which breakdown service?

[stuffedpike20]

The AA want £100 more from me than last year for the same level of cover. I no longer feel like being loyal to them.

I think the RAC may be connected to the MMOC in some way, but they seem to have a system where you can join, but have to pay extra for each call out, costing up to £80.

Some of the other breakdown services do not cover cars more than 15 or 16 years old.

All I want is roadside and relay cover...nothing else. Does anyone have any recommendations please?

Thanks
John

[ManyMinors]

If you're otherwise happy with the AA, ring them up and tell them you are not prepared to pay their high charges and have lower quotes from elsewhere. That's what I do every year. I always get a better quote. An increase of £100 is completely unjustified.

[stuffedpike20]

I did that last year and got £40 pounds off. That is not going to be enough this time.

[KeithL]

Exactly what @ManyMinors says. I go through the shame charade with the AA every year. They whack the price up masses. I ring them and complain. They tell me about all the wonderful things I get for my money. I tell them I rarely if ever use any of said services. They say there's nothing much they can do. I suggest they give it a go. They come back with a price which is still a significant increase but nowhere near as bad as the quote and we do the deal.

[stuffedpike20]

Thanks Keith.
Yes, it is the same with insurance, you have to play the game and say you are leaving before they take money off.
I am fed up with it.
I simply want roadside and rescue at a reasonable price for my old cars.
I did call the AA out for one of my cars last year. The patrol diagnosed a faulty crank sensor (not a minor), and I replaced it with an old one I kept in the boot. When he had gone and I was tidying up, I found that he had nicked my special short 10mm spanner!

[les]

If you just want it for the Minor, some insurance companies include breakdown cover, you may of course know this.

[Classiccars]

Yes got our with the insurance online for our corsaand had options such as home start or relay etc and a fraction of the price you pay normally.Got a similar deal for our Classics with a classic insurance company.

[stuffedpike20]

I have got more than one car, so need a driver policy.

They are all over 16 years old.

[alfie austin]

Hello,
I also have faced huge increase at renewal with the AA in the past….
But now every year when the renewal letter arrives, I simply check online what the cost would be to join as a new customer (Always considerably less than the renewal amount).
Then I phone up and state if they don’t reduce the renewal down to the new customer price, I’ll simple not renew, let it expire and then the next day join as a new customer ….always works and they agree the reduction to renew at the new customer rate.
So earlier this year renewal letter stated £211 (basic breakdown, plus home start, plus national recovery - all for me in any vehicle)…. But as a ‘new customer’ got the same for £98 !

Kind regards.

[stuffedpike20]

Thanks Alfie.

[myoldjalopy]

Hello,
I also have faced huge increase at renewal with the AA in the past….
But now every year when the renewal letter arrives, I simply check online what the cost would be to join as a new customer (Always considerably less than the renewal amount).
Then I phone up and state if they don’t reduce the renewal down to the new customer price, I’ll simple not renew, let it expire and then the next day join as a new customer ….always works and they agree the reduction to renew at the new customer rate.
So earlier this year renewal letter stated £211 (basic breakdown, plus home start, plus national recovery - all for me in any vehicle)…. But as a ‘new customer’ got the same for £98 !

Kind regards.

I thought it was illegal to not offer renewals at the same price as a new customer now?

[stuffedpike20]

I think that is for home and motor insurance (?).
Not sure about breakdown cover.

[Pete Bags]

Hi,

After years of using the AA, I switched to Emergency Assist about five years ago after a recommend by a work colleague. They cover our two modern cars and our Moggy. The cover is pretty comprehensive and has all the usual features - home-start, roadside assistance, national recovery, Onward travel in the UK, misfueling.

The annual cost for all three vehicles is £114.97 which I think is very good.

I have had to use them once on one of our modern cars - they arrived quickly, the fault could not be fixed on the roadside, and a low loader arrived soon after to take our car to our chosen garage for a repair (the power-steering had failed catastrophically!)

I have no connection to this company other than being a happy customer!

Their website: emergencyassistltd.co.uk

[stuffedpike20]

Thanks Pete.

When I look at their site it says they cover the vehicles, not the driver. And they like the vehicles to be less than 15 years old.

Good price though.

[svenedin]

I wanted breakdown cover for Minors on Tour to Europe a month ago. The AA gave a very high quote so I asked my insurance company, Adrian Flux who gave a very reasonable quote for breakdown cover. I did not have to use the breakdown cover so I cannot comment on how good they are.

Stephen

[olonas]

I have personal R.A.C. cover, using Tesco Clubcard vouchers. That covers me with the Minor and my daily car etc..
Close examination of their Ts and Cs doesn't reveal anything about a car's age.
Even using the vouchers the price for cover has become really high.
The A.A. has been on my naughty list for years now. A long time ago, as a member, I approached a Patrol at a M6 services, showed him my membership card and asked for a fuse to fit myself. "I'm too busy" was the reply. Never entertained them since that.

[Pete Bags]

Thanks Pete.

When I look at their site it says they cover the vehicles, not the driver. And they like the vehicles to be less than 15 years old.

Good price though.

Thanks for this, you got me worried! I've just had a look at my policy, and as I have their 'Vehicle Cover' (which covers the vehicle, not the person) then vehicle age does not seem to matter. But, If I had their 'Personal Cover' which as the name implies, covers any car the named person is driving, then those cars must be 15 years old or under - so I'm okay!

breakdown 1.jpg (88.39 KiB) Viewed 4352 times

[stuffedpike20]

Sorry to get you worried Pete.

There was a bit of a scandal with the RAC a few years ago olonas if I remember correctly. The patrols were selling new batteries to people whether they needed one or not. There was an expose on the telly about it.

[olonas]

Yes, I remember that. I doubt it's just them and they were the only organisation to be "found out".
The only reason(s) I use their insurance is Tesco Clubcard vouchers and no apparent car age limit.

[stuffedpike20]

Just to give an update.
I got a quote from RAC of £150. Phoned the AA and challenged their price of nearly £250.
They came down to £160 so I stuck with them.

I know I probably could have done better; but I can't stand the jumping -through -hoops that they all want you to do.