Alternatives to Coachnet?

Coachnet and Good Sams are not a diagnostic or repair service, they are roadside emergency. I.E. your truck breaks down, they tow you to a repair facility, you experience a flat tire or blowout while traveling, they send someone out to change your tire, you run out of fuel, they send out someone with fuel to get you to a station, you lose an axle on your trailer, they send out a flatbed to haul your trailer to a repair facility, etc.
The don’t fix propane systems, they don’t diagnose brakes systems, they’re not going to fix a broken refrigerator, and if that’s what you think you’re getting with an emergency roadside service you are going to be extremely disappointed no matter who you go with.
You need to get online and look at the exact services offered by Coachnet.

myredracer wrote:

Beverley&Ken wrote:
What level of emergency road service do you have from Coachnet. Limited, Basic or Premier Towable. The Limited plan appears very limited "Coverage is limited to 1 tow (up to 75 miles) and 1 other event (tire assistance, battery boost, lockout, emergency fuel/fluid delivery, or winching up to $75) per year" . The more you pay for the plan, the more services you get.
Not sure if Good Sam has the same levels of plans for there emergency road service.Ken

I wondered if they perhaps had different plans. What we have is just a card with a phone number that we got when we purchased our TT and it doesn't say what level the coverage is. I would hazard a guess it's a bare bones plan and doesn't cost the RV manufacturer much. We didn't give it much thought and assumed it provided what we would need and never thought about upgrading it.

Our Coachnet is about to expire in a few days and we will have to look at the details more closely for the next one.

The 1st time we used Coachnet was while on the Oregon Coast. Brakes weren't working very well and they directed us to an auto shop as there was no RV shop anywhere nearby. Took Coachnet over a day to get back to us. The garage insisted it was the brake controller so we shelled out something like $500 for the install. Did not help whatsoever and it finally turned out to be grease in the brake drums.

2nd time was on a long weekend and we needed the propane system looked at. Called them and they said they would call right back. Never did and we had to call them back the next day. NOT impressed. They insisted they are not allowed to touch anything to do with propane and couldn't help (they could have said that when we first spoke to them). They said the only option was to go to a service center which had to be our dealer because we were still under warranty. Dealer was closed of course and even if open, would have ruined our trip. In the end, I fixed the problem myself and we stayed in the CG.

So Good Sam is the only alternative with RV techs available? Don't need roadside service because we have excellent coverage for that under our CC. Looking for a company that has good customer service, and has good field service and options available. Being able to have a tech sent out would be one thing we want and also having someone available after hours and on holidays. Until DW retires, the majority of our camping is on weekends & holidays and we want to have repair service available then.

Both instances sound more like you needed a Tech for one or both instances, or an RV tech to check out your propane issue and a service center that could check out your brake issue.. I've had Coachnet for years, never the first issue, but I wouldn't call them for issues with the propane system, or a brake problem, ..I think you need to read just exactly what services are provided...

Coachnet, as well as Good Sams ERS offer services if your truck is broken down, they'll tow any vehicle you own, if it's broken down...They will tow whatever it is you're towing, if your tow vehicle is broken down...They'll show up to replace a flat tire....they'll bring you fuel, if you've run out...They'll assist with unlocking doors, if you're locked out.....They'll help with routing trips....If you were running low on fuel and needed to find a place, you could call and they would direct you to the nearest station etc...but nowhere have I seen that they do repair work on a TV or rv being towed.

Sounds like you're confused about what services are offered by EMERGENCY ROAD SIDE services..

In reality, for the two instances you gave, I'd looked for an RV repair person to have addressed the problems, not an Emergency Roadside service provider. They directed you to a place to have your brakes looked at....that would have been all I would have expected from that in that instance...


Again, you need to look at the services offered from CN or GS ERS....they offer emergency roadside services.....they may help you get someone to work on your truck or RV, but I would never expect them to come out and fix a propane problem or send someone to check my brakes...unless TV is un-driverable, then I'd call them.

Let us know if you find a place that offers technical support for vehicle and RV, to where they will actually come out and fix something, I can only imagine the price that would be...or the cost on site, plus coverage...

Beverley&Ken wrote:
What level of emergency road service do you have from Coachnet. Limited, Basic or Premier Towable. The Limited plan appears very limited "Coverage is limited to 1 tow (up to 75 miles) and 1 other event (tire assistance, battery boost, lockout, emergency fuel/fluid delivery, or winching up to $75) per year" . The more you pay for the plan, the more services you get.
Not sure if Good Sam has the same levels of plans for there emergency road service.Ken

I wondered if they perhaps had different plans. What we have is just a card with a phone number that we got when we purchased our TT and it doesn't say what level the coverage is. I would hazard a guess it's a bare bones plan and doesn't cost the RV manufacturer much. We didn't give it much thought and assumed it provided what we would need and never thought about upgrading it.

Our Coachnet is about to expire in a few days and we will have to look at the details more closely for the next one.

The 1st time we used Coachnet was while on the Oregon Coast. Brakes weren't working very well and they directed us to an auto shop as there was no RV shop anywhere nearby. Took Coachnet over a day to get back to us. The garage insisted it was the brake controller so we shelled out something like $500 for the install. Did not help whatsoever and it finally turned out to be grease in the brake drums.

2nd time was on a long weekend and we needed the propane system looked at. Called them and they said they would call right back. Never did and we had to call them back the next day. NOT impressed. They insisted they are not allowed to touch anything to do with propane and couldn't help (they could have said that when we first spoke to them). They said the only option was to go to a service center which had to be our dealer because we were still under warranty. Dealer was closed of course and even if open, would have ruined our trip. In the end, I fixed the problem myself and we stayed in the CG.

