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Posted: 7/22/2022 10:15:59 AM EDT
[#1]
Similar experience here recently.
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Posted: 7/22/2022 10:16:48 AM EDT
[#2]
AAA has been doing that for no less than 15 years, because it was happening when I was a dispatcher.
Sorry, you'll have to find something else as your metric of shitty we have gotten |
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Posted: 7/22/2022 10:18:43 AM EDT
[#3]
Just happened in Missouri recently, pulled the story out of my history;
KCTV in KC Early Tuesday morning, Susan and Roy Coleman were driving along I-49. A tire blew out near Rich Hill, Missouri, causing the car to slide into a guardrail. The tire rim was bent, so simply putting a spare on wouldn’t work. They weren’t too concerned — they’re AAA members. They called them for assistance and were told help was on the way. So they waited — and waited, and waited. You’ll recall it was hot on Tuesday. At 7:30, when their ordeal started, it was 79 degrees. But as the day went on, the temperature reached 97 with a “feels like” temperature or heat index of 106. Susan checked in with her son, who was at work hours away. He wasn’t too concerned initially, assuming help was on the way. But, he was wrong. “Leaving people on the side of the road with no services for eight-plus hours on a 100-degree day is just unacceptable,” their son, Chris Coleman, said. “And, that’s just what... that’s the real takeaway for me.” Susan called AAA repeatedly and kept hearing that they were “next in line.” “I called them like 15 times,” she aid. “‘What’s going on?’ and nobody had an answer.” |
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Posted: 7/22/2022 10:19:56 AM EDT
[#4]
Warn winch, find a used 8274 preferably
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Posted: 7/22/2022 10:28:48 AM EDT
[#5]
What size winch? Get a snatch block if you don't want to upgrade the winch.
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Posted: 7/22/2022 10:52:17 AM EDT
[#6]
AAA has always sucked
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Posted: 7/22/2022 10:58:17 AM EDT
[#7]
I had a rental car break down a while back, I ended up having to leave it on the side of the freeway. It took the rental car company 24hrs to find a tow truck.
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Posted: 7/22/2022 10:59:58 AM EDT
[#8]
Had AAA back in the 80's. Whenever you needed them, it seems everyone else did as well. Dropped them in short order and never looked back.
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Posted: 7/22/2022 11:01:46 AM EDT
[#9]
AAA tried leaving me stranded on the side of the Highway at 2AM and told me to call the police. Idiots. They paid for that tow all 97 miles home. With $5 a gallon gas I probably made out alright.
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Posted: 7/22/2022 11:02:17 AM EDT
[#10]
Thats normal for AAA, always has been. As far as the winch get a harbor freight 12k and warranty it out if it ever has any issues.
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Posted: 7/22/2022 11:05:25 AM EDT
[#11]
Quote HistoryQuoted: AAA has been doing that for no less than 15 years, because it was happening when I was a dispatcher. Sorry, you'll have to find something else as your metric of shitty we have gotten Yep not new. But to be fair my last breakdown was a Sunday night and they found a wrecker 2 hours away to come get me. Be thankful there wasn't a snowstorm. I always laugh at the guys that call AAA for a flat as SOP. If I can change it, I'm changing it. |
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Posted: 7/22/2022 11:05:36 AM EDT
[#12]
Pro tip: Don’t call AAA. Call the Highway Patrol and ask them to send the next AAA wrecker on their rotation. Or, start calling wreckers yourself.
Tow trucks usually have a more reasonable response time to LE requests. Even if you call one yourself, you can call until you find one that’s available. |
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Posted: 7/22/2022 11:10:34 AM EDT
[#13]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Pro tip: Don’t call AAA. Call the Highway Patrol and ask them to send the next AAA wrecker on their rotation. Or, start calling wreckers yourself. Tow trucks usually have a more reasonable response time to LE requests. Even if you call one yourself, you can call until you find one that’s available. I have used AAA in some pretty bad situations, and they always had decent response times. |
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Posted: 7/22/2022 11:12:35 AM EDT
[#14]
Quoted: On a related note can anyone recommend a heavy duty electric wrench? The one on the car hauler wasn’t up to the risk of a 1/2ton pick up Thanks Wrench, or winch? If the latter, you want SuperWinch or Warn. Both reliable and reasonably priced. |
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Posted: 7/22/2022 11:25:23 AM EDT
[#15]
AAA has always sucked.
