Clause Free National Recovery - only AA / RAC?

staffsuk

Hi all!

So I've been looking into breakdown cover, in particular 'national recovery'. Seems on closer inspection it appears only the AA & RAC offer clause free national recovery, whereby you can choose to have your car towed back to your home if you so choose, without any other obligations. Others look to a have a clause whereby their so called 'national recovery' is in fact a requirement to have your car towed to a garage local to the breakdown location in order for a fix to be attempted. If it can't be fixed, eg on the same day, only then does the option to have your car towed back home become available. Call me a cynic - but I do wonder how much of a premium garages will charge to fix the car knowing the owner's hands are tied in this situation. I would much rather have the option to have the car towed back home without any such obligation. So is it just the AA & RAC in this case?

Thanks!

Hoenir

You get what you pay for. Much will depend on how far from home you travel and how often. As to whether the additional outlay is worthwhile. 

Ibrahim5

Yes I think if you break down you are better calling them out in the evening when it is unlikely that they can get the car fixed and you should then get recovered to wherever you want.

Car_54

staffsuk said:

Hi all!

So I've been looking into breakdown cover, in particular 'national recovery'. Seems on closer inspection it appears only the AA & RAC offer clause free national recovery, whereby you can choose to have your car towed back to your home if you so choose, without any other obligations. 

What do you mean "clause-free"? Both have Terms and Conditions, and the AA, for example, say:

"If your vehicle has broken down within the territory limits of this membership and is more than 1/4 mile from your home then we will provide a recovery operator to repair the vehicle; or if we are unable to repair the vehicle within a reasonable time we will tow the vehicle to a repair centre or destination of your choice within the territory limits."

RAC is similar.

How does that differ from the others?

Mildly_Miffed

It's not an opt-in taxi service to save you fuel.

It's a last-resort escalation to get you home if your car cannot be repaired quickly.

A full recovery half-way across the country is MASSIVELY more expensive for the provider than a local repair, and a repair visit will always be made as a diagnosis before the recovery is authorised.

Frankly, I'd much prefer a roadside repair, even a bit of a lash-up, that allows me to get home quicker and with less hassle under my own steam, anyway.

staffsuk

Car_54 said:

What do you mean "clause-free"? Both have Terms and Conditions, and the AA, for example, say:

"If your vehicle has broken down within the territory limits of this membership and is more than 1/4 mile from your home then we will provide a recovery operator to repair the vehicle; or if we are unable to repair the vehicle within a reasonable time we will tow the vehicle to a repair centre or destination of your choice within the territory limits."

RAC is similar.

How does that differ from the others?

Thanks - can you provide a link to that? I could only find those T&C's for Motoring Assistance, not AA. Also is that for basic cover / roadside assistance, or national recovery?

We'll be looking to get national recovery in addition to roadside assistance, not in place of. Of course, if a repair can be effected roadside, that would be great!

facade

Car_54 said:

staffsuk said:

Hi all!

So I've been looking into breakdown cover, in particular 'national recovery'. Seems on closer inspection it appears only the AA & RAC offer clause free national recovery, whereby you can choose to have your car towed back to your home if you so choose, without any other obligations. 

What do you mean "clause-free"? Both have Terms and Conditions, and the AA, for example, say:

"If your vehicle has broken down within the territory limits of this membership and is more than 1/4 mile from your home then we will provide a recovery operator to repair the vehicle; or if we are unable to repair the vehicle within a reasonable time we will tow the vehicle to a repair centre or destination of your choice within the territory limits."

RAC is similar.

How does that differ from the others?

"if WE are unable to repair the vehicle within a reasonable time we will tow the vehicle to a repair centre or destination of your choice within the territory limits."

"we....... repair" means a roadside repair by the Very Nice Man. If he can't fix it with what is in the van they will take you home, or to your local garage, main agent, whatever- the point is you decide where.

The difference with the cheapies e.g. Green Flag 

"if your vehicle can’t be fixed locally the same day, we’ll take you, your passengers and your vehicle to a single destination of your choice, anywhere in the UK"

They use local recovery who will take the car to a  local Very Good Garage that they know (nudge, nudge, wink, wink say no more) and will only recover it home if the local garage can't fix it that day, or at all. 

