RV Insurance & Roadside Assistance

I've had Good Sam roadside assistance since I started RVing 15 years ago. It's a good deal when you look at the expense of towing in an RV of any type. I've used it twice and had a quick, courteous response. I just upgraded to Platinum this year because my truck is a 2002 and I often tow a flatbed utility trailer that will be covered by the Platinum coverage.

I think you may be confusing a couple different things. Roadside assistance is not the same coverage as what's usually called insurance (although technically it would be a form of insurance, I guess).

Insurance generally means, at a minimum, liability insurance as is required to drive on the public roads in nearly every state. Usually the motorhome policies also have collision and comprehensive coverage. This is more or less the same idea as these insurance policies for a car or truck: liability covers damage you cause to other people, cars, or property in the event of an accident; collision covers the value of your vehicle in an accident; and comprehensive covers various other unexpected calamities such as damage from lightning, tree limbs falling, etc.

Roadside assistance plans are like AAA coverage for cars--they mainly cover costs associated with breakdowns, such as tows or hiring someone to change a tire. Good Sam and Coach Net are the two main roadside assistance companies for RVs. (AAA in some areas also offers it, but as I understand it their coverage is often inferior in practice to the other two.) Some other groups also offer roadside assistance, often subcontracting the actual administration of the plan to one of these major providers. I personally happen to use AAA coverage, at least for now, as much because I like the other AAA benefits as anything (i.e. the maps, books, and discounts) and would have a lesser AAA plan regardless, making the additional cost for RV coverage an attractive deal despite their shortcomings.

You need insurance to drive your motorhome, and you can get it through any one of a variety of insurers. I happen to have mine through the same agency that I had my car and homeowner's insurance through. Roadside assistance is nice to have, and rather strongly recommended as towing a motorhome can get rather expensive, but not essential. A discount for new roadside assistance customers would not shock me. Some companies do offer both insurance and roadside assistance, but they aren't the same thing and usually can be obtained separately.

For insurance in particular it can pay to shop around sometimes.

Ok, I had Good SAMs coverage, well it's for RV's isn't it? Had a flat tire a couple of months ago, called Goodsams I was on the highway, drivers side next to busy high speed traffic! Phone rang for 5 minuets, no answer, called AAA, they said not covered since only had the car, they found a tow company for me that would come out and change the tire, at my expense! That is customer service, Good SAMs never answered the call! I checked with AAA, stated it would cost $20 per year more to add the RV! Which would you take? And did I mention Good SAMs NEVER even answered the call!!!

Insurance generally means, at a minimum, liability insurance as is required to drive on the public roads in nearly every state. Usually the motorhome policies also have collision and comprehensive coverage. This is more or less the same idea as these insurance policies for a car or truck: liability covers damage you cause to other people, cars, or property in the event of an accident; collision covers the value of your vehicle in an accident; and comprehensive covers various other unexpected calamities such as damage from lightning, tree limbs falling, etc. ..........

Yes, that is exactly what I meant. You are right - Roadside Assistance Insurance & also I need to consider a liability, collision & comprehensive insurance coverage. I should of made that clearer.

My present company I have to cover my autos & homeowner, that I've had for 20 years, Is offering for me liability, comp & collison RV insurance that is rather exuberant. That is why, I'm using Our Forum to find leads, that I can use to shop around. Hope this helps? Thank you very much for your input!

KC - Senior C. - USAF 62-66

Roadside Assistance:

The biggest names are Good Sam, Coachnet, and AAA.

Good Sam and Coachnet are comparable in features. AAA works a bit differently. What I have found is:

AAA - they will tow you where you tell them. They have a limit of max miles AND a cost max. The max miles is 200 miles, the cost max is based on a standard tow truck. If you need a flatbed, medium duty wrecker (that's what my C requires), or other bigger tow truck, then the hourly rate increases and AAA won't pay for the full 200 miles. I had a tow from them for my C - it was about 90 miles and cost me out-of-pocket $500+. But they towed me to my regular shop and not the nearest shop.

Good Sam/Coachnet - they will tow you to the nearest repair shop that agrees to service your RV. That means that until they FIND a shop and the shop AGREES to take your RV, you will sit and wait. You will not pay for the tow, but you go to wherever they send you. They will also send out a mobile mechanic first. This is great if you have an RV with easily found parts. For my 40 year old rig, it is extremely unlikely that the mobile mechanic will have spare parts handy to fix it on the side of the road, so I don't put much faith in this. If I had a newer class C, I would consider the mobile mechanic a much better option.

My take on these differences using a few scenarios:

1. You break down in or near your home town. AAA is better because you can get towed to your regular mechanic rather than a strange shop.

2. You break down far away from home. Good Sam/Coachnet is better because they will find a shop willing to work on your RV - you don't have to call around.

3. You break down on a holiday weekend or late night. AAA is better because they will tow you regardless. Good Sam/Coachnet won't send a tow truck until they send a mobile mechanic who determines (s)he cannot fix your rig, and then they have to contact shops until they find one that answers and agrees to fix your RV. How many shops do you know who answer their phones after hours? If you're lucky the tow truck company will agree to service your RV, but that doesn't always happen.

4. You break down on a weekday during the day. Good Sam/Coachnet is better because, again, they will send the mobile mechanic, stores are open to get needed parts, and if the mechanic can't fix it, they call the open shops and get one to agree to service your RV.

For me, I have both AAA and Coachnet. I had Good Sam and tried using them - there were issues, but Good Sam made good on them after the fact (I ended up using AAA to tow me). When my renewal came up, I decided to give Coachnet a try and see if I would be happier - so far I haven't had to use them. It costs me about $230 per year for both. I figure that's cheap insurance to get a tow and if one fails, I have the other to fall back on.

P.S. Some insurance companies also offer roadside assistance plans as an add-on to your policy.

There are good and bad points to almost everything. You have to decide if the good out weighs the bad. My 1998 Class C is insured with the company that insures my automobile. I have Good Sam's roadside assistance platinum coverage to cover problems on the road. I have used them several times and have never had them not answer the phone - in fact- they call back several times to make sure the service has arrived and/or repaired to your satisfaction. Fortunately my calls have been for flat tires only, however, knowing that they will find a repair shop if needed is important to me. Trying to find a shop to work on motorhomes near me is nearly fruitless. Even the large Ford dealership around the corner will not work on motorhomes, not even to change a tire.

Check with your insurance company for your RV. They may offer roadside coverage for not much money. In any given area of the country there are only so many towing companies that can be sent to assist you. I suspect they have contracts with many coverage providers.

wildtoad wrote:
Check with your insurance company for your RV. They may offer roadside coverage for not much money. In any given area of the country there are only so many towing companies that can be sent to assist you. I suspect they have contracts with many coverage providers.

I have Progressive on our Class C with towing. Towing doesn't cost to much this way. If you need a tow call their 1-800 number and they send a truck.

I've have both Coachnet and AAA so that I can have the lease stress possible and have more flexability in where I get towed to.