Breakdown cover needed for roadtrip?

January 26, 2006 9:21 AM

I'm taking a roadtrip (Davis, CA to Vancouver, Canada) in a 20yr old car with 115,000 miles. I think it would be wise to get breakdown insurance. What companies provide this service?

I'm living in California but I'm from England where there are companies such as the AA and the RAC. I'm finding it difficult to find a similar service here in the USA.
Also, I only really need it for this trip and don't really want to sign up for a year.

posted by xoe26 to Travel & Transportation (8 answers total)

AAA
posted by wsg at 9:32 AM on January 26, 2006

Best answer: AAA is probably the closest you'll get, but it won't cover repairs to your vehicle in case of breakdown. It only covers towing and some very basic help like giving you a gallon or two of gas when you run out, or changing a flat tire. Their plus membership gives some slight extra benefits, like a longer towing range and some trip interruption insurance (in case of accident).
posted by MegoSteve at 9:36 AM on January 26, 2006

Best answer: I would recommend going for the membership with the greater towing range: the basic only gives you 7 miles, and if you go over that (as has happened to me, stuck out in the desert) they charge something like 7 bucks per extra mile, which soon adds up. Also bear in mind that if the worst comes to the worst, you can always negotiate with the tower and maybe work out something that's in both your interests.
posted by forallmankind at 10:03 AM on January 26, 2006

Go for AAA RV, I dislike AAA's politics but I do like their service. I think I'm covered for up to 100 miles of free towing (I made use of it last night, though only 15 miles)
posted by substrate at 10:08 AM on January 26, 2006

Here are some links on AAA's "politics", which is basically lobbying (in the name of their millions of members) against better fuel economy, against public transit, against the Clean Air act, against any limits on smog/soot/exhaust, for private companies building roads without any public oversight, etc. They claim to lobby for better safety for motorists but there's no real evidence of that. (This is the main story, a 2002 Harper's article.)

There are plenty of alternatives; some credit cards offer roadside assistance, but one company that pitches itself as a green alternative to AAA is the Better World Club which is priced to match AAA, but doesn't do nasty stuff and pretend that you asked them to.
posted by xueexueg at 10:21 AM on January 26, 2006

Response by poster: I'll have a look into AAA.

Thanks for your answers.
posted by xoe26 at 3:09 PM on January 26, 2006

If you carry physical damage coverages like Comprehensive and Collision with your auto insurance, you may be able to add an emergency roadside service (some companies don't even require that you carry these coverages, and will add it to a liability policy). If you can add it to your policy, it covers the same perils as AAA does, and costs about $5 per six month policy period (more or less). Depending on your insurance company, you probably won't be required to carry it for the entire term.
posted by mewithoutyou at 3:34 PM on January 26, 2006

Their plus membership gives some slight extra benefits, like a longer towing range and some trip interruption insurance (in case of accident).

In CA, you have to be a member of triple AAA for at least a year and have had no towings in that period in order to be eligible for plus. I know because I let my membership lapse (for a month), and then wasn't offered the "Plus" version when I renewed (to get a tow, dammit, so now I'm another year out from plus).

ymmv, just fyi, etc.
posted by fishfucker at 3:57 PM on January 26, 2006