RAC failure to attend my breakdown

Bazinga_k

My experience with RAC. Below is the call log i had with them.

16.30 I reported my breakdown.
18.19 - was told that I would be seen to within the hour.
19.28 - was told that the dispatch team would call me - they did not call me
20.16 - was told my claim would be escalated.
20.55 - was told the tow truck should have been with me at 20.51 - then was put on hold then was told he would be with me in 30 mins as he is running late.
21.39 - a new person then told me all the above is wrong - nothing has been dispatched at the earliest i would be seen is 23.30 after voicing my disgust - he then would say he could try and get another truck to me sooner? Wow what a service.....
22.58 - Tow truck called me to say he is on his way - he was only told about my breakdown 45 mins prior to his call - by this time i had given up and got a friend to tow me home.

Now, is it reasonable to expect a refund of my membership + maybe compensation? As they didn't provide the service I paid for + the continued lies that the customer care team provided me with.

I have lodged a complaint with RAC but they said it could take up to 21 working days for a response.

SavingThosePennies

That's absolutely gutting, you absolutely should seek refund for that kind of service. They clearly didn't provide any of the service that you pay for and if I received that kind of service I'd be looking for a different provider.

I broke down over the Christmas season and the RAC were with me in about half an hour. Having said that, we were broken down in an incredibly dangerous location so that probably made us a priority. Seems everyone can have a radically different experience which isn't right. 

Bazinga_k

I have just had an update - they are offering me £30 goodwill gesture. And sorry that I felt that i was lied to.
I pushed back and said 7 hours in the freezing cold, £30 is not proportional to the complaint.
He said it is the full and final response and if I wanted to take it further it is at my own discretion. 

MattMattMattUK

Bazinga_k said:

My experience with RAC. Below is the call log i had with them.

16.30 I reported my breakdown.
18.19 - was told that I would be seen to within the hour.
19.28 - was told that the dispatch team would call me - they did not call me
20.16 - was told my claim would be escalated.
20.55 - was told the tow truck should have been with me at 20.51 - then was put on hold then was told he would be with me in 30 mins as he is running late.
21.39 - a new person then told me all the above is wrong - nothing has been dispatched at the earliest i would be seen is 23.30 after voicing my disgust - he then would say he could try and get another truck to me sooner? Wow what a service.....
22.58 - Tow truck called me to say he is on his way - he was only told about my breakdown 45 mins prior to his call - by this time i had given up and got a friend to tow me home.

Now, is it reasonable to expect a refund of my membership + maybe compensation? As they didn't provide the service I paid for + the continued lies that the customer care team provided me with.

I have lodged a complaint with RAC but they said it could take up to 21 working days for a response.

You need to wait for their response first, only then can you choose to try and take things further should you deem their response inadequate. 

Ultimately it will depend exactly on the terms and conditions, from my knowledge they do have some leeway at times of pressure and they have been very open about struggling with staff due to Covid. 

Whether you will get a refund on your membership will likely depend on how far you are in your annual policy, they might pro-rata the refund. I doubt you are entitled to any compensation, but they might give you a "shut up and go away" compensation of £50, or something similar. 

Aylesbury_Duck

How much are you after?  It's unrealistic to expect a full refund of your membership, and compensation would only cover any extra costs you incurred.

How much did you pay for membership?  If it was £90 for a year, for example, £30 seems reasonable.

Up to you how far you push it, but I can't see what leverage you have to ask for more.

MattMattMattUK

Bazinga_k said:

I have just had an update - they are offering me £30 goodwill gesture. And sorry that I felt that i was lied to.
I pushed back and said 7 hours in the freezing cold, £30 is not proportional to the complaint.
He said it is the full and final response and if I wanted to take it further it is at my own discretion. 

I would imagine you have a choice of like it or lump it, but I very much doubt you have any legal grounds to compensation. As much as what happened was far from ideal the terms and conditions will be written in a way which covers them for delays. 

Bazinga_k

I pay £22 a month as i got full cover for me + mrs.
Considering they didn't provide the service i kind of expected that and a touch more due to the experience as a whole was disgusting. 7 hours is a tad excessive. 
I dont mind waiting say 3 - 4 hours as i get that each case takes different times. It was being fobbed off by the call center that riled me up.

Aylesbury_Duck

Bazinga_k said:

I pay £22 a month as i got full cover for me + mrs.
Considering they didn't provide the service i kind of expected that and a touch more due to the experience as a whole was disgusting. 7 hours is a tad excessive. 
I dont mind waiting say 3 - 4 hours as i get that each case takes different times. It was being fobbed off by the call center that riled me up.

So their offer is roughly three months' premium for your part of the policy. A c.25% discount.  That doesn't seem unreasonable.  Worth calling them when the contract is up for renewal and seeing if you can get a discount at renewal, as well.

TELLIT01

The level of service is far below what I would want and expect but there are extenuating circumstances at present.  Assuming this was recent, all services are experience problems due to Covid absence.  I don't doubt that each person you spoke to gave you the information they had available to them at the time.  Call Centre staff can only provide you with what is showing on their screen.

Bazinga_k

The call centre staff didnt just give me wrong information, they fed me blatant lies. Said they spoke to tow truck driver and he was 30 mins away.
 When he didnt show i called up, next person then said no driver has been contacted yet and no one can get to me.

Bazinga_k

Aylesbury_Duck said:

Bazinga_k said:

I pay £22 a month as i got full cover for me + mrs.
Considering they didn't provide the service i kind of expected that and a touch more due to the experience as a whole was disgusting. 7 hours is a tad excessive. 
I dont mind waiting say 3 - 4 hours as i get that each case takes different times. It was being fobbed off by the call center that riled me up.

So their offer is roughly three months' premium for your part of the policy. A c.25% discount.  That doesn't seem unreasonable.  Worth calling them when the contract is up for renewal and seeing if you can get a discount at renewal, as well.

My part of the policy is the policy, it is not split in 2. Rac dont do a £11 a month for the level of cover i get. And why the 25% discount? 
My contract has just been renewed in November.
So are you saying £30 for 7 hours standing in the freezing cold and getting told lies, to then have to tow the car myself is a reasonable settlement?