I was at Walmart some years back, and an elderly couple was stuck in the parking lot with a dead battery. It was the middle of August, and it was a very hot day. I asked if they needed help. They told me AAA was on the way. I finished loading my stuff into my truck. I asked again if they would like a jump start. They politely declined, AAA was on the way. I asked how long they had been sitting there. They said 2 hours. I asked if they wanted to wait another 2 hours for AAA, or I could give them a jump start in the next 2 minutes. They finally accepted my help. I pulled out my jumper cables, and got the car started, and told them where the they could go to get a replacement battery. |
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Posted: 7/22/2022 11:47:11 AM EDT
[#16]
Quote HistoryQuoted: AAA has always sucked No. Mrs. Daks has had their roadside coverage for decades, used it twice. They arrived most riky tik. |
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Posted: 7/22/2022 11:49:46 AM EDT
[#17]
I've had them not show up at all.
After 5-6 hours I got a tow with one of the other freeway buzzards and sent AAA the bill. |
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Posted: 7/22/2022 12:01:15 PM EDT
[#18]
Last time I called AAA the ethnic lady I talked to sounded like she had a mouthful of mashed potatoes, couldn't understand the nice lady in St. Louis. Fifty mile ride home w/ the driver who extolled the virtues of smoking dope, must not have needed a CDL pee test ?
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Posted: 7/22/2022 12:04:48 PM EDT
[#19]
My neighbor across the street started his corvette, went back inside and forgot the parking brake. It ended up rolling backwards down his driveway, across the street, into my yard, down a hill, through my shed and into a tree.
He called AAA to pull it out (maybe 200 yards from the street). They came out and took a look, said they they won't leave the pavement and quit on us. |
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Posted: 7/22/2022 12:19:59 PM EDT
[#20]
I've only had to call AAA for a tow truck once and that was due to a flat tire caused by a deer bone of all things while leaving our hunt camp in north Florida. The owner of the truck didn't have the right size lug wrench for the fancy-ass rims he had on the truck so we were stuck. It took AAA 7 hours to get to us. Admittedly we were way out in the sticks and not near any major hiways/roads, but still.
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Posted: 7/22/2022 12:25:07 PM EDT
[#21]
We cancelled our AAA membership. My wife insisted on having it for 15 years. In that time we gave them huge amounts of money and the only service we used was when they replaced the battery in her Saturn. That was worth the price of admission because she was alone, with our infant daughter.
Later we discovered the ham fisted AAA mechanic had overtorqued the battery terminals, cracked the casing, battery acid leaked all over the engine bay, and the car died again within a month. Warranty? Pffft. Last time we tried to get service I called them to have a vehicle towed to a shop. They only tow 5 miles now. After that you pay full tow rates. My advice: take the money you would give AAA, set it aside each month, self insure against roadside problems. |
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Posted: 7/22/2022 12:28:42 PM EDT
[#22]
While its still the big name on the block, AAA has terms that are so unfavorable that many tow services no longer want to participate.
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Posted: 7/22/2022 12:29:03 PM EDT
[#23]
Quote HistoryQuoted: AAA has always sucked. I was at Walmart some years back, and an elderly couple was stuck in the parking lot with a dead battery. It was the middle of August, and it was a very hot day. I asked if they needed help. They told me AAA was on the way. I finished loading my stuff into my truck. I asked again if they would like a jump start. They politely declined, AAA was on the way. I asked how long they had been sitting there. They said 2 hours. I asked if they wanted to wait another 2 hours for AAA, or I could give them a jump start in the next 2 minutes. They finally accepted my help. I pulled out my jumper cables, and got the car started, and told them where the they could go to get a replacement battery. 
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Posted: 7/22/2022 12:35:06 PM EDT
[#24]
Quote HistoryQuoted: AAA has always sucked This. I drove a wrecker for a small garage in my younger days. I didn't know a ton of the behind the scenes business, but the owner did share a few tidbits. Calls prioritized as such: 1. Police tows (accidents, impounds, etc) - always towed to our yard (+ storage $) 2. Cash tows to our garage (+ repair $) 3. Cash tows to someone else's place 4. Other roadside assistance companies (Allstate, etc) 5. AAA Fact is, a police recovery/tow/storage can add up to hundreds, if not into the thousand $ for a single job. AAA or other roadside paid pennies compared to that - probably something like $15 for a lockout IIRC. I know who I'd prioritize if I ran a wrecker service. AAA can try to hold them accountable for average response times, but that only goes so far. |
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Posted: 7/22/2022 12:37:51 PM EDT
[#25]
AAA pay is low. Really low. An old figure…maybe 2013 was $13 a tow in Orlando Florida.
