this evidence, the review must be removed. Since anonymous reviewers with no genuine contact with the practice naturally have no evidence to produce – and many do not even respond to the platform’s enquiry in the first place – a properly conducted verification procedure in such cases regularly ends in removal.

How the Jameda verification procedure works

• Step 1 – The complaint: The review is specifically challenged with Jameda. The quality of this complaint is decisive: it must be substantiated enough to trigger the platform’s duty to investigate. A blanket “This review is false” is not sufficient.
• Step 2 – Forwarding to the reviewer: Jameda forwards the complaint to the author and sets a deadline for a response and for evidence of the treatment contact.
• Step 3 – Examination of the response: If the reviewer does not respond or cannot substantiate the contact, the review is removed. If documents are submitted, the platform examines them and forwards them – redacted where necessary – for comment.
• Step 4 – The decision: Jameda either removes the review or declines to do so. If removal is refused, our partner lawyers can assess further legal steps.

How long does the procedure take?

Realistically, two to six weeks. The duration depends chiefly on the deadlines Jameda grants the reviewer and on whether several rounds of correspondence become necessary. Cases in which the reviewer simply does not respond are often resolved more quickly. Important for your planning: during the procedure the review generally remains visible – all the more reason to set the procedure in motion promptly and without errors rather than hesitating for weeks.

The mistake that ruins everything: confirming the treatment contact yourself

By far the strongest lever in the Jameda procedure is disputing the treatment contact – because the burden of proof lies with the reviewer, not with you. Yet many practices destroy this very lever themselves before the procedure even begins: they reply publicly to the review with wording such as “We remember your visit well” or “The practice was indeed busy at your Tuesday appointment”.

The consequences are doubly fatal:

• The ground for removal is forfeited: Anyone who publicly acknowledges the treatment contact can no longer credibly dispute it in the verification procedure. The platform will point to the doctor’s own confirmation – at that point the procedure is, for all practical purposes, lost.
• Medical confidentiality is at risk: Merely confirming that a particular person is a patient can breach medical confidentiality (Schweigepflicht, sect. 203 German Criminal Code) and the professional code of conduct – and any statement about diagnosis, treatment or appointments all the more so. An ill-considered reply can therefore not only thwart the removal but additionally create problems under professional disciplinary law.

The correct order is therefore always: first settle the question of removal, then reply publicly – and if a reply is given, then only with wording that neither confirms the contact nor discloses any treatment details.

Our role – and that of our partner lawyers

Reuther Media does not provide legal services. We analyse the review, prepare the facts of the case, coordinate the procedure and keep you up to date with monitoring and reporting. The legal review and the enforcement of the removal claim against Jameda are carried out exclusively by our cooperating partner lawyers. This division of labour ensures that the complaint is legally sound from the outset – and that you can carry on looking after your patients instead of corresponding with a review portal.

The terms: initial assessment free of charge, billing purely on a no-win, no-fee basis at 79 € per removed review; for several reviews the Practice Package at 299 € (up to five reviews) is worthwhile. If you want to protect your profile on a lasting basis, you can combine removal with our Premium Monitoring (490 € + 49 €/month): new reviews are monitored continuously, critical cases are spotted immediately and handed over to the partner lawyers.

Conclusion

The Jameda verification procedure is an effective instrument for doctors – the Federal Court of Justice has obliged the platforms to conduct a genuine examination, and the burden of proof lies with the reviewer. Two things are decisive: a substantiated, legally sound complaint, and discipline in your public communication. If you do not prematurely confirm the treatment contact yourself, you hold very good cards against illegitimate reviews.

This article is general information, not legal advice. The legal review and enforcement of removal claims is carried out exclusively by cooperating lawyers.