Left stranded by Good Sam Roadside Assistance

[Ex-Calif]

It's only been 9 years since I cancelled AAA so I get monthly statements saying my membership is about to expire. I had 3 issues with AAA.

I dumped AAA years ago as well. The biggest issue for me was that they covered the person not the car. So when my kid broke down in my Jeep there was no joy in mudville for him.

I get basically the same roadside assistance from GEICO. In fact on the same problem I was actually overseas when he called me. I called GEICO and they towed him home and then he put on a new serpentine belt - which had failed.

My RV coverage also has roadside and will tow to the "nearest" suitable repair shop - i.e. truck or RV repair.

The best roadside I ever got was uHaul. Flat bedding my Jeep last year the flatbed blew a tire. The agent called me like every 10 minutes until the job was done. Giving me updates on the 3rd party repair guy's arrival estimate and even a follow up after I was going again to make sure I had no more issues.

The crazy part was the recovery guy and I looked at changing the dodgy looking second tire on that side but didn't. When I unloaded the Jeep that tire was flat. I towed it to the drop off and reported it. It would have sucked to be stuck twice...

 

[Skookum]

I dumped AAA too. They changed the terms of their Premier RV service from 200 miles of free towing to "up to $500" per incident or something like that. That covers almost nothing when a heavy wrecker is needed.

I've been looking at Coach Net.

 

[Skookum]

Then they should not even offer their services, if that is the case. Or at least say, "dude, I'll probably get a better offer so look somewhere else".

When two calls come in at the same time and one is going to make more money....which would you pick?

It's also possible the good/only tow company is already on a job which can add hours to the wait time.

 

[Tulecreeper]

When two calls come in at the same time and one is going to make more money....which would you pick?

It's also possible the good/only tow company is already on a job which can add hours to the wait time.

^^^That^^^

I live very rural. There is one tow company within 20 miles of me. He is also the only vehicle mechanic within 20 miles of me. And he is really good, so he is really busy.

 

[RedForeman]

The cops jump in front of all of us.

I mentioned that in my post. Cops have a contract for priority service that you end up paying for. For a car it's not much. For a big hook it escalates rapidly. If money is no object or you're in a hurry, then I suppose it's perfectly fine. Many may not be aware of this, which is why I brought it up. Rates/priority tend to diminish in this order: police, cash customer, roadside.

I dumped AAA too. They changed the terms of their Premier RV service from 200 miles of free towing to "up to $500" per incident or something like that.

Thanks for this. I've had AAA at least 20 yrs, Premier RV for motorcycles and a cargo trailer. I used it for car tows and tire changes for my wife when I am out of town, but never an incident with the RV coverage coming into play. I was unaware of this change and need to look into it.

 

[RedForeman]

^^^That^^^

I live very rural. There is one tow company within 20 miles of me. He is also the only vehicle mechanic within 20 miles of me. And he is really good, so he is really busy.

Again sort of the opposite case in my area. NE suburbs of ATL. For a heavy tow, I can call United and pay gold plated prices. For that, they will send one of the many 50T rotators in their fleet right away. United also happens to be #1 on most government police contracts in the area and will come if I let the cops handle it.

Or, I can call another guy I know with an older T600 heavy wrecker and he'll get there when he gets there. Usually not over 2-3 hours versus maybe an hour with the more spendy outfit for about half the cost.

 

[Tulecreeper]

Again sort of the opposite case in my area. NE suburbs of ATL. For a heavy tow, I can call United and pay gold plated prices. For that, they will send one of the many 50T rotators in their fleet right away. United also happens to be #1 on most government police contracts in the area and will come if I let the cops handle it.

Or, I can call another guy I know with an older T600 heavy wrecker and he'll get there when he gets there. Usually not over 2-3 hours versus maybe an hour with the more spendy outfit for about half the cost.

I was only refering to a regular towing guy. I have no clue who I would need to call if I needed a MH towed. I guess, if it happened relatively local, I would call my guy and have him suggest someone.

 

[ziplock]

It's also possible

I thought you were here. hahaha

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

Then they should not even offer their services, if that is the case. Or at least say, "dude, I'll probably get a better offer so look somewhere else".

