New business idea, thoughts?

[p3morrisond]

My idea is a private company that assist with protecting cars that are broken down, crashed or need protecting on the motorway or roads.

Its hard to explain but would have a fleet of cars with flashing lights so that if your awaiting recovery on motorway you have a car that can protect you and make sure your seen.

Other tasks could be escorting loads etc

collecting rubbish of roads or assisting police and highways with road closures, lane closures or collecting debris off the roads

what is your thoughts?

 

[Mr D]

Not sure about the motorway. Your flashing lights make something more visible than hazards? Your car would protect a car from being rammed by a truck?
Often seen cars broken down / stopped on hard shoulder, rarely see another vehicle with them until breakdown arrives.

Escorting loads? Yes could be done, though bigger loads (100+ ton etc) the police may still want to escort.

Is there a market big enough to pay for fleet of vehicles and staff?

 

[Forgot password]

Quite like it but you would have to land with a big splash ie you can’t really start with one safety car.

 

[Stas Lawicki]

With so called 'smart motorways' something like this sounds very interesting. Have you thought about how you might be funded? I would guess but the highways agency would be the equivalent organisation that currently does similar stuff. As above, you need logistics and massive upfront investment. If you listen to the traffic reports on the radio on any given day you will hear various problems all over the country - how would you deploy to these areas? would you be stationed at various points along major routes? how many cars would you need? who would wait/drive them? how would you get through traffic on a smart motorways where there is no hard-shoulder to reach the stranded vehicle and folk wont move out of the lane for an amber beacon flashing behind them?

I don't know anything about this area of business but these are the first things I could think of. Anything that makes driving safer is great, but logistics and funding might be your stumbling block...

 

[fisicx]

My idea is a private company that assist with protecting cars that are broken down, crashed or need protecting on the motorway or roads.

Isn't this already the job of the Highways Agency Traffic Officers?

 

[estwig]

So your gonna send a car with flashing lights, to get there before the man from AA does to fix the car. But your not going to offer any assistance, otherwise that would make you the man from the AA.

Great plan, a PLC and crowd funding should have it sorted.

 

[Mr D]

So your gonna send a car with flashing lights, to get there before the man from AA does to fix the car. But your not going to offer any assistance, otherwise that would make you the man from the AA.

Great plan, a PLC and crowd funding should have it sorted.

Could be handy to have a warm car for those unable to sit on the grass to sit in while awaiting breakdown.

 

[estwig]

Could be handy to have a warm car for those unable to sit on the grass to sit in while awaiting breakdown.

Kinda like Wacky Races, does the non-assistance car with the flashing lights get there first, or the man from the AA.

 

[Onthebrightside]

assisting police and highways with road closures,

I can't see this as an option. The police would not have a budget for this, so how would you get paid? They rarely want the general public involved in issues like this because they would effectively be endorsing you and whatever you did and they would not do that.

I am considering also how much people like to drive down their bills, so that many don't even additional insurance with AA/RAC so how would you flog this to people as a must have on top of AA/RAC?

 

[Mr D]

I can't see this as an option. The police would not have a budget for this, so how would you get paid? They rarely want the general public involved in issues like this because they would effectively be endorsing you and whatever you did and they would not do that.

I am considering also how much people like to drive down their bills, so that many don't even additional insurance with AA/RAC so how would you flog this to people as a must have on top of AA/RAC?

Police have the manpower already so use them for stuff. Even when its a total waste of manpower.
What else can they do with the staff?

 

[BusterBloodvessel]

Sorry, this is a mad idea. The recovery truck has flashing lights and can protect you. How would you get there any quicker than the recovery truck? And as mentioned above, the highways officers do this - I regularly see them first on scene to breakdowns or accidents.

 

[estwig]

Not wanting to be negative about the whole idea.

What about booking a non-assistance car with flashing lights, an uber style booking, to follow you on long journeys, just in case you break down and are in need of some non-assistance.

It would require a ltd company, some crowd funding and have an app, win-win!

 

[p3morrisond]

Not sure about the motorway. Your flashing lights make something more visible than hazards? Your car would protect a car from being rammed by a truck?
Often seen cars broken down / stopped on hard shoulder, rarely see another vehicle with them until breakdown arrives.

Escorting loads? Yes could be done, though bigger loads (100+ ton etc) the police may still want to escort.

Is there a market big enough to pay for fleet of vehicles and staff?

My girlfriend broke down on M6 she was at the road side in the rain for 55 mins, then had to wait a further 30 mins for a recovery truck. I live at j2 M6 so easy access to M6/M69/M1. I would like to see that if someone is broken down that they don’t feel so alone, daily I see cars broken down waiting. Just a way of having beacons to warn other drivers and protect the driver

 

[BusterBloodvessel]

Not wanting to be negative about the whole idea.

What about booking a non-assistance car with flashing lights, an uber style booking, to follow you on long journeys, just in case you break down and are in need of some non-assistance.

It would require a ltd company, some crowd funding and have an app, win-win!

Pay to have a car follow you on a whole journey *just in case* you break down?! What?!?!

 

[p3morrisond]

Sorry, this is a mad idea. The recovery truck has flashing lights and can protect you. How would you get there any quicker than the recovery truck? And as mentioned above, the highways officers do this - I regularly see them first on scene to breakdowns or accidents.