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Posted: 7/22/2022 12:40:41 PM EDT
[#26]
Why would you wait so long? Just call a local tow truck company. $150 and you’re Done 15 minutes later
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Posted: 7/22/2022 12:43:41 PM EDT
[#27]
Low bid contracts (like AAA) will always get low bid results.
They are the home warranty business of the towing world. |
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Posted: 7/22/2022 12:46:33 PM EDT
[#28]
Had a similar experience with dead battery while parked in a garage in DC like 15 or so years ago. That was all it took for us to drop AAA.
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Posted: 7/22/2022 12:48:14 PM EDT
[#29]
Most people with decent auto insurance coverage should already have Emergency Road Service insurance as one of their coverages. I know I have it with State Farm and have used it at least a dozen times with multiple cars over many years. The coverage is only a few dollars (less than $10) per year and I can call any tow truck company I want, pay for it, and be very quickly reimbursed in less than 30 days by submitting a copy of the invoice to my agent. Check your insurance policy card to verify you have the coverage. With State Farm it is shown as letter H under coverages.
State Farm also has an 800 number on the insurance card I carry as proof of coverage you can call and they will dispatch a tow truck and keep you updated via text updates to your cellphone. I have also used that 800 number the last 2 times I needed towing from my house to my mechanic and/or car dealership. When you use the 800 number they will bill State Farm directly so nothing to pay the tow truck. AAA pays their tow truck companies negotiated rates which are very low(so I have been told) and many tow truck guys will only take their calls as a last resort if they are low on work at that time. |
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Posted: 7/22/2022 12:48:40 PM EDT
[#30]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Just happened in Missouri recently, pulled the story out of my history; KCTV in KC Early Tuesday morning, Susan and Roy Coleman were driving along I-49. A tire blew out near Rich Hill, Missouri, causing the car to slide into a guardrail. The tire rim was bent, so simply putting a spare on wouldn’t work. They weren’t too concerned — they’re AAA members. They called them for assistance and were told help was on the way. So they waited — and waited, and waited. You’ll recall it was hot on Tuesday. At 7:30, when their ordeal started, it was 79 degrees. But as the day went on, the temperature reached 97 with a “feels like” temperature or heat index of 106. Susan checked in with her son, who was at work hours away. He wasn’t too concerned initially, assuming help was on the way. But, he was wrong. “Leaving people on the side of the road with no services for eight-plus hours on a 100-degree day is just unacceptable,” their son, Chris Coleman, said. “And, that’s just what... that’s the real takeaway for me.” Susan called AAA repeatedly and kept hearing that they were “next in line.” “I called them like 15 times,” she aid. “‘What’s going on?’ and nobody had an answer.” 
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Posted: 7/22/2022 12:55:12 PM EDT
[#31]
Quote HistoryQuoted: I see you caught that too. 
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Posted: 7/22/2022 12:56:09 PM EDT
[#32]
Quoted: Had a friend last night call saying her truck died. Fortunately her coasted into a 7-11 I’m 900 miles away on vacation. Called a friend, and he got her the 50 mikes home on his car hauler at 10 pm. AAA couldn’t get a tow truck to get her. Stressful day for her, yes she was armed and shoots well. It appears the country is broke on many levels I know CSB On a related note can anyone recommend a heavy duty electric wrench? The one on the car hauler wasn’t up to the risk of a 1/2ton pick up Thanks Well shit, welcome to 2022, OP. How was the journey from 1991?  But in all seriousness, you must be mistaken; every year a bunch of suburban know-it-alls in GD tell us about how all you need on the side of the road is to call AAA. Usually the same doofuses that tell us about how their time is valuable so they go to Jiffy-Lube. I don't mean to sound too harsh but AAA is some serious dysfunctional boomer-tier shit. "Oh I don't need to worry about anything, someone else will bail me out" - hasn't been reliable in a generation. |
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Posted: 7/22/2022 12:56:14 PM EDT
[#33]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Most people with decent auto insurance coverage should already have Emergency Road Service insurance as one of their coverages. I know I have it with State Farm and have used it at least a dozen times with multiple cars over many years. The coverage is only a few dollars (less than $10) per year and I can call any tow truck company I want, pay for it, and be very quickly reimbursed in less than 30 days by submitting a copy of the invoice to my agent. Check your insurance policy card to verify you have the coverage. With State Farm it is shown as letter H under coverages. State Farm also has an 800 number on the insurance card I carry as proof of coverage you can call and they will dispatch a tow truck and keep you updated via text updates to your cellphone. I have also used that 800 number the last 2 times I needed towing from my house to my mechanic and/or car dealership. When you use the 800 number they will bill State Farm directly so nothing to pay the tow truck. AAA pays their tow truck companies negotiated rates which are very low(so I have been told) and many tow truck guys will only take their calls as a last resort if they are low on work at that time. The problem with that model, in my experience, are the college students. Half of them dont have two dimes to rub together. They cant pay now and get reimbursed later. Maybe if dad sent them to school with a credit card they can... Every parent should send their kid to school with a trunk full of emergency gear and a AAA card..... |
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Posted: 7/22/2022 12:58:04 PM EDT
[#34]
In another forum I participate in, there's a current long thread on this exact same thing.
