SAVED MY ASS TOOOOOOOO MANY TIMES TO MENTION! (Autonational Rescue)

Member Name: marandina

Product:	Autonational Rescue
Date:	17/05/03 (933 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Low cost, Reliable, Friendly

Disadvantages: Basic stuff

I'm terrible with cars. There I've said it but I am. Every imaginable breakdown that can occur has occurred with me. I've had flat tyres, flat batteries, clutches going on me, you name it, I've suffered. It doesn't help that I feel so vulnerable. I suppose there's an assumption that just because you are a fella then your natural home is feet dangling out from the underbelly of your latest auto conquest. Well, in my case that definitely ain't so! I'm something of a pleading maiden at the top of a tall tower looking down on a million spare parts like in that latest, rather clever, Honda ad. (You know, that one where the car's in pieces where the ball's rolling along the ground and it ends up as a complete motor blah, blah, blah...no? Oh well....)

So, of all the insurance going, car breakdown cover would seem essential. As ever in today's cut-throat culture, this is a competitive market. The biggest names include AA and RAC who advertise extensively on TV but a lesser name worth considering is Autonational Rescue.

***Who are They?***
Autonational Rescue has been around since 1993 and is backed by equity Red Star Policies at Lloyds. You can find the company at http://www.autonational.co.uk/. The website will tell you that the company above has been providing insurance since 1908 and now has over 600,000 clients.

***What's the website like?***
I've been with ARN for a few years now and can point to a rather nifty website. The corporate livery is red and white with the company name in a box format with the motto "The breakdown service with the no-claims bonus".

On site, you'll find background about the company in the guise of "about us" with more detail about services available via the next button down.

Other features on the website include:

 Fleet rates for operators of UK fleets

 Nearly new cars is aimed at th
ose who have bought their cars that come with ;temporary membership" of a UK breakdown service. A special discount is available to these drivers of cars that are 1- 2 years old falling into this category with Total SuperService (see below) available for just £38...bargain!

 You can request brochures via an online form

 There is the obligatory Q & A section

 There is even a driving tips page aimed at prevention rather than cure e.g. checking tyre pressures before driving hundreds of miles on motorways and so on.

 There are handy hints to help beat the crooks that might want to steal your prized possession.

 Finally, there is a Euro Rescue section. I extended my cover to include the European cover when we went to France last year. Thankfully, we didn't need to claim and I seem to remember it was only about an extra *£28 or so to provide cover whilst abroad.

***Services Available***
There are different levels of cover along with certain add-ons that you might want to tailor according to need.

 Roadside SuperService
(must be taken) from £28.50 This basically covers the cost of repairing your vehicle at the roadside and/or a tow to the nearest garage. Any subsequent repairs are not covered.

 Recovery SuperService
from £23 this allows for your vehicle to be recovered to any destination within mainland UK for the driver and up to 5 passengers assuming it can't be fixed at the roadside

 Home SuperService
from £14 this extends the breakdown service to within 1 mile of your home address

 Emergency Travel/Accommodation
from £7.50 Where a breakdown occurs more than 25 miles from your home address and the vehicle cannot be repaired either at the roadside or at a subsequent garage within 24 hours then up to £100 of costs can be claimed in terms of travel/accommodation costs etc

> Caravan/Trailer SuperService
from £6 this will extend cover to include caravans and small trailers

 Total SuperService
from £57 this is all inclusive cover

***Comparable Costs***
Venturing onto the AA website, I can see that basic cover starts from £40. However, to get the same cover that I have now for just one car would cost from £141 for the AA option 400. Bear in mind that this is for just one car too!

RAC offers a headline deal from £34. However, the RAC standard cover (comparable to Total Superservice) was £113, again for just one car whilst the family version of this cover was from £136.

***My experience***
Like I said earlier, I've been with the organisation for a few years now and been pretty happy. I've got the Total Superservice as I have to cover 2 cars. I've claimed for non-starts in the morning, breakdowns on the road and each occasion has proved easy enough to resolve. You simply call the telephone number, which is stored on my mobile phone and the operator takes the details. Within the hour, somebody will be attending with the majority of incidents dealt with, there and then. As part of the welcome pack, you do get other items with the telephone number on e.g. credit card sized cardboard cut outs, a circular tax disc type holder etc.

I've never had a problem with getting through and the operators have always been calm and efficient. The people that have been out to fix my various motors have generally known what they've been doing with the exception of one time when the chappie did get my motor going again but then suggested I drive it to my garage to get the problem sorted on a more permanent basis. I broke down again, on the way, and had to call them out to tow me. Sadly, I never drove that particular car again as it went up to the great scrapyard in the sky but at least they did come out and I did get sorted even if it took a couple of goes.

r>***Advantages of ANR***
Primarily, the organisation is cheaper than other breakdown companies. I've been quoted some high figures to insure 2 cars but their renewal, this year, was only £95 all together for both and that was after a couple of claims.

Service is good and I've yet to have a problem in the last 3 years. The breakdown attendees are from local depots and whilst they don't have corporate gear on and all that, they are mechanics that know what they are doing.

There is a 25% no claims discount, which can bring the premium down even more. Needless to say, you need to be claim free during the year - a feat which I've yet to manage!

If you change address or vehicle during the period of cover, you can notify the company via an online form. Alternatively, you can ring through the details.

There doesn't appear to be a limit on the number of claims that can be made. I know the AA have become infamous in the past for imposing a three claims and you're out policy but there is no indication that this is the case with ANR.

It is possible to include a 2nd car (not always the case with some breakdown companies) at a reasonable cost. They took on my 2nd car for just £38 when I originally amended the cover a few years ago.

***Disadvantages of ANR***
Well, the company is overshadowed by its illustrious competitors so it's not as well known.

There are no frills, in essence, the protection is more a less as stated. Some folks like the odd gimmick thrown in but you won't get that with ANR.

Renewal options are quite limited with a paper based renewal invitation sent yearly and payment options including cheque and credit card only.

***Conclusion***
ANR only saved my bacon as recently as last Bank Holiday. One minute I'm sitting in the usual stationary bank holiday traffic, the next there's steam coming out from under the bonnet and my temperatur


e gauge is on maximum! Another phone call to the good people at ANR and the problem was solved around 45 minutes later. Well, OK, I had to sit tight with my vehicle whilst hundreds of cars filed past me merrily rubbernecking away and offering lame advice but I did get out of that one eeeeeeventually.

I?d strongly recommend AutoNational Rescue ~ they are a damned fine outfit and so much cheaper than the alternatives!

Thanks for the read and have a great weekend.

Marandina

More info at: http://www.autonational.co.uk http://www.rac.co.uk/breakdowncover/ and http://www.theaa.com

*Up to 17 days cover based on visiting France