Breakdown Insurance

[Mister G]

I am on the road and enjoying every minute.
My daily driver has Recovery on it, it's personal cover in my name so it covers me on any vehicle I am driving up to 16 years old.
The outfit I use want silly money to add the Stag (I think they just wanted me to go away) so I am looking for alternative providers.
Thanks in advance for your help

John

[ChrisD]

Hi John,

have you checked your car insurance? I'm with the club insurance scheme which includes a breakdown recovery service.

Chris

[Mister G]

Thanks Chris
I am with another insurer but good idea I will check.

John

[Motorsport Micky]

Green Flag Premium, any vehicle including onward journey, also caravan recovery (in one hit with the first recoverer taking it to destination and also returning with it at the end of your holiday, (not like RAC and AA who piggy back the recovery through each area to the next). Home start and also one named vehicle with any other driver etc. You can build the cover up how you want with various other inclusions at extra cost.

Micky

[alpenmac]

My current insurance for my 1973 TV8 Stag includes breakdown & recovery for just £102 pa. However, cautionary tale. When "Nigel" conked out last Sunday (in the pouring rain) - no electrics to ignition but all battery direct services OK - I phoned the Breakdown Service which informed me that their agent would be with me in an hour. Two hours later, having come from over 35 miles away, a Ford Transit arrived looking for a broken down Triumph motorcycle to tow (it only had a motorcycle towing device)! Mechanic tried to fix car on roadside but was stumped. He said I would have to wait another 2 hours until he could return with a vehicle capable of towing my car the 10 miles home. I resigned myself to another long wait. In the interim I phoned the Breakdown Service again which confirmed that they had told the agent that it was a Triumph Stag but that the agent had misinterpreted it to be a motorcycle - obviously the younger generation didn't recognise that Triumph also made cars. To make matters worse, or perhaps better, after the agent had gone I had a good rummage under the dash and discovered that, by waggling a multiplug, I could get a partial ignition circuit. I fired up Nigel, albeit without indicators, tacho, horn etc, and managed to limp home myself. Arriving home some three & a half hours after I phoned for assistance, thoroughly soaked through and p***ed off. I phoned the Breakdown Service again and told them in that they should reconsider using that agent again!!
All's well that ends well today, new wiring fitted to new multiplug and the sun is shining ready for our next outing. Oh the joys of classic car motoring - don't you just love it!

Alex

[Another Peter]

Funnily enough, my insurance renewal has just come through with the option of adding breakdown cover for £39.95.

I'll admit that I've been more than happy with the AA. The secret is each year to threaten to cancel and "go to a competitor" and they usually knock me some off.

Unless you are very mechanically adept (I'm not) I see breakdown cover as essential.

[73stagman]

Funnily enough, my insurance renewal has just come through with the option of adding breakdown cover for £39.95.

I'll admit that I've been more than happy with the AA. The secret is each year to threaten to cancel and "go to a competitor" and they usually knock me some off.

Unless you are very mechanically adept (I'm not) I see breakdown cover as essential.

I would consider myself to be reasonably mechanically adept but as the parts in my garage don't come with me every where I go the breakdown cover is essential in my book too!
(I use RAC these days. Have used the AA for all my UK driving life until they let me down...... four hours waiting for recovery and then the inevitable "relay" home five recovery vehicles in total and a total of twelve hours from breakdown to home... I was only four hours but 5 counties or so away from home!)

[Mister G]

Thanks everyone for your help and advice.
Thinking cap on......

John

[Dazza the Stag]

Thanks everyone for your help and advice.
Thinking cap on......

John

Another option is to have a look at the packaged accounts your bank offers. You have to be careful as to their limitations but some offer really good value and can include travel insurance and mobile phone cover etc. Mine covers all my cars, it also covers European travel but unfortunately only for cars under 10 years old when outside of the uk

regards

dazza

[ChrisLD364]

I get European cover as standard with Peter James - and the premium was peanuts. Technically I could take the 1958 Ford Pop onto the continent and get cover - but I doubt it would get as far as the ferry terminal in Hull.

Stag's on the same policy though - and I'll be doing a Euro run as soon as the kids can be left alone without burning the house down.

[ste]

Burning the house down

I get European cover as standard with Peter James - and the premium was peanuts. Technically I could take the 1958 Ford Pop onto the continent and get cover - but I doubt it would get as far as the ferry terminal in Hull.

Stag's on the same policy though - and I'll be doing a Euro run as soon as the kids can be left alone without burning the house down.

Know the feeling, but taking the risk this year and trying the Euro run this time, removed the matches from the house and the booze, however I have him on speed dial for the "emergency parts delivery".

Wish us luck

[73stagman]

I tried to add the Stag to my list of cars to be covered by the RAC and they wanted almost the same again as I was already paying... however the nice lady on the end of the phone asked a few more questions and we decided that as i was the only driver in the household and therefore could only have one car on the road at once or be a passenger in only one car at a time... obvious all that really... then I should have cover for me rather than the cars.....so I changed the type of cover over the phone, got both cars covered and any other i am a passenger in for no more money.. in fact I am now paying a few pennies a month less!? So how do they work that out? Nice efficient lady on the phone though saved me some money so i not asking too many questions..

[Andrew S]

Out of interest am I correct in still thinking that the AA is a breakdown cover covering a person owing or travelling in anyone else car whereas the RAC is specific vehicle? Both my car insurances include European cover anyway within the insurance and its so cheap to do it this way, but an AA cover if it still operates in the same way would be useful to some

[5chaiaday]

Andrew, The Answer is Yes and No. Both RAC and AA offer cover for either the person or the vehicle - you just have to work out which is most favourable for you. I used to have cover for the person as I had 3 cars and only me driving but now my daily has free breakdown cover included, my wife drives the runabout and so I'm going back to classic breakdown cover for the Stag.

But my experience with the AA (not experienced RAC recently) is do not accept their renewal offers, avoid being secretly upgraded to Gold Membership (it costs) and haggle, haggle, haggle - they have definitely forgotten the difference between being a member and being fleeced.......

Ed.