RAC ripping off existing breakdown customers. sick of it
Discussion
jeremyh1 said:
vikingaero said:
Most people are lemmings and will grumble about the renewal price and then renew because it's something that most of us need.
Firstly, NEVER NEVER NEVER RENEW. Always be a ho and shop around. There is nothing to be gained to being a loyal customer. If you believe in AA Silver and Gold membership then more fool you. You can get decenty AutoAid cover for less than £70 for a couple which shows how much branded cover costs.
If you MUST to have RAC branded cover then buy via Quidco or Topcashback to effectively halve the cost. At renewal call up and cancel and never get involved in negotiation/discussions. Then take out a new AA policy via Quidco/TCB. Repeat every year. (Caveat - cashback can take a few months to be paid back to you and the cashback site takes a standard £5 cut).
An illustration of TCB discounts:
£130 cashback for fully paid breakdown policies with a value of £250 and over
£90 cashback for fully paid breakdown policies with a value of £200 - £249.99
£75 cashback for fully paid breakdown policies with a value of £153 - £199.99
£66.50 cashback for fully paid breakdown policies with a value of £123 - £152.99
https://www.quidco.com/rac-uk-breakdown-cover/
The RAC must be rogering the OP from behind because they have 50% off for new customers: https://www.rac.co.uk/
Its very easy to say this but a lot of us just don't have the time to spend Victor Meldrewing over such things Firstly, NEVER NEVER NEVER RENEW. Always be a ho and shop around. There is nothing to be gained to being a loyal customer. If you believe in AA Silver and Gold membership then more fool you. You can get decenty AutoAid cover for less than £70 for a couple which shows how much branded cover costs.
If you MUST to have RAC branded cover then buy via Quidco or Topcashback to effectively halve the cost. At renewal call up and cancel and never get involved in negotiation/discussions. Then take out a new AA policy via Quidco/TCB. Repeat every year. (Caveat - cashback can take a few months to be paid back to you and the cashback site takes a standard £5 cut).
An illustration of TCB discounts:
£130 cashback for fully paid breakdown policies with a value of £250 and over
£90 cashback for fully paid breakdown policies with a value of £200 - £249.99
£75 cashback for fully paid breakdown policies with a value of £153 - £199.99
£66.50 cashback for fully paid breakdown policies with a value of £123 - £152.99
https://www.quidco.com/rac-uk-breakdown-cover/
The RAC must be rogering the OP from behind because they have 50% off for new customers: https://www.rac.co.uk/
It is just easier for me to pay and enjoy what spare time I have doing the things I actually want to do .
like a lot of people on here I work hard and lots of hours for the rewards and life cant be wasted on this
I'm organised and buy extra 3 for 2 on 500ml Diet Pepsi drinks £2.80 for 3 bottles when I'm at the supermarket buying my lunch anyway. On a day out my friends will buy 2 for £5 or £6 at the Shell garage. Each to their own.
I won't touch the RAC with a barge pole after leaving me to my own devices at some London ish motorway services when the radiator sprung a leak on my e500, if it wasn't for a really kind truck driver who sorted me out with some rad weld & water I'd still be there now
I change each year between AA, autoaid & green flag, this year it's green flag top of the range UK cover for £75
Had to call green flag a few times & they have been brilliant
I change each year between AA, autoaid & green flag, this year it's green flag top of the range UK cover for £75
Had to call green flag a few times & they have been brilliant
jeremyh1 said:
Its very easy to say this but a lot of us just don't have the time to spend Victor Meldrewing over such things
It is just easier for me to pay and enjoy what spare time I have doing the things I actually want to do .
like a lot of people on here I work hard and lots of hours for the rewards and life cant be wasted on this
What a very strange attitude. Many people work hard and very long hours but still try hard not to waste money. If you take the cavalier approach across of all your purchasing decisions you won't have much left for the nice to haves or if you're sensible investing the maximum in your pension.It is just easier for me to pay and enjoy what spare time I have doing the things I actually want to do .
like a lot of people on here I work hard and lots of hours for the rewards and life cant be wasted on this
lornemalvo said:
I just received my renewal for RAC breakdown cover (pretty sure I opted out of this as I never opt in to this). It's gone up from £125 to £190.99, well over 50% increase.
I called to cancel the automatic opt in and to ask why the increase and was told I took it out with an introductory offer. I then asked why then now, after I've called, are you offering to "see what you can do" about the price? Why not give a loyal customer a decent price instead of me having to call to complain? It's an annual insurance policy, not a f
king T shirt on a Tenerife market. I don't want to haggle, I just want a fair price. Current policies for newcomers are around £100 with full cover. No doubt they do it because many people just renew for the sake of convenience.
I'm absolutely fking sick of having to be constantly on the ball because companies try every sly, underhanded tactic to rip off their own customers, instead of just dealing in a straightforward, honest way. The greedy bds.
The law was changed to prevent insurance companies disadvantaging existing customers like this for car insurance and home insurance products, does it extend to breakdown insurance policies?
