Roadside Assistance Companies

[rfloyd99]

I need to purchase a plan, and Good Sam's plans are 50% off for new members, which I would be. (July 4th sale, it says, ending soon).

I researched this a year ago, and it seems that many were satisfied with their experience with Good Sam. Coach-net got good reviews also, but they are more than twice as expensive at $179.

I have a 27' TT pulled with a 1/2 ton gas PU, so nothing unusual.

Any comments before I make a decision?

Thanks!

[Dtank]

Keldog4511 wrote:
AAA also offers RV plans. Major differences with GS is 100 mile tow to anywhere you want versus the nearest facility. GS offers no limit to number of tows and AAA is 4.

Buyer beware:

At one time AAA did *NOT* have reciprocity for ERS plans in some parts of the country.

(The AAA plan from *your* state was not honored).

Verify very thoroughly!...:@

.

[Keldog4511]

AAA also offers RV plans. Major differences with GS is 100 mile tow to anywhere you want versus the nearest facility. GS offers no limit to number of tows and AAA is 4.

[Ron3rd]

rfloyd99 wrote:
I'll do that.

Anyone had experience with State Farm for roadside assistance? Everything I have is insured with them. I've never heard of them having roadside assistance programs.

They may offer it as an add on in which case you'll probably get Coachnet like Progressive does.

[Ron3rd]

2oldman wrote:
Doesn't anyone use your own insurance plan for this?

I do with Progressive but they actually contract with Coachnet

You get Coachnet when you add roadside assistance with Progressive

[Dtank]

guidry wrote:

2oldman wrote:
Doesn't anyone use your own insurance plan for this?

Yes, I do. Much cheaper and covers my RV and autos.

To the OP; you may want to do a little research on this forum on your purchase. There have been many who have complained about GS purchases. There may be a reason its half off...

The OP said he researched it for a year !!...:@

Yes - most insurance companies will cover (or offer) towing reimbursement. Check with your insurer. You will be expected to PAY for the service with cash or CC, then submit a claim to your insurer.

In the case of a trailer - make sure your policy covers both vehicles if the tow vehicle breaks down - and/or if the "emergency service" will cover "only" the trailer if it needs the service.

And.....See it in writing.

:W

[PawPaw_n_Gram]

First - NONE of the roadside assistance plans have their own field service people. ALL of them contract with the same groups of tow trucks/ companies to provide the on-site assistance.

If you are somewhere like the middle of I-10 in western New Mexico or I-70 in eastern Utah - you are going to get the same tow truck no matter which assistance plan you have.

If you are on I-5 near Sacramento or I-19 in Georgia - you might get a different truck depending upon the company.

Coach-Net is the only company which employs people with RV technical experience to help with guidance for problems. All the others use general call centers. At one time a few years ago, Good Sam, Allstate, AAA and State Farm all used the SAME call center.

Dispatch times are the biggest complaint. People have to be reasonable about what they expect.

If you are in east Texas with a problem on a Sunday morning, you may have to wait until the independent tow truck operator gets out of church before he/ she responds.

If you are in heavy traffic on a hot holiday weekend on I-95 in Florida, your call might be far down the list with the tow company getting calls by the dozens.

It's the same thing with a car as an RV, in very busy times for tow trucks, it takes a while for them to get to you.

When we were campground hosts at Big Bend NP, it was 140 miles to Alpine, TX for the nearest tow truck which worked with roadside assistance. There were a couple tow trucks in Terlinqua, but they only worked for cash. Heck, it was so remote that On-Star could not even find a new car to unlock it.


Second - REVIEW THE DETAILS of the individual plan.

Almost all providers offer different level plans. The cheapest plans are worth exactly what you pay for them - almost nothing.

Always go for the highest level of service possible, no matter what the costs. One long distance tow with no plan for an RV can end up costing over $1,000. And be wary of the tow truck driver, especially if he wants to tow your rig.

Too many horror stories of drivers towing a heavy dually with a long 5er attached at 60+ mph on rough roads. The tow truck works on a flat rate. He/she wants to be finished with your job as quickly as possible.