So Good Sam is the only alternative with RV techs available? Don't need roadside service because we have excellent coverage for that under our CC. Looking for a company that has good customer service, and has good field service and options available. Being able to have a tech sent out would be one thing we want and also having someone available after hours and on holidays. Until DW retires, the majority of our camping is on weekends & holidays and we want to have repair service available then.

Dutch_12078 wrote:

Alison and Neil wrote:
I recently was in Ajo, Arizona at a RV Park when getting up to get on the road,I noticed a flat front tire.I have no mounted spare but have an unmounted one for emergencies. It was a Sunday. So, I called Coachnet for a service call. They told me that they would send a roadside repair truck from Phoenix at their expense,and that they would fix the tire onsite, but.......once they got there I would have to pay the labor for the tire repair ($150.00 per hour weekend rate) Hmmmm. seems a little pricey! Is this normal for ERS to charge for the flat repair?
End to the story was that I declined and waited til Monday AM and took it to a service center down the road ( I aired it up and drove straight there, no problem)

Yes, that's standard ERS practice. They pay for the road service call, you pay for the parts and labor required on site. A routine remove the flat and install an aired up spare is usually included in the covered service call rate.

Yep and why I spent the extra money in getting a spare wheel along with the spare tire. Yes the entire setup (tire and wheel) cost me about $400, but I will not have to pay the $150 to mount the spare tire on a wheel and I will also not have to wait for them to find me a very overpriced spare tire.

filthy beast wrote:
As with all businesses there are good and bad reports. I had AAA RV Plus coverage which let me down. I had a flat tire which I changed myself. 5 miles down the road I had another blowout. Called AAA, their response was if I had a spare to put on they would come out and do that. If I needed a tow they would send someone to tow us. I pointed out that if the trailer could be towed I could do that, nothing wrong with the truck. From that point they said there was nothing they could do. They wouldn't even look up tire shops near our location on the internet.

Luckily my wife saves just about every information flier we get at RV parks. We found the one near where we were and there was an add for a tire shop. They came out and put a new tire on the rim where we were broke down at. I was so grateful for the service that the next morning I took the fifth wheel to their shop and had the rest of the tires replaced.

Just like good and bad companies you sometimes run into the poorest kind of Customer Service Rep. That's when I start asking for Supervisors until I find the person that cares about their company and its reputation. "Can't" or "won't" just doesn't get it when I am sitting - dead in the water - beside I-10 in rural Mississippi. Been there and done that.

Lantley wrote:

I'm not sure your expectations are in line with the services provided by roadside assistance.

This what I'm thinking as well. I'm not sure the OP really understands what his membership is and is not. AAA does have a membership option that gives the member the option of where to tow a disabled vehicle subject to the mileage limits for that membership option. My AAA is 100miles, but I also have a Coachnet membership for when I want to use that option.

Larry

As with all businesses there are good and bad reports. I had AAA RV Plus coverage which let me down. I had a flat tire which I changed myself. 5 miles down the road I had another blowout. Called AAA, their response was if I had a spare to put on they would come out and do that. If I needed a tow they would send someone to tow us. I pointed out that if the trailer could be towed I could do that, nothing wrong with the truck. From that point they said there was nothing they could do. They wouldn't even look up tire shops near our location on the internet.

Luckily my wife saves just about every information flier we get at RV parks. We found the one near where we were and there was an add for a tire shop. They came out and put a new tire on the rim where we were broke down at. I was so grateful for the service that the next morning I took the fifth wheel to their shop and had the rest of the tires replaced.

Alison and Neil wrote:
I recently was in Ajo, Arizona at a RV Park when getting up to get on the road,I noticed a flat front tire.I have no mounted spare but have an unmounted one for emergencies. It was a Sunday. So, I called Coachnet for a service call. They told me that they would send a roadside repair truck from Phoenix at their expense,and that they would fix the tire onsite, but.......once they got there I would have to pay the labor for the tire repair ($150.00 per hour weekend rate) Hmmmm. seems a little pricey! Is this normal for ERS to charge for the flat repair?
End to the story was that I declined and waited til Monday AM and took it to a service center down the road ( I aired it up and drove straight there, no problem)

Yes, that's standard ERS practice. They pay for the road service call, you pay for the parts and labor required on site. A routine remove the flat and install an aired up spare is usually included in the covered service call rate.

I recently was in Ajo, Arizona at a RV Park when getting up to get on the road,I noticed a flat front tire.I have no mounted spare but have an unmounted one for emergencies. It was a Sunday. So, I called Coachnet for a service call. They told me that they would send a roadside repair truck from Phoenix at their expense,and that they would fix the tire onsite, but.......once they got there I would have to pay the labor for the tire repair ($150.00 per hour weekend rate) Hmmmm. seems a little pricey! Is this normal for ERS to charge for the flat repair?
End to the story was that I declined and waited til Monday AM and took it to a service center down the road ( I aired it up and drove straight there, no problem)

We have had Coach-Net which we never had to use, Good Sam which we used 3 times for blown tires, and now AAA twice for a dead battery and a replacement battery. I found the Tech People at GS of not much assistance whenever I called them for fixes but the dispatchers were always good in finding a service person reasonably close-by. The service trucks seldom carry air so keep your spare inflated and watch where they put the jacks because some are really unfamiliar with RV's. The main thing is to have someone to call if you have a problem in the middle of nowhere and do not have the faintest idea of who to call. The one-time you need it will be worth whatever you paid. Their first question is always - "Are you in a safe place?" and that can be very reassuring when you are responsible for your loved ones onboard.