Breaking down in Europe..thoughts?

[umblecumbuz]

On your own, you are responsible for just one person, so if you don't mind suffering an uninsured breakdown and its sometimes costly and unforeseen consequences, that is your decision.

But peace of mind - and therefore the value of appropriate insurance - escalates considerably if you have passengers. With, say, a wife and small children, their welfare needs to be considered above that of yours.

 

[Ricardo_e220]

On your own, you are responsible for just one person, so if you don't mind suffering an uninsured breakdown and its sometimes costly and unforeseen consequences, that is your decision.

But peace of mind - and therefore the value of appropriate insurance - escalates considerably if you have passengers. With, say, a wife and small children, their welfare needs to be considered above that of yours.

yep I used to fly more freely while single, most things happened as planned...if it didn’t when abroad it added to the voyage...

now with wife and young family I take a different approach.

this reminds me of a family I grew up with they once drove their s123 to the french alps and back..2000 miles...it wasn’t in the rudest of health shall we say... they hammered it there and back taking all food etc with them...driving home into our local town the front suspension collapsed half a mile from home.... they had no breakdown cover at all.... however they never took travel or ski insurance until they joined us one year...I’d broken my leg aged 13...they took it that year and ever after... after seeing the prices we’d still had to pay for stretchering off a mountain and X-rays...which we had to reclaim - ouch!

 

[LostKiwi]

A lot of the decision regarding breakdown cover will depend on your own individual skills.
For someone who is accomplished with spanners (and keeps a reasonable toolkit in the car) it will be less of an issue than someone who doesn't know which end of a screwdriver is the handle.
It also depends on the vehicle.
Would I take a 230 abroad without breakdown cover? Probably not.
Would I take the 210? Probably yes.

On a long trip I carry basic diagnostic kit (MB-II level), full set of spanners, hammer, screwdrivers (with handle end marked), pliers, cutters and a big handful of cable ties and some wire and insulation tape. Also a bottle of power steering fluid, ATF and engine oil. Water is easy to find so tend not to bother. Most of this hides in various compartments hidden behind trim so isn't in the way.

 

[McDonald]

Equally applicable at home. If my wife's car breaks down, I want her to have a phone number to call for assistance, that isn't me. I'm often a long way from home, sometimes working abroad. If I'm at work or otherwise engaged, I need to know that the problem will be resolved. I'm not very practical either, so I'm glad of assistance too. We've had the AA out probably once a year, these last 5 years.

 

[daibevan]

Equally applicable at home. If my wife's car breaks down, I want her to have a phone number to call for assistance, that isn't me. I'm often a long way from home, sometimes working abroad. If I'm at work or otherwise engaged, I need to know that the problem will be resolved. I'm not very practical either, so I'm glad of assistance too. We've had the AA out probably once a year, these last 5 years.

You've definitely had your moneys worth. I've had them out twice in the last 20 years, both times on the drive. Once the battery died without warning and the second to diagnose a fault I thought I'd identified through the Primera forum, but wanted confirmation of. Patrol man got car started, but couldn't identify the fault, "but a friend of his locally was really good at identifying faults and we could take the car there and he'd sort it out"????WTF. Turned out I was right about the fault (faulty suction control valve), fixed it myself and traded her in for my Merc.

 

[star]

A lot of the decision regarding breakdown cover will depend on your own individual skills.
For someone who is accomplished with spanners (and keeps a reasonable toolkit in the car) it will be less of an issue than someone who doesn't know which end of a screwdriver is the handle.
It also depends on the vehicle.
Would I take a 230 abroad without breakdown cover? Probably not.
Would I take the 210? Probably yes.

On a long trip I carry basic diagnostic kit (MB-II level), full set of spanners, hammer, screwdrivers (with handle end marked), pliers, cutters and a big handful of cable ties and some wire and insulation tape. Also a bottle of power steering fluid, ATF and engine oil. Water is easy to find so tend not to bother. Most of this hides in various compartments hidden behind trim so isn't in the way.

I think I am quite good on the spanner’s, but a car is a mechanical thing and can break at anytime or anything which may not be repairable on the roadside. Bd insurance for me, even in the uk.

 

[McDonald]

I've been running my Dad's 18 yr old Peugeot, my Merc is 16 yrs old. My wife's Astra GTC is now 6 yrs old. When the Mercedes broke down I was pleased to be able to have it trailered to MBS in Southampton. That's a 50 mile journey.

The peace of mind is a bonus.

 

[padrig]

I am off to France, not for the first time, this summer. I am a tight-wad and loathed to pay for eu breakdown cover (about £50/yr).

I have never broken down, don't hold breakdown cover and all my cars are very well maintained.

I am aware that if you breakdown on the french toll roads, the government will tow you to garage (around 200 Euro).

However, the thought of breaking down somewhere not a toll road, and not being able to communicate to a garage, over the phone, in a language alien to me is daunting.

Do people have any experiences of breaking down overseas, and getting sorted without proper breakdown cover?

britannia lv, dont have to be insured with them, any age car or mileage,just serviced, many french trips over 26 yrs, but still take a few tools, worth a look?

 

[jp williams]

I have a Nationwide joint account with “free” euro breakdown cover subject to minimum balance . Never used it , but like you some of the AA/RAC breakdown cover prices for Europe leaves me clutching my chest

Me too, with Nationwide Flexi Account.
The OP is nuts to contemplate taking a risk !

