Non-VW Breakdown Cover?

[Ed Webb]

As the van approaches 3 years (a few months to go yet) and the warranty starts fading into a distant memory, What will people do for breakdown cover?
My next insurance quote will see out the warranty on the van so I'm wondering if its worth using the generic garage breakdown cover offered by the insurance company or cover separately with a big firm such as RAC or AA etc.
Id be looking at having European cover during the year but this can always be purchased separately for specific dates.

 

[Pauly]

I would recommend Green Flag personal cover
I always use this and it covers me and not a vehicle, as I have several vans if you start adding registrations to your cover the price goes up and up instead I get personal cover for me and my wife and it covers any vehicle we are in, doesn’t have to be our vehicle and we can be passengers and costs under £100
Have used it a few times and it’s great, they don’t have their own trucks/drivers instead use a network of independent garages and recovery companies to cover jobs for them and I have abused this on more than one occasion ie crashed my motorbike rang them up and gave driver a drink to take me home and not mention it was in pieces just log as breakdown

 

[Ed Webb]

I would recommend Green Flag personal cover
I always use this and it covers me and not a vehicle, as I have several vans if you start adding registrations to your cover the price goes up and up instead I get personal cover for me and my wife and it covers any vehicle we are in, doesn’t have to be our vehicle and we can be passengers and costs under £100
Have used it a few times and it’s great, they don’t have their own trucks/drivers instead use a network of independent garages and recovery companies to cover jobs for them and I have abused this on more than one occasion ie crashed my motorbike rang them up and gave driver a drink to take me home and not mention it was in pieces just log as breakdown

I used AA personal cover when working the mobile bars. That was about £130. Greenflag sounds a good bet I shall play with the quotes page.

 

[Sjacko20]

Are you a member of either C&CC or Caravan and Motorhome club as they usually have some good deals. Think at least one of them uses Greenflag.

 

[Dieseldonkey]

Have you considered AutoAid. It's breakdown insurance. So you pay the recovery agent but claim the money back. Member gets the cover rather than the vehicle. Spouse gets free cover thrown in. Check small print but I'm sure campervans up to 3.5t are covered along with trailers and caravans. About £48 a year but check for discounts through Groupon. I don't think business use on vans is permitted though.

Works just like breakdown cover. You call them and they send out an independent recovery agent. I used them once when the chain snapped on my motorbike, 120 miles from home. It was Britannia Rescue that turned up and took me and the crotch rocket back to my paddock. More reviews on moneysavingexpert.com
Award Winning UK Car Breakdown and Recovery Cover from AutoAid

 

[Fish]

Some bank accounts have this service attached.. the wife has used it and AA came to assist. It may also be free due to account held.

 

[Ed Webb]

Some bank accounts have this service attached.. the wife has used it and AA came to assist. It may also be free due to account held.

I do have the option of that on my account (small monthly fee). I shall also look into this and the above mentioned. Thanks all.

 

[BiTurbo]

Got mine through my platinum account with Lloyd’s bank

 

[Ed Webb]

@Fish @BiTurbo Have you guys ever used or at least checked the details of what's offered through the bank?
Fingers crossed, with a new van they shouldn't be required but a few reviews online are mentioning that the cover is basic and extra charges apply if carrying extra passengers, need a tow etc.

 

[Loz]

I think I also get green flag with my NatWest account..

 

[BiTurbo]

@Fish @BiTurbo Have you guys ever used or at least checked the details of what's offered through the bank?
Fingers crossed, with a new van they shouldn't be required but a few reviews online are mentioning that the cover is basic and extra charges apply if carrying extra passengers, need a tow etc.

Not had a problem, was recovered from Poole and relayed home 195mile trip.
But the AA man was gobsmacked I had better diagnositic equipment with me than he did. And nothing showed up on the laptop or the dash board.
And alas the problem was a faulty throttle switch, and I later found a spare one in the armrest of the centre console. Turned out my mate had removed a few on a recent trip to a breakers and left one in the car.

 

[Tiab]

Have you considered AutoAid. It's breakdown insurance. So you pay the recovery agent but claim the money back. Member gets the cover rather than the vehicle. Spouse gets free cover thrown in. Check small print but I'm sure campervans up to 3.5t are covered along with trailers and caravans. About £48 a year but check for discounts through Groupon. I don't think business use on vans is permitted though.

