Roadside Assistance

seekerman · Mar 7, 2013

There have been several posts in the past pertaining to roadside assistance but I thought I'd throw in a recent experience and my reaction to it for those who may need the information... I have had roadside assistance through Good Sam Roadside Assistance for over two years. I have had my Sprinter towed no less than 5 times through them and tows on personal vehicles at least that many times with no problems. Recently I needed a tow, and when calling them I was asked, for some reason, if the Sprinter was an RV or a commercial vehicle. By that time I didn't think it made any difference due to my history with them and I said commercial. They refused the tow because they do not do commercial vehicles and I was on my own. Historically I told them it was an RV. Goodness knows why I said commercial this time.

I went back through the posts and threads about roadside assistance, did research on roadside assistance providers, and just Joined AAA plus, thanks be primarily to Turtle. I don't know why I bothered to do additional research as he is da man when it comes to having researched topics. To save fellow seekers time, AAA plus provides 4 tows a year with up to a 100 miles free. Additionally:

Eligible Vehicles
Basic: Service applies to all properly licensed four-wheeled motor driven vehicles of the passenger, pleasure or recreational type (vans, campers and motor homes), if those services can be safely delivered.
Dual wheel campers/motor homes are eligible for all services except towing, extricating/winching and tire service. Dual wheel unloaded pickup trucks are eligible for all services except rear tire service. Full coverage for these vehicles are available under the AAA Plus/RVÂ® membership.
Rented passenger vehicles and commercial vehicles are eligible for service with the exception of taxi cabs and limousines. This info was posted by dhalltoyo some time ago and thanks to him for that.

You can join online for $102.00 which includes a sign up fee or you can call AAA locally and beat em up for a discount. Office in Knoxville gave me the membership for $82.00 with the discount for having a Food City card.

So...If you need it this may be the way to go. Good luck, and keep your eyes open wide boys.

Turtle · Mar 7, 2013

This past year I moved up to the AAA Premier (Premier Benefits). It's like $118 I think. It offers the same as the AAA Plus, with the additional coverages of a 200 mile tow plus three tows at 100 miles each (instead of four tows of 100 miles), and you get Trip Interruption expense reimbursement (hotel, meals, rental car) for expenses incurred within the first 96 hours of an incident, with "incident" including mechanical breakdowns. There are other additional benefits, too, but the 200 mile tow and the expense reimbursement even for mechanical breakdowns are the biggies.

seekerman · Mar 7, 2013

Oops. I may need to upgrade to Premier. When I opened the link the info indicated only an accident as a reimburseable incident under trip interruption benefits. However, when I looked further and read the handbook, a mechanical breakdown indeed qualifies in the trip interruption policy. Outstanding! Thanks Turtle.

wvcourier · Mar 7, 2013

Ok, what if you signed up for the basic, and you use up all your assistance..ive had one lockout , one tow, and one ditch rescue ..after the fourth rescue, can you renew the membership, or do you have to wait for the full year?

runrunner · Mar 7, 2013

wvcourier said:
Ok, what if you signed up for the basic, and you use up all your assistance..ive had one lockout , one tow, and one ditch rescue ..after the fourth rescue, can you renew the membership, or do you have to wait for the full year?

I think you have to wait till the year is up.

DollarSign · Mar 7, 2013

I was going to go with GoodSam cause I like the unlimted towing anytime and anywhere. I dont know about AAA premier cause it seems that your limited? Question seekerman. When you told them Rv, did they say anything when they got there?

billg27 · Mar 7, 2013

If you have Progressive Insurance check out their plans. I was told that they reimburse you 100% for your towing, lockout service and ditch extraction unlimited times. For an extra $25 a year they will even pay for a van rental while your vehicle is down due to an accident.

DollarSign · Mar 7, 2013

billg27 said:
If you have Progressive Insurance check out their plans. I was told that they reimburse you 100% for your towing, lockout service and ditch extraction unlimited times. For an extra $25 a year they will even pay for a van rental while your vehicle is down due to an accident.

Glad you said something about that billg27. Ive got CIS and I didnt even think about that.

billg27 · Mar 7, 2013

CIS is who hooked me up with it. Good people but you have to ask for it.

seekerman · Mar 8, 2013

DollarSign said:
I was going to go with GoodSam cause I like the unlimted towing anytime and anywhere. I dont know about AAA premier cause it seems that your limited? Question seekerman. When you told them Rv, did they say anything when they got there?

They never said a word on any previous tows. The only thing I can figure is that at some point a tow company spilled the beans. Or something else entirely unrelated my have triggered the question.Maybe they have just had too many expediters call for tows. We'll never know. The last tow was the day before I called and I was not asked if it was a commercial vehicle. They rolled the rollback right up to the dock and unloaded me.The service with Good Sam has always been good, but my tows were always short ones. I called once in Montana when I was loaded, had a flat tire, and they were unable to find anyone to provide assistance, but that may have been the case with any provider as I was in the sticks. It was a front tire and I was finally able to get it changed myself. If you go with Good Sam, simply tell them it is a Sprinter, if that is what it is, and if ever questioned stick with your guns that it is an RV.The good thing about Sam is that every vehicle in your name is covered. I had five at the time so I definitely got my money's worth. I'm comfortable with the fact that AAA states that commercial vehicles are covered, but if asked, I'm still gonna tell them it's an RV. In fact, it is, as I've got a sleeper.

seekerman · Mar 8, 2013

billg27 said:
If you have Progressive Insurance check out their plans. I was told that they reimburse you 100% for your towing, lockout service and ditch extraction unlimited times. For an extra $25 a year they will even pay for a van rental while your vehicle is down due to an accident.

Gotta have some kind of Roadside assistance!!! Period. When I first started I didn't have coverage. I backed into a snow covered ditch in Minnesota at 2:00 a.m. Wrecker service charged me $180.00 to pull me five feet with a cable. With a straight face. I think the tick I developed around my eye is due to a mini stroke I had with this guy.

seekerman · Mar 8, 2013

DollarSign said:
I was going to go with GoodSam cause I like the unlimted towing anytime and anywhere. I dont know about AAA premier cause it seems that your limited? Question seekerman. When you told them Rv, did they say anything when they got there?

Oh, and I would recommend, if you're ever towed loaded, that you ask the wrecker driver not to mention it to anyone. The wrecker service doesn't care...they've been paid for the tow.

Turtle · Mar 8, 2013

If you have AAA and you tell them it's an RV, you need the AAA RV coverage. If you don't have that, don't tell 'em it's an RV.

Also with AAA, don't tell them that you're loaded, even if you are. Commercial vehicles are covered, but only when not loaded. I've been towed while loaded. Most of the towing companies don't care or don't know that they're not supposed to tow you while loaded, but AAA does, so don't tell 'em. (I think the reason AAA doesn't want to tow you while loaded is because when they do, they are technically hauling freight).

Also, I learned right quick, when they ask me what type of vehicle it is, even though I have a Freightliner Sprinter, I tell 'em it's a Dodge Sprinter. As soon as they hear "Freightliner" they think "tractor-trailer" and nothing else I say gets heard. "Hey! It's just a Dodge Sprinter 2500, it's a cargo van, like a big soccer mommy van, not a truck." Once they hear "Freightliner", they don't care.