RAC vs AA vs Green Flag: The best value breakdown cover

by lovemoney staff on 13 May 2013  |  5 comments
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We compare the basic roadside recovery insurance from the three main breakdown service providers: the RAC, the AA and Green Flag.

Many drivers swear by their breakdown cover. But which provider offers the most value for money?

Today I'm going to compare the best value budget offerings of the big three breakdown insurance providers in order to see if one has the edge on the others.

Each offers, as its budget option, a roadside repair service. The labour is free, but parts are not. If your vehicle cannot be repaired at the roadside, it will be towed to a garage, where you will have to pay for the repairer's services.

Here's an overview of the main features:

The main features

*The price of Green Flag's breakdown cover is based on you and your vehicle, and the likelihood of you claiming or making big claims. 10% or fewer of its customers will get the cheapest price of £27.

As you can see, the policies are similar, yet there are differences in price, how old your vehicle can be and transport you get from the repairing garage.

More useful details

The RAC will not cover you for a second assistance if it advised you that it was a temporary repair, or if the original fault has not been properly repaired by a garage. The AA says repairs are discretionary if the fault is the same or similar to faults that have occurred within the past 28 days. Green Flag said it could charge extra or refuse on a second call-out for the same problem, but in practice this normally only happens on the third call-out. 

The RAC says it fixes four out of five failures at the roadside, although that excludes accidents and extreme failures. It claims to have more patrols per member than any other service, although that is based on dedicated patrols, whereas some providers bring in independent repairers to help out.

The AA says it repairs vehicles in less than 30 minutes on average. It's recommended by 95% of its members, although not all of them will have tested its roadside services. It also says it is the largest service, at least by number of breakdowns fixed.

A word of warning: breakdown services require you to produce your membership card and proof of ID to use their services, so take them with you on all journeys.

Service versus price

Most of us have heard good and bad experiences from each of these providers. We can't read too much into individual anecdotes unless they are overwhelmingly one-sided, which isn't the case here. They are all still going strong, so that's a sign their service is usually acceptable.

With the AA and RAC you can expect to pay more at renewal. I think I would probably shop around each year for the cheapest, but that's because I don't know if one offers a superior service to the others. You could try switching from one to another and back in a 24-month cycle. However, by staying with the same service at renewal you might be entitled to more call-outs in a year or discounts for not making a call-out as is the case with Green Flag.

Remember to put a note in your diary to shop around in 11 months, because all three services could auto-renew.

Beyond budget cover

If you go beyond budget cover, more comprehensive options include:

• Cover for more than one vehicle
• Cover for older vehicles
• Cover for you and family members, regardless of vehicle driven
• Recovery to your home or another address in the UK, wherever you are
• Transportation for you and others
• Transportation for you if you are taken ill and no one else can drive
• Assistance within ¼ mile of home
• Replacement car hire
• Reimbursement of public transport costs
• B&B accommodation
• Medical assistance
• European cover

Finally, some insurers add breakdown for free or as an optional extra when you buy car insurance, so see if you can get a cheaper overall package when you're shopping around for car insurance before buying breakdown cover separately. lovemoney.com makes these benefits and others clear in our search results, so be sure to give the quote engine a go!

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Car insurance: putting telematics to the test

AA Drivesafe: The little black box that will cut your car insurance bill