Compare Roadside Assistance Breakdown Cover
- Roadside assistance is the basic form of breakdown cover and is offered by all providers
- These policies cover your vehicle for roadside repairs and/or towing to a local garage in the event of a breakdown
- Compare policy features and the latest prices on basic breakdown cover products below
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Breakdown cover – Roadside Assistance FAQ
Roadside assistance is perhaps the most basic level of breakdown service offered by most providers. When you take out breakdown cover you will need to check the different levels of available service that are provided in order to make your decision about what level of cover you need for your unique requirements.
What does roadside assistance mean?
Roadside assistance is typically the most basic level of service available from providers of breakdown cover. Roadside assistance will usually involve an engineer coming to you and your vehicle during a breakdown, in order to try to fix it at the roadside. Most roadside assistance services also include towing of the vehicle to a nearby garage for further servicing if the engineer is not successful in getting the car back on the road.
Does roadside assistance mean the same thing on every policy?
No. Although breakdown cover usually includes the services of an engineer at the roadside, the details may vary considerably from policy to policy, so it’s worth checking the details thoroughly before opting for any particular provider.
The variations in roadside recovery services include:
- The timeframe within which an engineer will reach you
- The time an engineer will spend attempting to fix your vehicle at the roadside
- Whether towing to a garage is included
- The distance of the garage to which your car can be towed
- The distance from home you must be
- The parts used to repair the vehicle at the roadside
- The kind of labour and parts used to carry out the repair at the garage
When can roadside assistance be useful?
Regardless of how well-maintained your vehicle is, it’s very hard to remove the risk of breaking down completely. Breaking down is always a frustrating experience and if you’re stuck somewhere, dark, cold or even dangerous, roadside recovery can be a lifeline.
Most breakdown cover policies will include roadside assistance, which means you can arrange for an engineer to locate you and attempt to fix your vehicle by the roadside, by calling an emergency number. If they are not able to recover your vehicle and get you back on the road, you will usually be towed to a nearby garage.
Do I need roadside assistance?
This basic level of breakdown cover is popular with drivers as it’s difficult to completely remove the risk of breaking down, which is something that happens to most drivers at some point in their lives. Unless you are on a motorway, where some level of recovery is often provided automatically to broken down vehicles, breaking down can be stressful, frustrating and sometimes dangerous.
When might roadside assistance not be useful?
If you rarely drive your car, or if you use it for very local journeys only, you may not feel that you will benefit from roadside assistance services. In addition, those who have the skills necessary to fix their cars themselves may also decide to do without breakdown cover completely. If you risk it however, and fail to take out breakdown cover, you can be penalised with a very large bill if you need emergency recovery without having a policy beforehand.
Can I get roadside assistance without taking out a policy?
Some providers offer ‘pay as you go’ roadside recovery services to those who do not want to sign up to a full breakdown policy. Others will assist you at the roadside, but the cost can run into many hundreds of pounds.
Featured articles
Featured brands
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AA Breakdown Cover
Established in 1905, the AA is one of the best-known breakdown cover providers, with the UK?s largest in-house recovery fleet.
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AutoAid Breakdown
Owned byRight Choice Insurance Brokers (RCIB), AutoAid offer personal-based breakdown cover that comes with free cover for spouses (terms apply).
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Emergency Assist Breakdown Cover
Independent breakdown provider established in 2017. Emergency Assist provide low cost UK and European recovery membership.
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Euro Plus Breakdown Cover
European breakdown cover specialists offering cover on the continent provided by Allianz Global Assistance.
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GEM Motoring Assist Breakdown Cover
Established in 1932, GEM is a personal breakdown cover provider that has been offering recovery assistance since 1978.
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Green Flag Breakdown Cover
One of the UK's leading recovery companies that works with a nationwide network of breakdown specialists.
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MotorEasy Breakdown Cover
MotorEasy aim to take the hassle out of car ownership by providing a range of products and services including UK and European breakdown membership.
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Nova Direct Breakdown Cover
Nova Direct is an insurance specialist - Policy Excess Insure Ltd providing a range of breakdown cover options.
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RAC Breakdown Cover
Long established motoring association that has been at the forefront of British vehicle recovery since the 19th century.
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Rescuemycar.com Breakdown Cover
Rescuemycar is a breakdown company run by NCI Vehicle Rescue plc.
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