26% of mortgage holders don't remortgage and instead revert to the standard variable rate at the end of their deal.I called to cancel the automatic opt in and to ask why the increase and was told I took it out with an introductory offer. I then asked why then now, after I've called, are you offering to "see what you can do" about the price? Why not give a loyal customer a decent price instead of me having to call to complain? It's an annual insurance policy, not a f
king T shirt on a Tenerife market. I don't want to haggle, I just want a fair price. Current policies for newcomers are around £100 with full cover. No doubt they do it because many people just renew for the sake of convenience. I'm absolutely f
king sick of having to be constantly on the ball because companies try every sly, underhanded tactic to rip off their own customers, instead of just dealing in a straightforward, honest way. The greedy bds.The law was changed to prevent insurance companies disadvantaging existing customers like this for car insurance and home insurance products, does it extend to breakdown insurance policies?
FCA Insight March 2020
Nomme de Plum said:
jeremyh1 said:
Its very easy to say this but a lot of us just don't have the time to spend Victor Meldrewing over such things
It is just easier for me to pay and enjoy what spare time I have doing the things I actually want to do .
like a lot of people on here I work hard and lots of hours for the rewards and life cant be wasted on this
What a very strange attitude. Many people work hard and very long hours but still try hard not to waste money. If you take the cavalier approach across of all your purchasing decisions you won't have much left for the nice to haves or if you're sensible investing the maximum in your pensIt is just easier for me to pay and enjoy what spare time I have doing the things I actually want to do .
like a lot of people on here I work hard and lots of hours for the rewards and life cant be wasted on this
Open up my business at 3am probably finish at 6 pm sometimes later
Those on here that run businesses will understand putting the effort in so that you and your family wont need to scrimp and save
FFS how much spare time do you people get?
It is far more important for me to make than scrimp in the ways described on here
I just want them to recover my car when it stops that's all and I will pay the market value for a good service in the same way as I expect my customers to be with me
lornemalvo said:
It's gone up from £125 to £190.99, well over 50% increase.
That is nothing, our work vans went from £238.00 to £811.You need to phone them to tell them to cancel the policy as it auto-renews, when the lady asked why, I was quite blunt and told her they were taking the piss.
She dropped the price straight away to £300.00 a discount of £511.00.
20 minutes of my life I will never get back
lornemalvo said:
paulrockliffe said:
Dingu said:
No, the new regulations don’t extend to breakdown.
They don't even really extend to Insurance either, they just change the terms of the new policies in non-material ways so that they can renew your out of date policy that is no longer available to new customers at the inflated price. lornemalvo said:
Its very easy to say this but a lot of us just don't have the time to spend Victor Meldrewing over such things
It is just easier for me to pay and enjoy what spare time I have doing the things I actually want to do .
like a lot of people on here I work hard and lots of hours for the rewards and life cant be wasted on this
Yet you had the time to post about it on Pistonheads...It is just easier for me to pay and enjoy what spare time I have doing the things I actually want to do .
like a lot of people on here I work hard and lots of hours for the rewards and life cant be wasted on this
A perennial issue. I use Start Rescue. £47.54 for two cars for this year (66 plate 335d and 13 plate Fabia), and then £30 per call out.
I was with RAC for many years, then when I went to NFU Mutual Insurance, that included breakdown. Then I left NFU for LV=, and the 335d 3 year warranty covered breakdown, so only the Fabia to cover. Now, still with LV= but with Start Rescue for breakdown. I can’t recall the last time one of our cars has needed breakdown or recovery service. Certainly not in the Fabia’s 10 year life.
I was with RAC for many years, then when I went to NFU Mutual Insurance, that included breakdown. Then I left NFU for LV=, and the 335d 3 year warranty covered breakdown, so only the Fabia to cover. Now, still with LV= but with Start Rescue for breakdown. I can’t recall the last time one of our cars has needed breakdown or recovery service. Certainly not in the Fabia’s 10 year life.
eliot said:
I think AA are the only company that will cover old cars now - I do always call them come renewal and get the “let me speak to my manager price” and do the two year commit to save the yearly bs on the phone
Get cover that covers the person rather than the car and then you should be covered.lornemalvo said:
I just received my renewal for RAC breakdown cover (pretty sure I opted out of this as I never opt in to this). It's gone up from £125 to £190.99, well over 50% increase.
I called to cancel the automatic opt in and to ask why the increase and was told I took it out with an introductory offer. I then asked why then now, after I've called, are you offering to "see what you can do" about the price? Why not give a loyal customer a decent price instead of me having to call to complain? It's an annual insurance policy, not a fking T shirt on a Tenerife market. I don't want to haggle, I just want a fair price. Current policies for newcomers are around £100 with full cover. No doubt they do it because many people just renew for the sake of convenience.
I'm absolutely fking sick of having to be constantly on the ball because companies try every sly, underhanded tactic to rip off their own customers, instead of just dealing in a straightforward, honest way. The greedy bds.