[steveh27]

I've used AAA for over 20 years with my Class B. They've towed me a few times due to various reasons. And changed a blown tire. Never had a problem. I've upgraded to their RV level to get increased free tow range. I do insure with AAA to get this. Satisfied for over 20 years.

[Puddles]

2oldman wrote:

rfloyd99 wrote:
... State Farm for roadside assistance? I've never heard of them having roadside assistance programs.

Just googled that and yes they do.

My State Farm story is... you call a tow truck, you pay tow truck, you submit the bill, State Farm looks for loop holes.

[BarneyS]

Thought you might be interested in one of our "adventures" during our trip back home to Michigan from Florida several years ago. We left Tampa on Tuesday morning. All went well until I made a great BIG expensive blunder. Stopped at Flying J to fill up about 1/2 way through our day on Friday (Franklin, KY). There were three pumps at the RV island. Stupid me mistakenly thought all three were diesel pumps. Don't know why because I have stopped at Flying J RV island many times. Anyway, the ONE diesel pump had a broken hose on my side, so instead of picking up the GREEN hose on the other side of the island, I picked up the BLACK hose at the next pump. Filled up my tank (was about 2/3 empty) and went inside to get my receipt. On the way out, I looked at it and it said 26 gallons of REGULAR!!!!. I went and looked at the pump and, sure enough, I had filled up with gasoline instead of diesel!

I called Good Sam and about 1/2 hour later a tow truck came and towed me 20 miles to Bowling Green, Kentucky to a place that pumped out my tank, changed filters and blew out all my lines. Flying J said I could drop the trailer in the parking lot so they only had to tow my truck. I started it up and drove quickly away from the pumps and to the parking area. GS put me on a large flat bed wrecker. They were going to send two wreckers to tow both truck and trailer but I preferred them not to since I have the Hensley hitch. $400 and 4 hours later we were on our way again. Got to our campground that night a bit late and a lot poorer!

What a bonehead move! Learned a good lesson though. Always take a look at the pump two times before you pump that stuff! Thank goodness we are members of Good Sam Emergency Road Service. They really came through for us. One phone call and they arranged the tow and the repair facility. I didn't even have to sign anything for the towing job.

Thought you might enjoy hearing about my stupid mistake. Sure hope it is the last one like that that I make! It could have been worse though. If I had taken off down the road, I could have destroyed my engine and been stuck for a while beside the road.
I think my wife is going to rib me for a while about this one!
Barney

[Thermoguy]

I have AAA RV Plus - not sure about other plans but got the RV plus because it will tow you farther and tow your trailer, not just the truck. Also not sure about insurance tow plans, but would be surprised if they tow the trailer.

Have not had to use the tow plan - knock on wood...

[cummins2014]

I dumped Good Sam, I’m covered with my Allstate plan .

[joelc]

Coach-net....

[8ntw8tn]

In 2010, just prior to when we preparing for retirement and a lot more anticipated travel I did a lot of comparison between GS and Coach-net. I decided on Coach-net because of their pre-qualified network. In the time we've had it we've had to have had the truck/trailer combo towed twice because of a truck breakdown, and had three (3) tires changed, one because of a blowout. On the first tow we were in the middle of nowhere in eastern Oregon and had to be towed 45 miles to the nearest repair facility. On all of the occassions the responding drivers/repairmen were quite competent had had everything they needed to complete the task. We've never had to pay a dime for the towing or tire change, other than the truck repairs and new tires themselves. I have nothing agains GS at all, but I'm quite satisfied with my Coach-net experiences. In my individual case, I figure I'm money ahead so far. Hopefully, I'll not have anymore breakdowns but I'll still travel with a peace of mind of having that "umbrella" over me. Hope this helps.

[ZINGERLITE]

seems as though good sams and AAA do not have good services. My last experince with good sam was that they wanted to send someone out to look at the car. i knew the fuel pump was dead but they wanted me to wait an hour plus just to have someone say "yep its dead" then wait for a tow truck. I called the local tow company and was home within a half hour. Then they wouldn't reimburse the bill.

I think they make it difficult to deal with on purpose. Its faster to deal with getting a tow on your own. Like dealing with the cable company. Make it so difficult you just deal with it on your own or pay for a service call.