Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Mr Skrunts]

My renewal is the 31st Dec

I have the full package with the AA

Breakdown
Home Start
Forward Travel
Plus thier Garage Cover.

Paid £211 after wrangling last year

Quote for renewal came through a week ago @ £487ish

Phone call from them today they came down to £395

They told me this was my 13th year as a Gold member but wont budge on price.

In the end they have offered to price match whatever I get back to them with - How can they price match when they know full well others dont have all the services I require (Garage cover for me)

End resesult is I get the best price for Breakdown, Home start, Relay and Recovery etc and they will match it and then add back on the Garage cover.

If I was a new customer they would be throwing discounts at me to get me as a customer.  Why cant they look after the customers that have stayed so long. 

No call outs in 18 months and that was only to them fitting cheap nasty batterys.  So I reckon I deserve a discount like we have a NCD with car insurance.

Any thought on best breakdown service or best comparison sites?

Many Thanks in Advance.

[Migv6 le Frog Fan]

I still cant beat Autoaid, even though the price keeps creeping up. I think its now around £75 for car over 10 years old.
Dont think it covers outside UK, but Im not planning on taking my cars outside UK so it doesnt matter to me.

[TheBoy]

Reminds me, the AA promised to call back to offer a better price, but never did.

Can I be bothered to call them, as they aint gonna match last year's price of under £90 (Joint personal cover, with whatever Relay is called this year), are they

[TheBoy]

I still cant beat Autoaid, even though the price keeps creeping up. I think its now around £75 for car over 10 years old.
Dont think it covers outside UK, but Im not planning on taking my cars outside UK so it doesnt matter to me.

They dont do joint cover, so more expensive that Arseholes Anonymous.

[Migv6 le Frog Fan]

I still cant beat Autoaid, even though the price keeps creeping up. I think its now around £75 for car over 10 years old.
Dont think it covers outside UK, but Im not planning on taking my cars outside UK so it doesnt matter to me.

They dont do joint cover, so more expensive that Arseholes Anonymous.

Im pretty sure we have joint cover, but would need to check.

[TheBoy]

I still cant beat Autoaid, even though the price keeps creeping up. I think its now around £75 for car over 10 years old.
Dont think it covers outside UK, but Im not planning on taking my cars outside UK so it doesnt matter to me.

They dont do joint cover, so more expensive that Arseholes Anonymous.

Im pretty sure we have joint cover, but would need to check.

Its a bit wishy washy. Seems to imply free legal cover to spouse on the page you pick options. Elsewhere on the site, it kinda implies your legal spouse is covered the same too. 

I'm naturally distrusting unless its clearly in black and white.

[Sir Tigger KC]

£395 for breakdown cover?   

You could buy a spare Omega for that! 

[YZ250]

Can’t remember exactly how much we pay the AA for personal cover for the two of us but in the past when the price creeps up I’ve left them and returned soon after as a new customer, with new customer lower pricing. Don’t know if that still works but worth a try.
The only time that I called them out was for the Omega crank sensor.

[TheBoy]

Can’t remember exactly how much we pay the AA for personal cover for the two of us but in the past when the price creeps up I’ve left them and returned soon after as a new customer, with new customer lower pricing. Don’t know if that still works but worth a try.
The only time that I called them out was for the Omega crank sensor.

I used to alternate between AA and RAC.  Because she is on the motorway every day, I don't want any breaks in cover.  You know it will be the law of sod!

AA new customer is quoting me about £125 .  Renewal is over £150.  This year was under £90.

Sir Tig's suggestion looks good aside from a clause that if it can be repaired locally the next working day, they will tow to local garage - not too happy about that, as that means if it broke down on a Friday, they could potentially leave us stranded until Monday night.

Alb's suggestion has a clause that needs clarification over as well.

[Mr Skrunts]

My Brother and his Girlfriend with an account for another service.  He buys the service, if the service goes up, he haggles it back down, if this idea fails and its cheaper for a "New customer" then it goes in her name,

So with a lot of OOF members like TB haveing a partner that drives and you have a shared policy, then do the sums in your partners name as a "New Customer" and see what you can waggle.

[Nick W]

I used to alternate between AA and RAC.  Because she is on the motorway every day, I don't want any breaks in cover.  You know it will be the law of sod!

AA new customer is quoting me about £125 .  Renewal is over £150.  This year was under £90.

Sir Tig's suggestion looks good aside from a clause that if it can be repaired locally the next working day, they will tow to local garage - not too happy about that, as that means if it broke down on a Friday, they could potentially leave us stranded until Monday night.

Alb's suggestion has a clause that needs clarification over as well.

What they mean is it will take them a working day to make a decision about your 'recovery'. And then you'll find the joke really is on you, because that decision was always going to be 'NO'. You would be better off putting the membership(a lie just like football 'clubs') fee in an envelope in the glovebox, to use as a bribe to persuade the person who felt sorry enough to pick you up as a hitch-hiker to actually take you home.


You should also consider that anything that might go wrong with your car can be repaired. That doesn't mean you actually would.....

[TheBoy]

Probably one for Nick W - if I wanted a tow for, say, 200 miles, how easy is that to arrange from the side of the road, and what sort of cost? Couple of quid per mile? £5 per mile?

[Nick W]

Probably one for Nick W - if I wanted a tow for, say, 200 miles, how easy is that to arrange from the side of the road, and what sort of cost? Couple of quid per mile? £5 per mile?

Seven years ago, we were charging £1.50 a mile. Roundtrip, on top of the call out charge. Plus VAT. And any special equipment required to load the car. Trailers are extra.


You're asking for a 400mile job which isn't possible legally, so it wouldn't happen. Add in the practicalities of knowing who to call, and the better known providers are still a good deal even if their prices are getting closer to what they should have been twenty years ago.

[Doctor Gollum]

It cost me the thick end of £800 for recovery from Preston to Sussex. Breakdown wouldn't cover the coolant leak because it was caused by impacting the back of a lorry rather than mechanical failure. But that's an idea of last minute cost.

With planning, the hire of a vehicle with a tow bar and a suitable trailer would be less.

[ronnyd]

When i finally killed off my Desmond, my breakdown cover covered it being brought back to my home. Then the scrappie picked it up from here.