Breakdown Cover: The Levels and What They Include
Breakdown cover is sold in tiers whose names suggest more than they include, and the cheapest tier excludes the two most common situations.
The tiers
Roadside assistance, covering attendance when you break down away from home, typically with a minimum distance from your address before it applies.
Home start, covering breakdowns at or near home. This matters because a large proportion of breakdowns are failures to start on the driveway, which roadside-only cover excludes.
National recovery, covering transport of the vehicle and occupants to a destination of your choice when repair at the roadside is not possible.
Onward travel, providing a replacement vehicle, accommodation or onward transport.
European cover, for travel abroad, usually bought separately or as an extension.
Vehicle-based against person-based
Vehicle policies cover a specific vehicle regardless of who drives it.
Personal policies cover you in any vehicle, including as a passenger, which suits households with several cars or people who frequently drive others' vehicles.
Price the household as a whole; a personal policy for two people frequently beats several vehicle policies.
Where you may already have it
New vehicles usually include manufacturer assistance for a period, and it is sometimes extended by having the car serviced at a franchised dealer.
Some motor insurance policies include breakdown cover or offer it cheaply as an add-on.
Packaged bank accounts frequently include it, and holders frequently do not know.
Audit before buying, since duplication is common.
The exclusions
Vehicles above an age or mileage limit on some policies.
Running out of fuel, wrong fuel, or lost keys, which may be excluded or chargeable.
A waiting period after purchase, and exclusion of pre-existing faults, which prevents buying cover after breaking down.
Limits on the number of call-outs per year.
Choosing
Consider your actual driving: long motorway journeys favour recovery and onward travel; short local journeys favour home start.
Check the average attendance time, which varies between providers and matters more than a small price difference.
Compare annually, since this market prices renewals well above new business.
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