Green Flag Refuse To Come Out

sonofmerton

Very elderly relative has decided to give up driving, mainly due to age.

MOT ran out on the 11th November.

Car is parked on the private drive and has been since March (COVID).

He wanted to get everything out of the car (spare glasses/cd's etc) in preparation of the car being either sold to one of those companies that buy your car or a brakers yard pick it up. The battery is unsurprisingly flat.

He phoned Green Flag who he is with and they said that as the MOT has run out, the law says they can't top the battery up and will not be coming out until he books an MOT.

Personally I think it is disgusting that a loyal customer approaching 90 years old of Green Flag who has never even called them out before is refused point blank that they will even come out to even get the door and boot open for him.  To say he was upset is an understatement. 

For the record, the relative is still insured (paid annually until May 2021) and paying his road tax (paid monthly).

Anyone else heard of this 'law'?  (I've asked a dozen or so people including an old friend who owns a garage in Scotland, they had not heard of it)
  

Jfk1988

Yes Green flag will not attend a vehicle that is either untaxed or un MOT'd. 

fred246

Personally I do get a bit fed up with people who expect to keep phoning up breakdown services for all sorts of issues that they should have sorted out. At the end of the day everyone else ends up paying for it. This car has basically been abandoned on the drive. Not been looked after or maintained at all.

Hasbeen

sonofmerton said:

Very elderly relative has decided to give up driving, mainly due to age.

MOT ran out on the 11th November.

Car is parked on the private drive and has been since March (COVID).

He wanted to get everything out of the car (spare glasses/cd's etc) in preparation of the car being either sold to one of those companies that buy your car or a brakers yard pick it up. The battery is unsurprisingly flat.

He phoned Green Flag who he is with and they said that as the MOT has run out, the law says they can't top the battery up and will not be coming out until he books an MOT.

Personally I think it is disgusting that a loyal customer approaching 90 years old of Green Flag who has never even called them out before is refused point blank that they will even come out to even get the door and boot open for him.  To say he was upset is an understatement. 

For the record, the relative is still insured (paid annually until May 2021) and paying his road tax (paid monthly).

Anyone else heard of this 'law'?  (I've asked a dozen or so people including an old friend who owns a garage in Scotland, they had not heard of it)
  

It is not a "Law" per se. And being "a loyal customer approaching 90 years old of Green Flag" is inconsequential.

And it appears it is not just a simple matter of just "topping the battery up" if the doors / bonnet/ boot cannot be opened?

It is in Green Flags T & Cs  Policy Documents.

TIMES WE CAN’T HELP, OR WILL NEED TO CHARGE EXTRA 
• if the vehicle doesn’t meet the legal requirements and driving laws that apply including having valid tax, insurance and an MOT. Or, if it is currently declared SORN (Statutory Off Road Notification). We will check these details when you ask us for help. 

However as you say if he can book an MOT? and show proof they will come out? Then it appears they are going up and beyond what the T & Cs state?

Norman_Castle

Can he open the door and boot with the key? What car is it? Sorn the car and cancel the insurance and breakdown cover. VED will be refunded after sorning.

Hasbeen

Norman_Castle said:

Can he open the door and boot with the key? What car is it? Sorn the car and cancel the insurance and breakdown cover. VED will be refunded after sorning.

Good point / advice. Assumed it was a keyless push button start car. doh!

But there should be a key normally hidden in the remote fob?

OP: Pull that out open door. Get stuff out and advise relative as per Norman_Castle advice as above.
Car buying sites will not be interested. Best is Gumtree spares or repair?

AdrianC

sonofmerton said:

He phoned Green Flag who he is with and they said that as the MOT has run out, the law says they can't top the battery up and will not be coming out until he books an MOT.
...
Anyone else heard of this 'law'?  (I've asked a dozen or so people including an old friend who owns a garage in Scotland, they had not heard of it)

As has been said, it isn't "the law", it's simply the terms of his contract with GF - every other breakdown service has the same.

He hasn't broken down. He doesn't need help to get the car going so he can use it - because he can't legally use it.

He just needs a little bit of help to unlock the car in a slightly different way to usual. The way people used to do. On modern cars, it's a little more obscure than it was, but there will be a cover that pops off to allow the key to be used to unlock the door manually. It probably has an image of a key moulded into it, and may well be on the passenger front door.

Then anybody can use a battery charger to charge the battery or a jump box/leads to get it started to allow it to recharge itself. It's not something he needs a breakdown service for - just a friendly, vaguely competent, neighbour or relative.

Grumpy_chap

The OP did not give any information on age or type of car.  It may be very easy to get back on the road and then sell through normal channels.

jimbo6977

Book an MoT.
Call GF out.
Cancel MoT booking (if not intending to use it).

JamoLew

Norman_Castle said:

Can he open the door and boot with the key? What car is it? Sorn the car and cancel the insurance and breakdown cover. VED will be refunded after sorning.

Grumpy_chap said:

The OP did not give any information on age or type of car.  It may be very easy to get back on the road and then sell through normal channels.

Indeed - quite a few models have a real key (shock horror) hidden away within the electronic key fob

macman

Why is a car new enough to have keyless entry potentially being sent to the breaker's yard?