Maybe they do say something like that, but you wouldn't know. One of the drawbacks is using a roadside insurer is it's their clerks that are negotiating with the actual provider and they are the ones making a cost vs benefit tradeoff on your convenience and travel schedule. He/she doesn't have the authority to pay a more competitive rate that would get you better service. And the dispatcher clerks choice is either no service or late service. I think most would say "better late than never". Personally, I'd let them schedule their best shot, and if that were unacceptable, start making my own calls. Starting with the scheduled service to see if it can be improved.

 

[DonTom]

Cops have a contract for priority service that you end up paying for.

I pay for in which way?

The only difference I recall is how fast the tow truck came.

-Don- Auburn, CA

 

[RedForeman]

I pay for in which way?

The police contract rate is going to be higher. If you have the police make the call, you pay whatever they are contracted for. It's more than a standard rate you would get calling them out yourself. I know this because my wife writes these contracts for the police in the city she works for. On a heavy tow the difference can be breathtaking. Especially in certain states that don't heavily regulate tow operators.

Do a Google search for the likes of "West Virginia heavy towing scam" and you'll see the worst of it. They aren't all that bad, but the police contract basically gives the tow operator carte blanche to bring out whatever they think best, whether you need it or not, and you'll pay it.

When you place the order, you're the one calling the shots and have the option to question or balk at the price, or call the competition if you want to shop rates and response time. Some times and locations it may make a bigger difference than others.

 

[DonTom]

The police contract rate is going to be higher. I

What contract and between whom?

The time the cops called AAA for me, it did not cost me a cent.

-Don- Auburn, CA

 

[Ray-IN]

Speaking only of GS ERS. When you call for emergency road service, the operator that takes you call is instructed to read from their computer screen, then act according to your responses to the questions. They see a list of providers under contract with GS. They they are required to find the lowest cost provider before dispatching one. (that explains the 792 minutes, and the reason that provider was a no-show)
When an operator is presented with a problem not covered in their data-base they are at a loss.
When you recognize the operator is stumbling it's time to request to speak with a supervisor. Supervisors do know their job and have the authority to deviate from SOP; although they too must attempt to locate the lowest cost provider.
When you locate a tow service that is qualified to tow your RV, then you call GS back and talk with that same supervisor (you did get their name?). The super then goes through their SOP ritual then approves the tow. If you self-pay for this tow, GS will, upon request, mail you a reimbursement form.

When I did that I got my reimbursement in about 3 weeks.

Upon investigation I suspect you'll find nearly ERS companies operate close to the same way. Once that is realized the stress level goes down some.

 

[RedForeman]

The time the cops called AAA for me

That was unclear. When I first read what you posted earlier, I understood it to mean that the cop called for a tow instead of you calling AAA yourself. Not that the cop called AAA for you.

Everything I've mentioned about police contract tows is relevant to the former. That is, cop shows up. Then he either decides you're an immediate hazard or you ask him to help, and he calls for a tow from the operator that is on contract. I see now that what you did is not that.

 

[DonTom]

That was unclear. When I first read what you posted earlier, I understood it to mean that the cop called for a tow instead of you calling AAA yourself. Not that the cop called AAA for you.

I think you're saying if the cops call for a tow not affiliated with my towing service, I get the bill for it.

-Don- Auburn, CA

 

[John From Detroit]

I pay for in which way?

The only difference I recall is how fast the tow truck came.

-Don- Auburn, CA

It depends some Towers charge a premimum.. Sometimes it depends on the tower.
When I was a police dispactcher I had two different (Or more) HD towing services.
Now I will admit one was better than the others.. But they all charged the same rate per hour.. the better one charged 2 hours minimum.. IF you were an RVer.. Well for breakdowns the difference in quality was not that great (For rollovers and things liek that the more expensive was better and often cheaper in the end) But if you were a commercial Semi.. and you'd been ask to get your abandoned semi off the road... I called the more expensive company. Told the owner that I'd told the Semi's company they sould charhge at least $$$$$ (more than it would cost if the company called) and ask they NOT make a liar out of me Note the AT LEAST.. He liked my calls.
But that was never for a break down.
Last time I called a tow truck for a semi broke down (Busted rear end) .... I was broke down as well. I My truck took longer to get there than the Semi's who was coming off another job.