As Ibrahim5 says, best to wait until outside of working hours to call them so the garages are all shut, and that option isn't available!

The OP is referring to a desire to have the car (if it can't be bodged up at the roadside enough to get home) recovered to his own house/garage, where he can effect a repair for the cost of the parts rather than to a garage where he will be charged a mark-up on the parts plus huge labour costs. 

(Imagine the horror of having to pay £500-£1000 for a replacement alternator when you could do the job at home for £200)

I'm with the AA. The last time I called them out, when my crank pulley suddenly delaminated and fell apart I was recovered straight home, where I fixed it for the cost of a pulley, and drive belts.

I'd probably still be paying off the loan for having a garage repair it if I'd had Green Flag!

Car_54

staffsuk said:

Car_54 said:

What do you mean "clause-free"? Both have Terms and Conditions, and the AA, for example, say:

"If your vehicle has broken down within the territory limits of this membership and is more than 1/4 mile from your home then we will provide a recovery operator to repair the vehicle; or if we are unable to repair the vehicle within a reasonable time we will tow the vehicle to a repair centre or destination of your choice within the territory limits."

RAC is similar.

How does that differ from the others?

Thanks - can you provide a link to that? I could only find those T&C's for Motoring Assistance, not AA. Also is that for basic cover / roadside assistance, or national recovery?

We'll be looking to get national recovery in addition to roadside assistance, not in place of. Of course, if a repair can be effected roadside, that would be great!

https://www.theaa.com/

It's for nationwide recovery. That's why it says "destination of your choice within the territory limits".

BTW if you couldn't find Ts and Cs, how did you arrive at the assumption in your OP?

staffsuk

Car_54 said:

staffsuk said:

Car_54 said:

What do you mean "clause-free"? Both have Terms and Conditions, and the AA, for example, say:

"If your vehicle has broken down within the territory limits of this membership and is more than 1/4 mile from your home then we will provide a recovery operator to repair the vehicle; or if we are unable to repair the vehicle within a reasonable time we will tow the vehicle to a repair centre or destination of your choice within the territory limits."

RAC is similar.

How does that differ from the others?

Thanks - can you provide a link to that? I could only find those T&C's for Motoring Assistance, not AA. Also is that for basic cover / roadside assistance, or national recovery?

We'll be looking to get national recovery in addition to roadside assistance, not in place of. Of course, if a repair can be effected roadside, that would be great!

https://www.theaa.com/

It's for nationwide recovery. That's why it says "destination of your choice within the territory limits".

BTW if you couldn't find Ts and Cs, how did you arrive at the assumption in your OP?

Your link just takes you to AA's front page, not the T&Cs you mention. I can only find those exact T&Cs specified with Motoring Assistance: https://www.motoringassistance.com/breakdown-membership-terms (see, I can find & even link to T&Cs quite readily......)

So again - can you provide the AA link to those exact T&Cs?

I've been reading the T&Cs from the better known breakdown recovery companies, specifically their 'national recovery' T&Cs, hence my OP.

@facade - exactly, thank you.

tedted

https://www.theaa.com/breakdown-cover/~/media/the-aa/pdf/breakdown-cover/terms-and-conditions-current

Frozen_up_north

The other one with similar AA/RAC recovery options is Brittania rescue. The annual cost for "at home, roadside and nationwide recovery" is £102. On the other hand, Green Flag have a claim that their charges are half (or less) of what the AA and RAC charge.

For anyone who prefers to use their own local garage, or to repair their own car, clearly AA/RAC/Brittania recovery is the better option. On the other hand, given that most cars don't break down and only perhaps have a flat battery or a puncture, then the lower cost of basic cover is saving a lot over a few "breakdown free" years.

Some manufacturers include full breakdown cover if you have your car serviced at a main dealer, although that comes with a hefty price tag and my experience has been that a local independant garage is much better - both in terms of knowing what they are doing, not wanting you to add pointless extras (air con service every 2 years, etc)  and value for money.