Breakdown Guides

Breakdown policy guide

You might not realise how much you rely on your car until it breaks down, and not having cover can mean missing important meetings, being stranded on the hard shoulder far from home and hefty recovery and repair costs.

Automatic service

This is the traditional, better known type of cover where you pay a set fee and if you have a problem then they will send out one of their own fleet to provide assistance. This type of service is the most common, but it is also the more expensive of the two. People often want to stick to what they know and opt for a trusted supplier such as the AA, but this can be costlier.

Ensure you Compare Breakdown Cover, to find the best deal for you.

Pay and Claim

Most people haven’t heard of this type of cover. Pay and Claim companies – such as GEM Breakdown – don’t have their own patrols so when there’s a problem they use a local company to provide you with assistance.

This is a cheaper option and you can get full cover too. The only real drawback is that you have to pay for the pickup and repairs yourself – you then invoice your provider who will refund the money.

You or the car

Another crucial difference in breakdown cover is whether you want to be insured or if you want to insure the car itself. If you take out breakdown cover on a car (offered by The AA, Green Flag, Breakdown Direct, RAC), whoever is insured to drive the car will be able to get roadside assistance.

If you get yourself covered instead (offered by GEM, RAC, The AA), then you will be able to get assistance in any car that you’re insured to drive – so if you have more than one car it might be cheaper to get yourself covered.

On the other hand, if you have two cars but more than one person drives them, then covering each car could be cheaper.

Old and trusty?

If you’ve had your old Rover for a good few years you might find that it’s more difficult or more expensive to get breakdown cover. Breakdown cover is not designed to work as maintenance for your car and because older cars are more likely to break down, the majority of providers will issue a surcharge for an older car – usually 10 years and over.

Call out limits

Some providers have limits on how many times you can claim in a year – from as few as four times – so check the details of your policy before you sign up, especially if you have an older car that’s more likely to break down. The AA and RAC have call out limits of up to 6 and 7 times per year respectively.

Most will also offer a “no claims bonus” of the type given with insurance, where you can save on the following year’s cover if you haven’t made a claim, see below:

• The AA
• Green Flag
• RAC

Recovery

While even the most Basic Breakdown Packages will try to fix your car roadside, and take it to a garage for fixing if they can’t get it started, where they take it will depend on the level of cover that you have. Basic Package prices below:

• Green Flag
• The AA
• RAC
• Compare Basic Breakdown Cover

A cheaper package will mean that your vehicle will be towed to a garage usually within around 10-15 miles of where you broke down which can be a real problem if you’ve broken down far from home as you’ll then have to stay in the area or return to retrieve your car.

As you get to the more Comprehensive Packages, you’ll find that they will tow your car to a destination of your choice (within reason). And while this might be the more expensive option, it could save you a lot of hassle at an already stressful time. Compare Comprehensive Breakdown Packages.

Courtesy car

You should check whether or not you will be provided with a courtesy car if yours breaks down. Policies today tend to have numerous “tiers” and add-ons, so if yours doesn’t offer this, you might be able to pay a little extra if it’s something that you think you’ll need. Some companies will also provide a relief driver with a courtesy car if you’re unable to drive for any reason.

View Breakdown Packages with Courtesy Car service included.

Onward travel

There’s never a convenient time to break down, but if you absolutely have to be somewhere then you want a policy that will get you there. The more expensive packages will offer you either a courtesy car to continue your journey, will provide train tickets or even cover the cost of accommodation if necessary.

Close to home

The type of cover you purchase will also affect where you will get support. Many providers will only assist you a certain distance from your home – usually further than between a ¼ of a mile and five miles.

Others will provide assistance at your home so if your car won’t start in the morning, they’ll still come out to get you started. Make sure you know the details of your policy before signing up in case this isn’t included but you think you’ll need it.

View Breakdown Packages with Home Start.

Excess

Make sure that you know exactly what you’re covered for and whether you’ll have to pay an excess on anything. Breakdown policies don’t tend to cover any garage work so make sure that you’re aware of this before you agree to costs.

European cover

If you need to drive on the continent then you should think about being covered there too – you don’t want to breakdown in a country where you don’t speak the language. If you travel to Europe regularly then you could take out cover that includes Europe, otherwise, some providers offer European Cover as an add-on when you need it.

View European Cover Breakdown Packages.

Other ways to save

As well as shopping around for the best value, you might be able to save more money by buying online – some providers offer discounts of as much as 25 per cent. You should also check to see if your car insurance provider offers breakdown cover too as you might be able to get a discount from them.

New cars often come with a year’s free breakdown cover so if you’ve just bought a car, check before buying cover as you could end up paying for something you already have.

When you take out your cover, do look into both pay & claim and automatic policies since shopping around is the best way to find the right deal for you. If you see a deal that looks great but is from a company you haven’t heard of, look them up on the internet – you might be able to find customer reviews or parent companies that you’re familiar with.

You shouldn’t feel that going for the most expensive policy is the way to get the best cover – taking out a package that provides European cover and accommodation when you only ever drive close to home is just a waste of money.

So take your requirements and your usage into account before Comparing Cover to ensure that you get a deal that suits your needs as well as your pocket.

See how much you can save by comparing the latest breakdown deals.
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