My wife and I waited on the side of the road for over 3 hours back in December 2019 waiting for a AAA tow truck to tow us home when my engine catastrophically failed. Between AAA not paying enough, and the tow truck driver lying about coming by and we weren't there (hard to drive away with a busted crankshaft), I've sworn off AAA since then. |
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Posted: 7/22/2022 1:08:39 PM EDT
[#35]
I would have been ok if it were just 6.5hrs last time I needed a tow.
Last time I needed a tow was for my dad ~50 miles out of town. Double flat on my mom's car sure to rocks in the road. He called for a tow, had time to go back and clean the rocks from the road, wait an hour, call me, wait about an hour and a half for me to get there with the truck and the spare from my car didn't work (hub bore too small), waited 3 more hours, drove back to town, got him dinner, went back to my house, got a solid 8 hours of sleep, went to the gun show, still no call from the tow truck, gave him my car, he went back over the pass, got the spare wheels and tires for the car and was able to install them before we got a call for a tow. Almost 20 hours later we called and cancelled the tow. Nobody has been deployed yet. |
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Posted: 7/22/2022 1:10:55 PM EDT
[#36]
Quote HistoryQuoted: While its still the big name on the block, AAA has terms that are so unfavorable that many tow services no longer want to participate. This. We quit doing AAA tows years ago. They didn't pay shit for light duty tows. |
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Posted: 7/22/2022 1:11:20 PM EDT
[#37]
Quote HistoryQuoted: I've had them not show up at all. After 5-6 hours I got a tow with one of the other freeway buzzards and sent AAA the bill. This happened to me couple years ago. AAA lied to me on the phone when I broke down. I was stuck for 8 hours waiting for a tow truck that was supposed to be there in two hours. I had to get a local wrecker to get me back home. After hearing another story from a Co worker at work. I told AAA to fuck off. |
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Posted: 7/22/2022 1:15:07 PM EDT
[#38]
I'm sure like every other business.....they are struggling to find people, and are short handed.
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Posted: 7/22/2022 1:22:37 PM EDT
[#39]
AAA blows and has blown for more than a decade!
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Posted: 7/22/2022 1:23:49 PM EDT
[#40]
Quote HistoryQuoted: I see you caught that too. Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: I see you caught that too. Yea, I laughed at that. |
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Posted: 7/22/2022 1:25:50 PM EDT
[#41]
The starter on my work truck went out 3 weeks ago, and I had to call AAA for the first time in years. Tow truck was there in 40 minutes, and he brought me and the truck 25 miles to the shop by my house. Shop had it fixed the next day. The whole event was settled in 25 hours from the time the starter failed, and I couldn’t find a single thing to complain about.
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Posted: 7/22/2022 1:29:48 PM EDT
[#42]
Don't even get me started on AAA. First of all, they do not have a fleet. They have a list independent contractors who can accept or refuse the tow, depending on how profitable/risky they think it will be.
I waited 3 hours for my last tow. When the guy got there I had to talk him into putting my 2" leveled truck on the flatbed. I will not be renewing. Next time I will call my insurance agent first. |
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Posted: 7/22/2022 1:37:37 PM EDT
[#43]
Last time I called AAA I waited two hours for a call-back for an ETA. After that time I called Traveller's, found out I had road-side assistance on my policy, and they had a tow truck to me in 30 minutes, during which time I never heard back from AAA.
