Car breakdown cover

[Tigris]

Hi guys,

Who do you use for car breakdown cover? I've been with the RAC for years and each year I have to haggle them down as they try charging me extra (over £100 in total).

I've noticed much cheaper companies but have been told (by someone at RAC) they don't have as many recovery vans on the road and therefore can take quite a bit longer to get to you if need.

 

[WaveJumper]

Ive never had a problem with Greenflag in the past only moved from them this year as they will not cover my older cars so now with Start Rescue

 

[Tigris]

Ive never had a problem with Greenflag in the past only moved from them this year as they will not cover my older cars so now with Start Rescue

When you say older cars, how old roughly?

Mines 55 plate.

Thanks for the reply

 

[WaveJumper]

When you say older cars, how old roughly?

Mines 55 plate.

Thanks for the reply

I am talking 20 year old cars. If you check out the website you will see what I mean. I always have personal cover for me and the family and the older cars were never a problem before but they seem to have changed the rules

 

[Paul Kelly ICHYB]

I now use Auto Aid, which I got via MSE. Been with them for 3 years but never had to call them, so I can say that their money collection process is great, but their actual breakdown service I can't comment on.

 

[Paul Norman]

My car is covered by the AA - the membership came with the car, I believe.

My camper van is covered by the RAC - they have a mega deal for camper vans.

Anecdotally, the main rival to those two is Greenflag.

I have, thankfully, no experience of calling out either in recent years. I did have a flat battery on my previous camper van around 6 years ago, and they were right on the money.

 

[Mark T Jones]

I usually stick to Green Flag for younger vehicles. I accidentally went with them when I took SwiftCover's policy.

They outsource most things - When I owned a Mondeo I had to call them several times and they were always prompt & efficient - each time they used a local recovery firm.

My other car > 15 years old, is with RAC

 

[MBE2017]

I use startrescue, £56 full uk breakdown and recovery service. I had to use them this summer and due to covid and record call outs, they were very slow. Speaking to the three trailer drivers who transported me back to my house, it was the same situation with all the companies.

In previous years you would be driven by one guy, today they tend to only drive 1 to 2 hours before passing you onto another driver to fit in with their shift driving patterns for maximum profit. Startrescue use local guys, so in effect can call on a lot more vehicles than the RAC and AA, but everything is down to price. The AA for instance cover you even if you are just a passenger in a broken down vehicle, since you are a member, not just a vehicle insured. Nice to have choices.

I would pay more for a dedicated service, I left the AA several years ago because of the same thing.

 

[DontAsk]

+1 for Start Rescue. Two family members have called them out and received good service.

I had a bad experience with RAC where their tooling was totally useless. Had a flat come off the rim so the inflator kit was totally useless. Called the RAC out and their "universal" spare wheel wouldn't fit. The towing adapter on the van would not fit under the car, due to it being on the rim on one side. Had to wait another 90 mins in the middle of winter for a recovery truck. Luckily not too far from home so SWMBO came out with a flask of soup

First thing I did next day was order a proper spare wheel. At renewal I switched to Start Rescue on family recommendation

 

[DontAsk]

PS Start Rescue have just reduced the minimum distance for call outs to 1/4 mile from home. To me, that's as good as "home start" which was always an extra cost with the bigger companies.

 

[Fagin2021]

As always, anecdotal stories about a particular service provider can be good or bad. FWIW I've always been pleased with the RAC (always=two occasions). The mechanic was knowledgeable, had the kit to pinpoint an electrical problem and most importantly, the bits to fix it.

 

[Deleted member 59730]

A few years ago I was flagged down by a driver at the side of the road. He had cover with Greenflag with a special disabled deal. He had flattened his mobile phone trying to explain where he was. The operator wanted the postcode of a spot on a main country road and didn't even have a map in the office.

 

[MBE2017]

I notice that Startrescue now also cover YOU, in any car, like the AA, or the vehicle.

 

[WaveJumper]

Have to say never had a problem with Green Flag in all the years I had been with them.

I always smile when I am at Santa Pod though, RAC normally have a stand signing people up, the same ones who are ragging their cars down the strip in “run what you brung” once they have blown the engine they can be seen pushing their vehicles down the road outside ….. honest Mr Recovery Firm it just broke down whilst on my way home.

 

[BustersDogs]

AA because they cover whatever the hell I'm driving. I usually own a car, work van and a motorhome. The RAC wanted THREE separate policies to cover them all. I can also put cover on my vans that my staff drive really cheaply if I need to.

I stick with AA because I had a bad experience with a Greenflag mechanic, forcing me to sign to say he'd replaced a load of parts in a vehicle when he hadn't even looked under the bonnet. So I won't use a company that uses independent garages instead of their own fleet.

ETA I do pay over £100 a year for cover, but owning multiple vehicles and a few occasions of transporting us home over very long distances (always the motorhomes!), plus the occasional 'I replaced the battery but it was the alternator', a radiator burst, and similar... I feel this is worth it.

 

[DontAsk]

I notice that Startrescue now also cover YOU, in any car, like the AA, or the vehicle.

If you buy the personal cover, yes.

 

[IanSuth]

Have to say never had a problem with Green Flag in all the years I had been with them.

I always smile when I am at Santa Pod though, RAC normally have a stand signing people up, the same ones who are ragging their cars down the strip in “run what you brung” once they have blown the engine they can be seen pushing their vehicles down the road outside ….. honest Mr Recovery Firm it just broke down whilst on my way home.

Many years ago at a bike do which was in a field with a disused cart track a guy was bet to take his bike through the flooded dip of the up and under bridge, there was a road cone showing about 8" so he thought he would be fine, when he hit the water it became evident it was a big motorway road cone not a small one, the bike stopped with water up to the bottom of the tank and he had to push it out. He then declared it was because he was running pod air filters and with a proper airbox it would have been fine. 10 mins later he borrowed his mates stock bike to prove it

He was wrong

The 2 of them trying to explain to the AA that both of their bikes just mysteriously wouldnt start and needed relaying home on the Sunday was hilarious (not least as the muddy tide mark was still visible) - nearly as funny as the picture of his con rod shaped like a cork screw he sent us the following week (water doesn't compress), but the AA man gave them their lift home not even bothering to go through his checklist of things to get them running

 

[Paul Carmen]

Have used Auto Aid for a couple of years, can be personal or car based. We have cover for any car for myself and my partner. They also include home start for £59, less if you sign up with an affiliate deal!

They have no vehicles as such, they use a network of local breakdown services/towing companies. We've used them once for a front spring failure, the driver picked up the car within 30 minutes and dropped it to the garage of our choice.

 

[DefinitelyMaybeUK]

Ive never had a problem with Greenflag in the past only moved from them this year as they will not cover my older cars

Yes, it looks bad news for cars under "personal cover" scope, but the website implies it's fine in the UK when you're the driver. It's been a problem for some time generally and I ended up with Britannia Rescue as they didn't (and hopefully still don't!) worry, even when abroad. They use the local rescue services and fortunately only had the need to use once years back. They're now tied in with LV insurance and there's a discount to CSMA members (civil service motoring assoc) if you've ever worked for any loosely associated govt employer!

 

[JEREMY HAWKE]

Its like most things you get what you pay for dont try and save money !

I have the full AA personal cover but without home start I have 2 classic cars another owned one and my daughters car I think it is around £250 a year