Breakdown Guides

Compare motorbike breakdown cover

By Garnet Roach

If you’ve ever broken down and been stranded at the roadside with no shelter, you'll know just how important motorbike breakdown cover is. (19/02/10)

Motorbike breakdown providers know that you have different needs to car drivers, and your policy will recognise this. For example, recovery fleets include flatbed lorries to transport your bike if it can’t be fixed at the roadside.

• You or your bike?
• What’s covered?
• Excess
• Getting the best deal on motorbike breakdown cover

You or your bike?

Some motorbike breakdown policies cover your specific vehicle, while others cover you as an individual - perfect if you regularly drive someone else’s bike.

On the other hand, if someone else regularly uses your bike, it would be better to choose cover for your vehicle.

Make sure that you check the wording of your policy to make sure you have the right level of cover for your needs.

Back to the top

What’s covered?

As with all breakdown policies - whether for a car, van or motorbike - you need to double check what is and isn’t covered before you sign up.

For example, some providers, such as the RAC offer the same level of cover for their motorbike breakdown customers as their car customers, while others offer a limited service for bikes.

Equally, some suppliers only offer full benefits to customers who also take motorbike insurance with them.

Bike recovery is an important factor. Not all breakdown companies will recover your motorbike for you if you have an accident - meaning that you'll have to pay extra to have your bike picked up from the roadside.

Other things that you need to look into are whether or not you're covered for a non-start at home, cut-outs and fuel replacement - which some providers include in their policies as standard.

Back to the top

Excess

If your breakdown cover includes any repairs at a garage, for example, you might have to pay an excess fee towards any work, and will almost certainly have to pay for parts as well.

Bear this in mind when choosing your breakdown cover.

Back to the top

Getting the best deal on motorbike breakdown cover

The best way to ensure that you get a good deal is to compare motorbike cover before committing to any one provider.

But remember that it’s not just about the headline rate - consider your needs as well as the price to make sure you get motorbike breakdown cover that really is good value.