 

[ajlsl600]

Must find out if any of my bank accounts incl car cover.natwest, lloyds, santander, lloyds int, suppose one must? Never looked.

 

[Craiglxviii]

Me too, with Nationwide Flexi Account.
The OP is nuts to contemplate taking a risk !

I think it cost me £70 for unlimited trips/ mileage coverage last year. For the price of a tank of fuel, why risk it?

 

[rf065]

Always check the small print, I was covered for Europe once and I recall the small print stating that if the recovery back to the UK was going to cost almost the cars worth they would just leave it where it was. If you have an older car, beware!

 

[Craiglxviii]

Always check the small print, I was covered for Europe once and I recall the small print stating that if the recovery back to the UK was going to cost almost the cars worth they would just leave it where it was. If you have an older car, beware!

The £70 insurance was for full recovery to home or local garage, and not “Beyond Economic Repair” scrapping... that was an extra £10 included in the overall cost.

 

[Chrishazle]

If it's a second car, look at ClassicLine insurance as that includes EU wide breakdown and recovery, people as well as car, although car may be later than people.

 

[LostKiwi]

Always check the small print, I was covered for Europe once and I recall the small print stating that if the recovery back to the UK was going to cost almost the cars worth they would just leave it where it was. If you have an older car, beware!

Exactly this.
Given our E Class is worth buttons there's little point in having European breakdown for it.
I'm far better to just carry enough tools and diagnostic kit to enable me to fix it enough to get somewhere I can sort an alternative or get it to destination. If I can get it to the UK ports I'm laughing as I have personal breakdown in the UK.
The other thing is being over 16 years old most companies won't touch it.

 

[star]

For me it’s the onward travel, why spoil your holiday, trying to source and fix your car, or worse giving up on the holiday to try and get your car back to port. If not fixable, use the supplied hire car.

 

[d215yq]

Exactly this.
Given our E Class is worth buttons there's little point in having European breakdown for it.
I'm far better to just carry enough tools and diagnostic kit to enable me to fix it enough to get somewhere I can sort an alternative or get it to destination. If I can get it to the UK ports I'm laughing as I have personal breakdown in the UK.
The other thing is being over 16 years old most companies won't touch it.

Have you tried French cover? In Spain it is done on towing limits - 50€/year everywhere but limited to 300km towing or 75€/year everywhere and towing back to home address regardless of car's value and kms. No issue with a 33 year old car either, same price. I go for the 300km optio as the only time I'd be screwed would be if I broke down in the middle of France but then I'd just accept the few days delay...and to be honestt I'd much rather be towed 300km towards my destination and then sit about in a French town for a few days while it's fixed than endure the multiple tow truck journeys of a possibly 1500km back home and then have to sort out fixing the car anyway!

 

[brandwooddixon]

Its like any insurance policy.
It's money wasted until you need it!
Many moons ago I had a gearbox issue with my E430 whilst on holiday in the south of France.
I had to drive about 10 miles in second gear to the nearest village ( we didn't have any mobile reception).

The car was picked up and transported to the MB dealers in Arles, who quoted me 3,500 Euros to fix the problem.

I used my Green Flag cover to taxi us back to our accommodation (160 Euros), provide a hire car for the rest of our holiday (9 days) and have my car transported back to my home address (£1,600 - the transport driver showed me the paperwork that his company were billing Green Flag for).

I then had the gearbox fixed for free under warranty.

Best £60 I've ever spent!

However, it depends on the value of your car and whether you get a hire car if its not repaired..
On the ferry (as foot passengers) we encountered a family who's car had died within 6 hours of landing on French soil. The car was written off due to cost and so they were on their way back home.

 

[Rockron]

Last time I enquired (c.9 months ago), Nationwide Flexplus had a monthly charge of £13 with no
interest paid on any balance amount in the a/c.. Previously it was the same monthly charge but a then competitive 2.5/3% interest on balances up to £1500. Which meant that keeping £1500 in the account
more or less paid off the monthly charge.

However it still remains a good deal IMO as you also get Travel Insurance as well as Breakdown Cover plus a couple of other perks. Worth remembering that shortly UK Citizens will almost certainly not be
able to flash their EHIC card should they suffer a broken leg or the pox. Flexplus have no vehicle age limits AFAIK, many stipulate 10 or 15 years max.

I've not found any Breakdown Cover suitable for my circumstances and requirements, ie 7.5tonnesX8m length, up to 180 days EU single trip etc etc. NW Flexplus comes close, but that's another (complicated) story.

 

[padrig]

I am off to France, not for the first time, this summer. I am a tight-wad and loathed to pay for eu breakdown cover (about £50/yr).

I have never broken down, don't hold breakdown cover and all my cars are very well maintained.

I am aware that if you breakdown on the french toll roads, the government will tow you to garage (around 200 Euro).

However, the thought of breaking down somewhere not a toll road, and not being able to communicate to a garage, over the phone, in a language alien to me is daunting.

Do people have any experiences of breaking down overseas, and getting sorted without proper breakdown cover?

hi, been going to france for 28 years 1000mls from home to property,used many companies now use LV cover any car any mileage (dec 2020)
hope this helps