The law was changed to prevent insurance companies disadvantaging existing customers like this for car insurance and home insurance products, does it extend to breakdown insurance policies?
Completely agree. Imagine a world where this annual dance wasn’t necessary, because they always drop their trousers when you threaten moving to their competitor.I called to cancel the automatic opt in and to ask why the increase and was told I took it out with an introductory offer. I then asked why then now, after I've called, are you offering to "see what you can do" about the price? Why not give a loyal customer a decent price instead of me having to call to complain? It's an annual insurance policy, not a f
king T shirt on a Tenerife market. I don't want to haggle, I just want a fair price. Current policies for newcomers are around £100 with full cover. No doubt they do it because many people just renew for the sake of convenience. I'm absolutely f
king sick of having to be constantly on the ball because companies try every sly, underhanded tactic to rip off their own customers, instead of just dealing in a straightforward, honest way. The greedy bds.The law was changed to prevent insurance companies disadvantaging existing customers like this for car insurance and home insurance products, does it extend to breakdown insurance policies?
They wouldn’t need as many people manning calls from irate customers moaning about the hike in subscription, they could employ more people doing an actual service.
It is frustrating.
Megaflow said:
NS66 said:
You wait till you have to call them out ( hopefully not) and you will see how bad they really are!!!
What he said. Last time I had the misfortune to use them was because of a broken gear cable, from my initial phone call to actually making it home on a recovery truck, which was inevitable, despite them sending a van first, was 5 hours!I was driving a car back down the M40 when it suffered an alternator failure. It was overcast and raining and the car wouldn't have enough juice in the battery to complete the approx 130 mile journey.
So I stopped at Warwick services to make the call instead of grinding to a halt on the side of the road somewhere.
Thirty six hours. A day and a half. Apart from the occasional automated text message there was zero communication. Each piece of information I received about the recovery was from me phoning them every two hours to listen to another excuse.
They did refund the cost of the Travelodge and made a goodwill payment of £100 but it still took 36 hours to do the 130 mile journey.
I've never had breakdown insurance in 40 years of driving. I've broken down once, as a stupid teenager, thinking I was a rally god in the ice and snow.
My car history isn't good enough to mention and I never felt the need for breakdown cover, thinking the inconvenience and cost is worth bearing if/when it occurs. Have many of you annual policy holders asked yourselves if you really need it?
I do understand the 'what if' situations, but the likelihood really is very remote, especially if you always carry a spare tyre that you know how to fit single- handedly.
My car history isn't good enough to mention and I never felt the need for breakdown cover, thinking the inconvenience and cost is worth bearing if/when it occurs. Have many of you annual policy holders asked yourselves if you really need it?
I do understand the 'what if' situations, but the likelihood really is very remote, especially if you always carry a spare tyre that you know how to fit single- handedly.
Cold said:
Five hours? That's a blink of an eye. I've been with them for over twenty years and earlier on this year I called them out for the first time ever.
I was driving a car back down the M40 when it suffered an alternator failure. It was overcast and raining and the car wouldn't have enough juice in the battery to complete the approx 130 mile journey.
So I stopped at Warwick services to make the call instead of grinding to a halt on the side of the road somewhere.
Thirty six hours. A day and a half. Apart from the occasional automated text message there was zero communication. Each piece of information I received about the recovery was from me phoning them every two hours to listen to another excuse.
They did refund the cost of the Travelodge and made a goodwill payment of £100 but it still took 36 hours to do the 130 mile journey.
WOW, I think by that point I would have got the phone book out and sorted my own recovery I was driving a car back down the M40 when it suffered an alternator failure. It was overcast and raining and the car wouldn't have enough juice in the battery to complete the approx 130 mile journey.
So I stopped at Warwick services to make the call instead of grinding to a halt on the side of the road somewhere.
Thirty six hours. A day and a half. Apart from the occasional automated text message there was zero communication. Each piece of information I received about the recovery was from me phoning them every two hours to listen to another excuse.
They did refund the cost of the Travelodge and made a goodwill payment of £100 but it still took 36 hours to do the 130 mile journey.
Cold said:
Megaflow said:
NS66 said:
You wait till you have to call them out ( hopefully not) and you will see how bad they really are!!!
What he said. Last time I had the misfortune to use them was because of a broken gear cable, from my initial phone call to actually making it home on a recovery truck, which was inevitable, despite them sending a van first, was 5 hours!I was driving a car back down the M40 when it suffered an alternator failure. It was overcast and raining and the car wouldn't have enough juice in the battery to complete the approx 130 mile journey.
So I stopped at Warwick services to make the call instead of grinding to a halt on the side of the road somewhere.
Thirty six hours. A day and a half. Apart from the occasional automated text message there was zero communication. Each piece of information I received about the recovery was from me phoning them every two hours to listen to another excuse.
They did refund the cost of the Travelodge and made a goodwill payment of £100 but it still took 36 hours to do the 130 mile journey.
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