Breakdown Cover

Now another frustration with the new purchase.

Just been on a rally with a motorhome group and was advised the AA with whome I have cover do not attend vehicles over 3500KG.

Checked and they dont Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaargh.    

What do you recommend as the best Company option for a standalone vehicle?  One that does European cover as well.

If you are a member of C&CC, with their Arrival scheme, there are no length or weight restrictions.
http://www.rac.co.uk/bundle1/?gclid=CNeQqo3_orsCFUkUwwodt0gAPQ&gclsrc=aw.ds

http://www.rac.co.uk/breakdown-cover/european-breakdown-cover/




 The same applies to the CC's Mayday scheme though Greenflag...


http://www.caravanclub.co.uk/insurance/uk-breakdown-and-recovery   (for European cover you take their Red Pennant insurance and that provides breakdown cover , read further down the Mayday link)

Perhaps a bit late for you but I have breakdown cover tacked on to the insurance and it costed about £50.  Also it covers unlimited time abroad in Europe as long as you're not away more than you're home; I read that as 6 months cover and there's no limitations on weight or size.
Rich..

Our motorhome insurance with Safeguard includes specialist large vehicle breakdown cover with the AA in the UK and similar breakdown cover throughout Europe, unlimited period, at no additional cost.  
Maybe not helpful for you now but worth comparing when your insurance is up for renewal.

http://www2.mercedes-benz.co.uk/content/unitedkingdom/mpc/mpc_unitedkingdom_website/en/home_mpc/van/home/aftersales_2011/after_sales_homepage/owner_driver/added_value/mobilovan-uk.html

According to the information in the link above you have 30yrs complimentary roadside assistance throughout Europe for 30 years. I have a similar but for only 3 years. Please note that only approved contractors are allowed to recover on French toll roads so you will have to pay one of those to get you to Mercedes. Mercedes are also very helpful at getting you to one of their dealers and facilitating repairs even if its not a warranty or recovery matter - a corning lorry demolished one of our wing mirrors in Germany.

Despite that I use the CC Mayday cover. There are no size or weight restrictions and in particular they will recover you from being bogged down in a field at no cost even if specialist equipment is needed. This is only valid in the UK.

When my Mercedes 3 years is up I will use CC red Pennant for overseas trip. It is expensive but you get what you pay for and I know so many people who have been so well looked after by that service.

Peter

As already posted by the other Roger Safeguard includes AA cover and we are 3500kgs on the dot!!

Its worth taking note of you get what you pay for (Peters last paragraph) and we have taken CC Red Pennant out as well for the last couple of years, mainly for the repatriation of the vehicle where the main driver is unable to drive and the second driver cant or is not able to drive.

from Paul Bullock

whatever you do don't trust safeguard, breakdown ok but anything else [expenses etc] they just wriggle out of, was with them 13yrs, first ever breakdown this year in my Nuevo they just got me to a garage, left stranded with no help whatsoever! when asked about help with costs their reply was "sorry we cant help at all " you should have sorted it out with the AA man [who do their recovery] when he dropped you at the garage, I didn't realise at that moment in time that the van was going to be there 5days for an electrical fault! I am now with CC greenflag ,you never know how good your insurance is until you try to claim! the little exercise cost me £300+ [transport & b&b for the night] and safeguard , even after repeated phonecalls wouldn't re imburse me a penny ,they have now lost my van and car business needless to say!

Paul

many thanks, member peter brown for forwarding my email saved me a lot of typing                                                                                                                                                                            regards paul bullock

Thanks All,  I am ging to give CC and C&CC a call tomorrow and weigh up pro's andd con's. I am leaning towards CC green and red flags as I have only ever heard good things about them. Yes expensive and that will pain me BUT if I did break down it is worth the extra.
I remember a helicopter owner who was complaining that it would cost too much to do some recommended work on his rotor head (wasn't a safety issue at the time BUT). I asked him how big a cheque he would write if it went wrong at 5000 feet and he agreed to the work on the spot ha ha.

Cannot praise the RAC enough when we have had to call them out, here and in France, at the time we had car and caravan, got put up in a hotel in France,  the RAC organized an axle for the caravan from Germany, not one available in France, Sunday morning two French " looked like farmers " guys turned up in an old van, delivered it and fitted it, excellent service .I am with them, I am in the C&CC.

I use LV Britannia - don't know their maximum weight but they uplifted my Hiace camper from Dover to Edinburgh and gave me a hire car to get home - little fuss.

These threads on Breakdown cover are always coming up and I think always will.
There are many insurers and lots of small print.
Many will not know if they have a good insurer until they claim.
its difficult to pick one above all the others. IMHO.
You could always do a Dutto.  
 My wife has the insurance as: any vehicle she travels in.
we have claimed and they paid up.

regards

mike

Hi mike. Yes, do agree and it is up to the individual what they choose. I do find it useful getting others opinions especially as I have been caught by the over 3500 kg gremlin with the AA.

I have decided to get quotes from CC and C&CC as they both have good names (not the cheapest) but do cater for the likes of us, get details of what and how they will recover etc and go from there.

Having both caravan and motorhome I want to get both on the same policy as well, just to complicate matters   

Thanks for all the input and will let you know where I settle  

We have a caravan with the C&CC , the caravan was written off in the bad hail storm on the 28th June 2012,  had new for old, they paid out the full amount that was paid for the old caravan less the £100 excess, condition was had to have another brand new caravan, had to put some towards it as  had a more expensive  one, well pleased, especially as we had gone off the old one, layout was wrong, my MH is with the RAC through the C&CC , had it for decades with my cars and couldn`t fault them when called out.


Ignore first paragraph doesn`t apply after reading again, I am covered with RAC whatever vehicle I am in, if you are member of the C&CC it covers larger MH I believe, I come in at the 3,500 band.