Been looking at joining Good Sam.
- Thread starter buzzurd
- Start date
The friendliest place on the web for anyone with an RV or an interest in RVing!
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
Gizmo
Well-known member
Need more specifics. Are you interested in Good Sam as a club membership or the roadside assistance plan?
Gary RV_Wizard
Site Team
The club is both a discount program (campgrounds and Camping World stores) and a social thing. If you are only looking for discounts, it's a marginal thing but can be valuable if you use it often enough. If you are looking for local RV clubs and rallys at the state, regional and national lvels, it's a pretty decent thing to be with.
Roadside Assist is OK, but many prefer Coach Net instead, though CN is more expensive. Your AAA RV Plus is probably as good as GS in many regions, though.
Roadside Assist is OK, but many prefer Coach Net instead, though CN is more expensive. Your AAA RV Plus is probably as good as GS in many regions, though.
Utclmjmpr
Well-known member
WHAT ARE YOU USING AS AN RV??>>>DAN
LarsMac
Well-known member
I've been a member of AAA since the early 80s
Overall, they have good response and service. The problem is if you have a bad streak of luck, they have their limits. you get one long RV tow per year.
Hopefully, that is enough.
Good Sam service has no published limit, though I suspect that were you to need their services several times in a year, they might balk at some point.
I've had both this last year, and fortunately, I have not had to use either. So it was just insurance money down the drain, this year.
I will probably stay with AAA, as they have pulled me out of several jams over the years.
Overall, they have good response and service. The problem is if you have a bad streak of luck, they have their limits. you get one long RV tow per year.
Hopefully, that is enough.
Good Sam service has no published limit, though I suspect that were you to need their services several times in a year, they might balk at some point.
I've had both this last year, and fortunately, I have not had to use either. So it was just insurance money down the drain, this year.
I will probably stay with AAA, as they have pulled me out of several jams over the years.
Utclmjmpr
Well-known member
If you have an A B or C ,,you might want to look into FMCA.>>>Dan
John Stephens
Well-known member
If you're thinking about getting a membership, it will come in handy for discounts for select campgrounds and Camping World stores, and as Gary said previously, you have to use it enough to make it worth your while. I have been a member for two years and have gotten my money's worth, both from the stores and the campgrounds. Last week, I had a new OTA antenna installed on the coach and CW beat every other mechanic I spoke with by at least $150. That purchase, by itself, saved more than the two years worth of membership fees.
When dealing with their Roadside Assistance plan, I have had mixed results. Once when I got the coach stuck in my own front yard and was blocking traffic, it took only an hour for a wrecker to come out after calling RA. However, my last experience with them wasn't nearly as good. While traveling from home in Florida to Asheville, NC this past summer, I had warning lights on the dashboard come on after crossing the South Carolina line. I called RA and was told they couldn't get anyone to come to me until the next day. I called my mechanic back home and he told me what the lights meant and what to do to about them. I fixed the problem myself and hit the road, but if I had waited for Good Sam RA, I would have stayed grounded for the next 24 hours. Unfortunately, the RA program can only be as good as the contracted workers they hire, and obviously in some areas, that isn't good enough.
When dealing with their Roadside Assistance plan, I have had mixed results. Once when I got the coach stuck in my own front yard and was blocking traffic, it took only an hour for a wrecker to come out after calling RA. However, my last experience with them wasn't nearly as good. While traveling from home in Florida to Asheville, NC this past summer, I had warning lights on the dashboard come on after crossing the South Carolina line. I called RA and was told they couldn't get anyone to come to me until the next day. I called my mechanic back home and he told me what the lights meant and what to do to about them. I fixed the problem myself and hit the road, but if I had waited for Good Sam RA, I would have stayed grounded for the next 24 hours. Unfortunately, the RA program can only be as good as the contracted workers they hire, and obviously in some areas, that isn't good enough.
Bill N
Well-known member
buzzurd said:
Coach Net
Kevin Means
Site Team
Another vote for Coach Net, although in all honesty, we've never needed to call them in the 24 years we've had them. Coach Net has a reputation for specializing in RV related roadside problems, which is why we got them, and few people complain about the quality of their service. They also offer RV technical support over the phone, and as John Stevens mentioned, that can be very helpful when stuck on the road somewhere with some type of technical problem.
When evaluating different RV roadside service/towing plans, I'd also recommend that you pay close attention to how the policies are worded - like limits on how far they'll tow your RV, and to what kind of facility they'll tow it. If you plan to travel to Canada, you might want to verify that they'll provide service there.
Our CN plan also covers our personal vehicles, but so does our regular insurance, so it's a bit redundant. That might be helpful though, if someone's insurance didn't provide roadside service.
Kev
When evaluating different RV roadside service/towing plans, I'd also recommend that you pay close attention to how the policies are worded - like limits on how far they'll tow your RV, and to what kind of facility they'll tow it. If you plan to travel to Canada, you might want to verify that they'll provide service there.
Our CN plan also covers our personal vehicles, but so does our regular insurance, so it's a bit redundant. That might be helpful though, if someone's insurance didn't provide roadside service.
Kev
We used Coachnet for 12 years and had one call-out that took several hours because of a vendor dispatching the wrong type of truck and one that they paid an hours troubleshooting labor.
I switched this year because of their 70% rate increase.
I switched this year because of their 70% rate increase.
NY_Dutch
Well-known member
Good Sam's roadside assistance is operated under contract by the Allstate Motor Club folks. Coach-Net IS a roadside assistance company that contracts both directly with subscribers and also operates programs for other companies such as Ford for some truck models. Some RV manufacturers also include a Coach-Net subscription with new RV purchases.
Bill N
Well-known member
Kevin Means said:
Just the opposite Kevin. Switched for GS to Coach Net 3 years ago and I think it may take the next 24 years for them to make any money off us. We have had the gamut of tows, roadside assistance, tire coverage, etc since we joined. Yet they have always been graceful and obliging when we call and we always get a call from a technican with whom we can discuss the problem to insure they respond with the right equipment or technician. On one call in the wilds of Canada we thought we just had a flat tire but it turned out to be a leakdown because a tire monitor had come loose. The guy showed up in 2 hours (we were in a campground), brought two new tires with him and found that the bracket holding the extension hose had come free and allowed the monitor to come loose and allow the air to leak out. So all he did was resecure the bracket and air up the tire. He only charged a 1/2 hour labor (I gave him a nice tip) and Coach Net covered the rest. All of our contacts with them have been as pleasant. I have heard of high price increases but ours has not gone up since we started.
Bill