 

[RedForeman]

I think you're saying if the cops call for a tow not affiliated with my towing service, I get the bill for it.

-Don- Auburn, CA

Yes, and that the rate you would get from the police call out will be higher than if you'd called them directly. On a heavy tow, much higher. The upside being: when the cops call them out, they come right away because that's what they've agreed to do when the police call them. Appropriate when life and property are in peril, maybe not so much if you're off the road in relative safety.

For what it's worth, I'm someone that doesn't put much faith in these sorts of services (AAA and the like). If I have the time and/or lack of urgency, sure. I'll push them to deliver, but ultimately I'm in control of getting the problem solved. If AAA isn't being part of the solution, I'll get it done and deal with them later.

It makes me angry when I see countless utube videos and socials posts of usually new or nearly new rv'ers finding out the hard way about how these services work, and being totally unprepared to handle the "what next?" problem. Usually having only the perspective of using them for their personal car, not a larger or combination vehicle. They've been misled from the service provider all the way back to the rv salesman that may have offered it as an enticement to close the sale. Then they find out at the worst possible time what they really have, which usually turns out to be a mediocre dispatch service to the low bidder contractor.

 

[NY_Dutch]

The twice I've used them, the ERS provided under my Progressive insurance policy, Road America, has been very satisfactory. Both times the provider arrived within 20-30 minutes of the expected travel time from their location. The one time it was pay the operator instead of sign and drive due to NY Thruway permit restrictions, I was fully reimbursed within 10 days. Not bad for a $22/year premium...

 

[gfmucci]

We had a flat tire on the car about a week ago in Georgia. I decided to keep my hands clean and called GS roadside. They responded quickly, dispatched the local company and told us it might be 45 minutes to an hour. We had just arrived at an ice cream store - so we order and started eating our ice cream. We had three texts before we got half what through our two scoops. 1) Acknowledgement of the incident, 2) ID of the company being dispatched, 3) updated ETA.

The local company showed up less than 10 minutes after our call. We were 1/2 way through our ice cream and offered to buy the fellow some - he refused the offer and was on his way quickly.

Another time, while in the NW the far/far/far NW of Washington, we had the upper radiator hose blow in our motorhome. Called GS roadside. They searched and found the ONLY tow truck capable of towing our MH. Unfortunately, that truck was on another call 100 miles in the opposite direction. We had to wait 6-7 hours for them to show and tow us to their shop.

Seems availability of equipment/vendors were the main issues for us.

We've often read about horror stories from many roadside insurance companies and are pretty sure they all use the local operators. Then, it just boils down to communication and responsiveness from the local roadside operators - some may be better, some worse.

Still, even with the long wait when stuck on the side of the road in Washington state, we consider ourselves lucky to only have to pay their low annual fee rather than the thousands we've seen reported when going it alone.

Of course, being SAFE on the side of the road and having our "HOUSE" with us makes all the difference in the world. I'd hate to think of being stranded in the middle of nowhere, in a ditch, in the rain and alone.

May we all keep the "black side down" and arrive home safe.

Question about your radiator hose from a newb: Isn't that something that a roaming motorhome tech would easily fix? Wouldn't that have been cheaper and quicker? Or were you so far out in the boonies that no tech was within your service area?

 

[Skookum]

For what it's worth, I'm someone that doesn't put much faith in these sorts of services (AAA and the like). If I have the time and/or lack of urgency, sure. I'll push them to deliver, but ultimately I'm in control of getting the problem solved. If AAA isn't being part of the solution, I'll get it done and deal with them later.

You make a really important point. A roadside assistance contract isn't a substitute for first-line safety and preparedness. That falls to the vehicle operator to handle themselves until they can be reached by the roadside assistance provider--and as this thread is evidence, it may be a while! Having a plan to stay safe and be prepared, self-extricate or survive a cruddy situation is way more important than an AAA membership. All else, call 911. However, as you noted, they may move your vehicle for you if they determine it's a public safety hazard, and you'll end up paying dearly to the tow operator who comes to pick it up.

The good thing is, most RV owners are pretty well off as long as they can get the vehicle safely off the road. Most of us have food, water, shelter, a bathroom, an internet connection, a phone, a generator, and many other essentials and luxuries on board and can wait it out until help arrives.