Works just like breakdown cover. You call them and they send out an independent recovery agent. I used them once when the chain snapped on my motorbike, 120 miles from home. It was Britannia Rescue that turned up and took me and the crotch rocket back to my paddock. More reviews on moneysavingexpert.com
Award Winning UK Car Breakdown and Recovery Cover from AutoAid

I can second auto aid they used to be called Boncaster insurance and at around £50 a year they covered me and the wife in any vehicle. you used to have to pay upfront and then claim back but more recently they've paid direct to the local tow company.

 

[ahappychappie]

Hi,

My van - converted to Campaervan is 3 years old this w/e - thus warranty and roadside assistance run out.

I just wondered what breakdown cover people had taken out - obviously vans/campervans are a little different but cover seems readily available. I can't find a price for VW Assistance - Commercial that is.

Allianz offer a policy for about £85 - covers everything and is based on specifically selecting Campervan so there can be no 'sorry don't cover that' if ever support was required.

Obviously i'm hoping to pay for something I never use.... My insurance policy includes breakdown cover but crucially not Home start - if that were needed I'm sure the cost of a call out and tow to garage from home would be somewhat more than taking out another policy to cover this gap, hence going down this route..

Thanks, Phil

 

[sparkywig]

Not for a T6 I know, but my classic multi-car policy has UK & European breakdown as standard, including home start. Try shopping around at your renewal.

 

[Nigel W]

Hi,

My van - converted to Campaervan is 3 years old this w/e - thus warranty and roadside assistance run out.

I just wondered what breakdown cover people had taken out - obviously vans/campervans are a little different but cover seems readily available. I can't find a price for VW Assistance - Commercial that is.

Allianz offer a policy for about £85 - covers everything and is based on specifically selecting Campervan so there can be no 'sorry don't cover that' if ever support was required.

Obviously i'm hoping to pay for something I never use.... My insurance policy includes breakdown cover but crucially not Home start - if that were needed I'm sure the cost of a call out and tow to garage from home would be somewhat more than taking out another policy to cover this gap, hence going down this route..

Thanks, Phil

Firstly I would check with your insurer to see if they can upgrade your breakdown cover to include homestart. I had a similar issue when mine was 3 years old as I wanted/needed full Europe cover. My insurer had several levels of cover so I just upgraded.

 

[DXX]

Being Cornish with very deep pockets I’ve never paid for breakdown cover in the 41 years I’ve been on the road. Only once have I been completely stuck; at a campsite in the middle of nowhere waiting two days for a electronic ignition pickup to be delivered (old Ford).
That said I am about to put my hand in my pocket for European cover now that the 3 year VW Assistance has expired.
Doing a long run in the UK I normally carry enough cash, these days it’s always possible to use the internet to find a mobile mechanic / recovery.
Sods law says I’ll breakdown now.

 

[Noddy996]

@ahappychappie I use Green Flag, as the cover is personal and covers me in both our vehicles. Checked about it being a campervan, and they have no problem with T6 SWB. Been with them for four years and never had to use them, but their service is well rated in on-line reviews. Only thing I have found is that this year I got a far better deal by doing it as a new customer on line - £35 cheaper! Had a moan with the renewals team, and they matched themselves(!) without me needing to start again. But they did say that they no longer give any discounts for renewals, so I will definitely shop around each year now.

 

[ahappychappie]

Not for a T6 I know, but my classic multi-car policy has UK & European breakdown as standard, including home start. Try shopping around at your renewal.

The Insurance policy I took out was quite a bit cheaper than others - so even if I'd have opted for a policy that had Home start with the Breakdown cover it would have cost me more than taking out a separate policy to cover the Home start gap

 

[ahappychappie]

Being Cornish with very deep pockets I’ve never paid for breakdown cover in the 41 years I’ve been on the road. Only once have I been completely stuck; at a campsite in the middle of nowhere waiting two days for a electronic ignition pickup to be delivered (old Ford).
That said I am about to put my hand in my pocket for European cover now that the 3 year VW Assistance has expired.
Doing a long run in the UK I normally carry enough cash, these days it’s always possible to use the internet to find a mobile mechanic / recovery.
Sods law says I’ll breakdown now.

Confused - Deep pockets = wealthy(!?) - but you don't pay for breakdown cover!? Hope you've not cursed yourself.

We've just returned from 2 and a bit weeks in Cornwall - such a lovely place - unless you're a local and it's August!!!

 

[T6 Owl]

I found recently that using my insurer (Aviva) was the best option for breakdown cover including european. I got various quotes from other companies, but Aviva was best value for money.
However, my T6 hasn’t been converted so not sure what difference that would make.