It would just be a private way of doing this, yes they do but I am sure they would appreciate the assisatance if done correctly

 

[BusterBloodvessel]

Did I miss some irony in your post?

 

[p3morrisond]

Could be handy to have a warm car for those unable to sit on the grass to sit in while awaiting breakdown.

This is the exact idea, for some people side of a dark motorway can be a scary experience

 

[p3morrisond]

With so called 'smart motorways' something like this sounds very interesting. Have you thought about how you might be funded? I would guess but the highways agency would be the equivalent organisation that currently does similar stuff. As above, you need logistics and massive upfront investment. If you listen to the traffic reports on the radio on any given day you will hear various problems all over the country - how would you deploy to these areas? would you be stationed at various points along major routes? how many cars would you need? who would wait/drive them? how would you get through traffic on a smart motorways where there is no hard-shoulder to reach the stranded vehicle and folk wont move out of the lane for an amber beacon flashing behind them?

I don't know anything about this area of business but these are the first things I could think of. Anything that makes driving safer is great, but logistics and funding might be your stumbling block...

I would only be looking to cover my midland area, 20 Mins max from my base, I could either help others set up in there area and offer help/training/franchise maybe

The funding is the bit I need to think about more, subscription or approach highways agency etc

 

[p3morrisond]

Did I miss some irony in your post?

They do a good job but from experience are too busy to help everyone

 

[Mr D]

Used to get breakdown calls in one job. Including angry people partially blocking a road who were annoyed at the delay.
Used to ask them if there was any tailback behind them - invariably there was. Then point out to them the breakdown truck was 5 miles back in that queue going forward a few metres every couple of minutes.

My boss was annoyed at the complaints about me....

Seriously while I can envisage multiple instances that having another adult to hand, that having someone knowing what they are doing and putting cones etc out would be a help, just not so sure people could pay for it. Government departments without a tender arranged are reluctant to give contracts. Not impossible but they have to justify spending.

While my dad made sure I can change a wheel and have done it multiple times, there are instances a person alone it's dangerous to do that. Having someone keep watch helps.
Have called a friend to help out one night on an A road.

 

[Lucan Unlordly]

Some 25 years ago I went for a job doing exactly what you are trying to do. Based mid point of the northern M25 covering the clockwise carriageway round to the dartford Tunnel, the idea was to have vehicles ready to speed to any breakdown, to manage the traffic flow with cones and signage. It was government funded, probably via the Highways Agency on the basis that the cost to business ran into the tens of thousands for every minutes delay.
Ridiculously good money for night work, 95% of which was sitting in a portacabin drinking tea.

I'm not sure if the was ever launched, or is still going now, but the obvious flaw was the likelihood of having no breakdowns on that section for 3 weeks, then 3 on the same night.

 

[JEREMY HAWKE]

The police would kick you off !

Obviously these situations have come about many times in my time
Your breakdown insurance will take of this and the highway officers will make sure you are safe .The police will save you from a mad axe man
If you are in a crash your insurance will take care of everything
In a lifetime of having vans on the road I have never seen a demand for this.
Basically the hightway traffic officer (plastic policeman). Is normally the first on the scene

 

[LeasingEval]

I was involved in a collission a few years ago. When I made my call to the RAC, they coincidentally had a patrol about 300 yards away, The driver was very chuffed with his response time of 57 seconds. It brought his average for the week right down.

 

[billybob99]

The breakdown space is a lucrative market, a friend of a friend raised serious money 4 years ago from VCs.

You need to offer more value than just flashing lights.

The problem is that the AA or RAC or whoever, attempt to fix the problem and a lot of problems can be fixed at the roadside.

People just want their car fixed and carry on with whatever they are doing.

The fact that its raining or freezing is understandable, unless your car is totalled you can sit inside.

You really need an idea where its B2C not trying to get the police or gov to fund it.

 

[estwig]

You need to offer more value than just flashing lights.

Tea and biscuits?

 

[Noah]

The breakdown space is a lucrative market, a friend of a friend raised serious money 4 years ago from VCs.

Based on the performance of most VC investments, the two parts of this statement might be unrelated.

I say "might" because I have not done extensive research on typical VC success rates, which may be much better than typically reported in the Fake News media.

 

[Mark T Jones]

Based on the performance of most VC investments, the two parts of this statement might be unrelated.

I say "might" because I have not done extensive research on typical VC success rates, which may be much better than typically reported in the Fake News media.

As with most things, there are lots of different measures and stats. However, the most prevalant appears to be that in any 5 investments, 2 will bomb, 2 will get by and one will fly. (i guess it's a shame if you miss the 1)

 

[billybob99]

As with most things, there are lots of different measures and stats. However, the most prevalant appears to be that in any 5 investments, 2 will bomb, 2 will get by and one will fly. (i guess it's a shame if you miss the 1)

This.

I know a VC that has 50+ investments, you'll never have heard of 48 of them. 2 of them are the holy of holiest, unicorns.

They wrote the first investment cheque for Deliveroo and made more than their fair share.

 

[Zoe Strassen]

Would something to consider be, how big of a fleet would you need to get there before the breakdown services