I've since switched to GEICO, and have called them twice on a lock-out and once on a tow. Service was very quick. I can only assume that AAA isn't paying well or just has their book of providers knocked down to almost nothing. |
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Posted: 7/22/2022 1:41:57 PM EDT
[#44]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Just happened in Missouri recently, pulled the story out of my history; KCTV in KC Early Tuesday morning, Susan and Roy Coleman were driving along I-49. A tire blew out near Rich Hill, Missouri, causing the car to slide into a guardrail. The tire rim was bent, so simply putting a spare on wouldn’t work. They weren’t too concerned — they’re AAA members. They called them for assistance and were told help was on the way. So they waited — and waited, and waited. You’ll recall it was hot on Tuesday. At 7:30, when their ordeal started, it was 79 degrees. But as the day went on, the temperature reached 97 with a “feels like” temperature or heat index of 106. Susan checked in with her son, who was at work hours away. He wasn’t too concerned initially, assuming help was on the way. But, he was wrong. “Leaving people on the side of the road with no services for eight-plus hours on a 100-degree day is just unacceptable,” their son, Chris Coleman, said. “And, that’s just what... that’s the real takeaway for me.” Susan called AAA repeatedly and kept hearing that they were “next in line.” “I called them like 15 times,” she aid. “‘What’s going on?’ and nobody had an answer.” "The tire rim was bent, so simply putting a spare on wouldn’t work." Did they not understand that a spare comes with it's own new rim? I don't understand what that person meant. |
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Posted: 7/22/2022 1:42:44 PM EDT
[#45]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Wrench, or winch? If the latter, you want SuperWinch or Warn. Both reliable and reasonably priced. Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: On a related note can anyone recommend a heavy duty electric wrench? The one on the car hauler wasn’t up to the risk of a 1/2ton pick up Thanks Wrench, or winch? If the latter, you want SuperWinch or Warn. Both reliable and reasonably priced. Pretty sure SuperWinch is no longer in business. |
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Posted: 7/22/2022 1:43:03 PM EDT
[#46]
Quoted: Had a friend last night call saying her truck died. Fortunately her coasted into a 7-11 I’m 900 miles away on vacation. Called a friend, and he got her the 50 mikes home on his car hauler at 10 pm. AAA couldn’t get a tow truck to get her. Stressful day for her, yes she was armed and shoots well. It appears the country is broke on many levels I know CSB On a related note can anyone recommend a heavy duty electric wrench? The one on the car hauler wasn’t up to the risk of a 1/2ton pick up Thanks anyone still using AAA is a fool. i canceled my membership after a similar experience. tire separated from rim on my daily driver on a tuesday night. no rain, snow or inclement weather. no reason to not get reasonable service. I called AAA right away then the police as im not changing a tire in the dark on a freeway at 10 pm when some drunk will plow into me and leave my family fatherles. cop shows up 75 min later. blocks traffic with his car so i can change the tire. I change the tire, drive home on the spare, shower and eat a late dinner. before turning in for bed i get a call "this is your AAA tow driver, do you still need us to com to you?" (me highly irate) "no, im sitting in bed because it is now 1:05 AM and i took care of it myself. " only reason i called AAA was because i figured there would be some damage to the vehicle from the tire coming off the rim. thankfully there wasnt any. FUCK AAA |
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Posted: 7/22/2022 1:44:19 PM EDT
[#47]
Roadside assistance universally sucks. The various companies, including AAA, will make a customer wait hours just to save $10. You are better off taking the money you spend on it and keeping it as emergency cash in your vehicle. A lot of smaller tow companies will give a cash discount. A lot of those smaller companies dropped contracts with AAA because if there are no AAA tows available within a certain distance they will get the call and get full rate. Of course AAA won't make that call until they've tried multiple contractors multiple times.
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Posted: 7/22/2022 1:55:18 PM EDT
[#48]
US Rider is awesome, especially if you have a trailer attached to your vehicle. They blow AAA out of the water.
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Posted: 7/22/2022 2:17:07 PM EDT
[#49]
If you think regular AAA is bad, try breaking down while towing a trailer.
 I now have both AAA with the RV/trailer endorsement, and Good Sam. They are cheap compared to a single tow of a boat trailer. I had a trailer hub shear while towing my boat home after the 4th of July, and because it has a t-top the wrecking companies were insisting I needed a lowboy 18 wheeler to get it home. The quotes were in the $2,500-4,000 range. I ended up saying a prayer and leaving the boat in a Walmart parking lot and driving the family the rest of the way home and coming back the next day with the parts to replace it. |
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Posted: 7/22/2022 6:30:43 PM EDT
[#50]
Sounds about right. I’ve had to call them three times; once while with a friend who had no tools, once when another friend didn’t have a spare or a doughnut, and once for a blow-out after new tires were installed and they air hammered the lug nuts on too well.
The best was three hours. The worst was 8+. I’d switch if there were another valid nationwide option. |
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