Hi all - planning to do a road trip from Sydney to Gold Coast and wanted to get a roadside assist policy in case anything happens to the car in the 9 hour drive - wonder if anyone knows whether any roadside assist companies are better.
I see all of them have service area limits (e.g. 20km/50km) so does it mean a bigger player like NRMA will be better as they may have a larger network?
Many thanks in advance
Road trip - roadside assist
Ldypkyangboy on 20/06/2022 - 09:28
Comments
Its probably easier to get your car serviced / checked rather than relying on roadside assist.
It doesn't matter how well a car is running before a trip, anything can happen and OP wants peace of mind.
Not really. Mechanical breakdown is not instantaneous. usually there will be telltale signs.
I agree. A well maintained car shouldn't suddenly break completely if you are paying attention and in the unlikely event that it does, can always join roadside assist on the spot if something does happen. I think it will just add a $50 fee to come out straight after signing up. Just be aware, we did join once when a fuel pump let go unexpectedly on my mum's car and they couldn't fix the car anyway. There will be things they can't do but at least we confirmed our suspicions. I've personally never had or needed roadside assistance. The closest I got was a starter motor fail when I was on my P's but I was able to get a mate to help jump it again before it finally failed. We fitted a spare starter motor after getting ourselves to the next town and I continued my drive to the NT without further issues. Roadside assist was pretty useless in outback SA/NT without phone reception for much of the trip. Another time, my wife joined when she went to pick her car up from being delivered from interstate and had a flat battery. I was a bit annoyed because her dad didn't wait to check the car would start before leaving. I could have gone to meet her and sorted it for $100 less than what it ended up costing.
What if the mechanic inspects it and misses something? What about non-mechanical breakdown?
You would hate to be stranded half way through a 9-hour trip.
@magic8ballgag: Not exactly stranded. You’d just have to find your own solution and possibly pay a bit more to get a tow truck or mobile mechanic. It’s not as if the pacific highway is a quiet back road with no phone service.
Roadside usually offers some Towing
Check how many Km and if required opt for extra towing.
Some also offer Temp accommodation.Bonus Tip: Check your Spare Tyre
If you drive a Toyota I wouldn't worry about roadside assistance.
But did they die? 😛
That’s but like VW dieselgate. More pollution, but still keep running. Hardly going to strand you on a trip.
Yeah, go with NRMA. They also have agreements with other entities like RACQ in Queensland.
I would suggest that you upgrade from the basic (everyday Care) to one of the higher policies, if only for the towing distance. It really depends on your route and where you will be travelling. Be mindful that once you select a plan, you are locked in for at least 12 months. I would chalk that up as cost of business.
What sort of car is it? How old? Many kms?
If it’s a newer, reliable car I wouldn’t bother especially if it’s under warranty. Unless of course you cannot change a tyre or read a fuel gauge.
Sydney-Gold Coast is hardly an outback trip. There plenty of services along the way and plenty of phone service and passing traffic.
It’s a nine hour drive lol all freeway
Not really neccessary in this day and age - just use your phone to call someone if you're in trouble. All roadside services will alow you to join up on the spot if you need assistance
Some have a 24 hr wait.
All roadside services will alow you to join up on the spot if you need assistance
They do charge an extra fee to join on the spot. NRMA has an "On-Road Join and Go fee" of $206 on top of the usual membership fees.
I see all of them have service area limits (e.g. 20km/50km) so does it mean a bigger player like NRMA will be better as they may have a larger network?
I am happy to stand corrected, but I understood that most roadside assist policies were usually just contracted to the big roadside assistance providers (eg RACQ, NRMA) anyway. For example, my late model Mitsubishi included free road side assist, but it was in fact offered by RACQ.
Also, the service area limits doesn't necessarily relate to the size of the network - rather it is a reference to how far they'll travel before it incurs additional costs. It's not like you'll find a RACQ depot every 20/50km on the highway.
most roadside assist policies were usually just contracted …
Out to local service providers. Not just the big ones, there’s plenty of tow truck/mobile mechanic businesses that have arrangements with providers.
You just need to select top level cover. Base policies are just junk policies for long distance trips.