The RAC

[TheBoy]

Called them at 9am

Can you guess how far I've made it since then?

[Raeturbo]

What car has let you down?

[dave the builder]

Burgar king,  or McDonalds 

but seriously , i hope you get sorted and home soon
reminds me ,i need to renew my AutoAid
i did try ,but their website is clearly rigged
i clicked "renew" and got sent to " you chose to cancel"
I DID NOT press the wrong link 
to get a new policy now they want about £80 because cars are over 16 years .
it should have renewed at £60 

[Raeturbo]

Surely you mean 9pm??

[TheBoy]

9am.13.5hrs ago

They have taken the car away and put in secure storage, left us at side of road since 5pm

The level of incompetence is astonding

[Sir Tigger KC]

Gross incompetence! 

They should have left the car on the side of the road and put you into secure storage!   

Sorry TB, couldn't resist it!    Hope you get home, or where ever you were going soon! 

[TheBoy]

Still, it's a nice view. Until it got proper dark o'clock

[pscocoa]

Several years ago  just before New Year  the Omega broke down near to Cribbs Corner on the M5 about 11am on the way from seeing family in Cornwall  to seeing family in Manchester. Phoned the AA who sent a subcontractor vehicle fairly quickly whilst we cowered behind a barrier. He said he could organise a car for our onward journey and get the car to a nominated destination. The AA overrode his recommendation and he had to take us to Gordano Services for us to await another patrol. Once at Gordano we were there about 3 or 4 hours when a patrol turned up incapable of towing the Omega anywhere. We decided we would return home to Sandhurst and about 5pm a truck took us to Leigh Delamere Services where we had to await another truck. This one took us to Chieveley - now about  midnight. The AA then organised a taxi for us from Membury to Sandhurst and asked us to leave keys to Omega on front wheel. We got home about 1am and Omega turned up the following day after being in a compound somewhere.

[Kevin Wood]

A mate of mine broke down in his kit car somewhere around Glencoe a few years back now.
He called one of the national breakdown companies, who sent out a local garage.
They loaded up the car and proceeded to drive him straight home to Egham in one hit. He got home before we did!
Driver had a cup of tea then turned round and set off back to Scotland.

[ronnyd]

A mate of mine broke down in his kit car somewhere around Glencoe a few years back now.
He called one of the national breakdown companies, who sent out a local garage.
They loaded up the car and proceeded to drive him straight home to Egham in one hit. He got home before we did!
Driver had a cup of tea then turned round and set off back to Scotland.

Had similar when going to Devon in my Mk2 Granada. Rad went near Ilfracombe so limped to the B&B we had booked. Dad was in RAC so called them, They came out, said that rad was beyond repair and Barnstable Ford stealers had no replacement for an auto. They then said, have your holiday, then arranged recovery from North Devon to Suffolk. The guy, a sub contractor, turned up on time, drove us back, dropped Mum and Dad in Haverhill, then took SWMBO, me and car on to BSE.  He didn't even stop for a cuppa, just turned straight round and drove back to Devon.
Considering he was due to be riding at a moto cross event that weekend he was quite upbeat. My Dad did make it worth his while which helped i reckon. 
Oh how times have changed. 

[Field Marshal Dr. Opti]

A mate of mine broke down in his kit car somewhere around Glencoe a few years back now.
He called one of the national breakdown companies, who sent out a local garage.
They loaded up the car and proceeded to drive him straight home to Egham in one hit. He got home before we did!
Driver had a cup of tea then turned round and set off back to Scotland.

Cup of tea and a very long piss I should think.

[TheBoy]

So, a brief timeline....

8:45am - Break down about 4m south of Scarborough on way home from a week up there, get the car to a safe location.
9:10am - after their app failing to get through all the steps to report breakdown, and no answer from calling them, finally succeeded in reporting breakdown online. Then for 4 hours, you get the usual 30m updates about nothing happening, except the last about it being escalated to a dedicated team who do nothing.  So, the start of pestering them, as its the only way to get action.
3:30pm - man turns up, declares it can't be fixed, and where did I want to be towed (no point going to a local garage, as it will be Tuesday at earliest before it will be looked at), as he would try to do the first stint - which was rejected by his control office.  So he books a truck.  Unsure if truck will relay, or do in one stint.  He goes off to other jobs.
5:15pm - call from RAC saying they cant do the tow today, so booking hire car.  Give all the details over to lady, including confirming I dont have my licence on me, which isn't a problem.  Get email from Enterprise that car is booked at Scarborough (but have enough experience of Enterprise to know that its .not a confirmation of booking, just acknowledgement of receipt, given my 80% failure rate with Enterprise to get hire cars).  RAC lady says tow driver will have all the info about it. Whilst finishing call to her....
5:20pm - Tow truck turns up.  3rd party.  He says they are putting car in their secure compound, which is just up the road.  He knows nothing of hire car or anything else though, obviously.  So we get towed a few hundred yards up the road.  Call the RAC, who tell me to return to original location, as Enterprise are picking us up from there to go to Scarborough to get the car.
Around 6:30pm, start regularly calling the RAC to get an ETA for them/Enterprise picking us up, as they have effectively left us stranded beside a busy road, with nothing.  Each time to be told somebody would ring us shortly.  Eventually get told there is a car for us in Leeds and Enterprise would ring to sort out a taxi.  Keep phoning RAC to check progress, keep being promised calls back from Enterprise.
Around 9:30pm - Patience starting to wear thin, refuse to get off phone until the lady I was speaking to actually has spoken to Enterprise, rather than rely on emails or electronic updates.  Its now dark and getting quite cold, and Mrs TB and I are dressed for a sunny day, which it was before the sun set.  Woman cant get through to Enterprise, but will keep trying and call me back as soon as she does.
Around 10pm - same woman calls back, Enterprise won't let me have the car, due to not having my licence on me. For some reason in the previous 5hrs, this had gone from being no problem to being a show stopper.  RAC woman starts suggesting accommodation, but I'm tired, cold, ratty, and can see the same sequence of events happening the next day. So whilst I know our moggies at home will survive an extra day (neighbours had been feeding them, but knew they were planning getting away for the long weekend), that was the excuse to avoid further shenanigans.  Mrs TB had already looked at trains about an hour earlier, so we were already armed to answer that suggestion - fastest train option that time of night would have taken 14hrs, with a long wait sleeping on a platform on one of the stops. Taxi agreed, but had to be authorised, she'd call me back in a few minutes, which she did, saying her manager was just putting the booking through, and we'd get a text confirmation in a few minutes.
Approx 10:30pm - no text, so call RAC, they can't see its booked or even authorised, chap messages the woman, but clear something isn't right, he'll get somebody to call back
Approx 11:00pm - tired, cold, now getting a touch frustrated, called RAC back, answered by same bloke as last call, and I think he understood my frustration, and worked some magic to book a cab. Confirmation text arrived while he was still on phone.  Obviously, its a busy time of day for cabs, so was expecting a wait, but...
12:10am  - exactly, to the minute, 15hrs after reporting the breakdown, taxi turns up.
3:20am - arrive home. 18hrs after calling the RAC.

[Rangie]

Don't suppose that you'll be renewing your membership with them absolutely disgusting way to operate. We've been with Green Flag for years now always sorted within one hour of logging a problem, only had to use them three times admittedly they offer monetary compensation if they don't attend within the hour as well.

[Doctor Gollum]

At least you weren't in French France. That is still pretty atrocious though.

Did you consider getting it dragged back home under your own steam?

[TheBoy]

Don't suppose that you'll be renewing your membership with them absolutely disgusting way to operate. We've been with Green Flag for years now always sorted within one hour of logging a problem, only had to use them three times admittedly they offer monetary compensation if they don't attend within the hour as well.

When I got home there was a (unrelated) letter from RAC about upgrading or extending for only £1

Nick W here put me off Green Flag...