I joined Autoaid about 4 years ago when the cover for my girlfriend and I was attractively priced at around £40, there was 12.5% cashback which strangely never did materialise and was eventually declined but good cover for our old cars(3) and my motorbike.
Autoaid got a good client base and then sold out a few years ago. Cashback or at least the supposed opportunity disappeared and rates increased considerably. This years renewal is through at £75.
I have not claimed for several years so thought I would just have a look at the AA. Breakdown cover for vehicles of any age including motorbikes for both of us at £99 with topcashback of £46. Ok this is introductory and the cashback could in theory disappear where the sun don’t shine but looks like £53 versus £75 to me.
Any comment on this before I hit the button with the AA ; perhaps I have missed something?
So Autoaid have stuck the price up yet again. Bad news as I was going to to rejoin them sometime this year, never actually got around to it. It wasn’t bad @£60 I think last time I looked, covering the driver not the car including spouse if needed. With 2 cars ideal for me.
Pays to disbelieve what you read nowdays Mick.
I went through as a new customer with three cars, personal cover with partner and it was £74.99 or £7.50 a month. As spouse covered free I guess this is for more than one vehicle but not clear and another reason to leave this company.
As for cover, can’t see much difference with the AA, except I would expect the AA to be a better service, if needed, than Autoaid. As I hope never to use the service, this is just my feeling on the matter not back up by experience, well with Autoaid anyway. I have used the AA a couple of times 10+ years ago.
Anyway, going to go with the AA now.
Nope it comes out at £59.99 for me each time I input details of…
Myself only as driver with 2 cars for personal cover.
Myself and my spouse although she doesn’t even have a license (input just for test purposes of course) 3 cars this time but the MX-5 as my main car not the daily driver.
So it’s either postcode related or I suspect you may have a car of the 3 that’s mentioned over 15 years old and you’ve declared it.
Maybe, as perhaps rural areas like the South Hams are loaded because harder to get to and service. It was a new application and no specific vehicle details given.
Anyway taken a walk on the wild side and with AA from 15th. A policy that does not differentiate for £53 after cashback but full undiscounted price more like £127.
We have two cars, my 2010 MX5 is the oldest. I have two motorcycles, one of which is 42 years old. I renewed with Autoaid in July or August, it was £60. I paid a little extra (£10 I think) for key insurance, because it sounded like a good deal as it covered our house keys too.
I have used Autoaid’s recovery service twice. Once for my car (two burst tyres from one pothole) and once for a bike (a wiring fault) and for service Autoaid left the AA (we were members for 20+ years) for dead.
There within an hour with proper recovery vehicles (especially the amazing van they sent for my bike - a far cry from strapping it to a trailer) and, with my car recovery, phoned up shortly after I arrived home to ask whether or not I was happy with the service. The last time I called the AA out I waited well over three hours to be recovered. In fairness, when I complained they gave us three months free cover to compensate but I’d have gladly forsaken that not to have sat in my non-running car in the dark on a cold wet rainy night waiting for them to come.
I’ve had amazing, caring, unquestionably top quality service from Autoaid. If they are more expensive than the AA then in my experience it is fully justified. Again, based my personal experience, I cannot see why the AA should be used as a yardstick to judge other recovery services.
The AA are the yardstick for breakdown recovery whether you like it or not.
I think it was 2018 when I first joined Autoaid. I joined them because they were cheap and they covered my old cars and motorbike as well as offering a joint policy. I have to say that setting up the joint policy was difficult as living together not married and I pay the bills.
Autoaid have been taken over recently and it would interest me to hear how their recovery service has worked since the takeover. If you are suggesting that Autoaid recovery is a superior service to the AA generally, I would suggest this is not correct.
It is what is is for me, similar cover for me and partner with none of the Autoaid hassle setting up, no extra charges and at the end of the day £53 for a service that I hope not to use but £74.99 as a renewing or new customer with Autoaid.
I would also add on a personal note that I have always found AA recovery men excellent. I know a few; they are happy in their jobs, typically moving on from experienced mechanic positions. I think the reason for this is that people are always pleased to see an AA man who effectively saves them for nothing whereas mechanics are typically at the wrong end of a £500 service charge.
[quote=“rhino666, post:12, topic:128175, full:true”]
If you are suggesting that Autoaid recovery is a superior service to the AA generally, I would suggest this is not correct. [/quote]
I wasn’t suggesting anything, what I did say was that based on my experience on both the occasions I called them out, Autoaid’s was demonstrably a better service service, in terms of being prompt and the fully kitted out motorcycle recovery van that was far superior to ratchet straps on a trailer.
I don’t recall any complications setting up the service, but I guess that is perhaps because my circumstances are just straightforward.
I didn’t mention the AA recovery men either, but I have to say that I agree with you, because they always were top-notch. It was one of them who suggested I complained about being left stuck on a dark road for more than three hours.
I have no idea what Autoaid’s current service is like, and I very much hope I never have to find out!
As I say, my comments were and still are based on my personal experiences of needing and using the services of both the AA and Autoaid.
The basis for your posts is personal experience whereas the basis of my post is to gauge general experience and make general conclusions. That is what is important here and our personal experiences are only pertinent to us aren’t they? You dismiss mine and quite frankly I am largely dismissing yours:-)
Whilst personal experience, yours and mine, is an indicator of the general experience, it is not that useful in this instance for reasons you have pointed out. As you suggest my situation in some ways more complicated but only because Autoaid have made it so. You have more difficult vehicles and have had breakdown issues that I have not had but none of it relevant it seems as we are discussing Autoaid pricing and service post takeover.
Anyway boring myself now. I have signed up very easily despite my apparently complicated situation, well with Autoaid anyway, to the AA and made savings. It would seem that given the steep rise in pricing at Autoaid and perhaps a need for some clarity as to the comparable standard of service, post takeover with the AA, others could save money too. £53 is cheaper that £75 and still cheaper than £60 although not sure exactly what dictates why I pay £75 and others £60. The process of getting £127 cover for £53 is quite simple. Apply through Topcashback; AA offer a new customer discount, so down to £99 and there is £46 cashback. Given your circumstances Brian it would be interesting to know what you have to pay Autoaid at renewal. My vehicles were all old last year and I paid £60, so I am thinking postcode.
Just called Autoaid to clear this £60 v £75 up and it is to do with age of vehicles, so anything over 15 years old covered will incur the extra. Just trying to work out how they were able to work out the age of my vehicles on a new application with no specific details given. Anyway Brian, there you go, it will be £74.99 for your renewal.
I can’t see that I did dismiss your experiences, and it matters not one jot to me if you dismiss mine. I was talking about my experiences of the service provided by Autoaid and quoted specific cases of it. The experiences you are talking about are merely about the price.
I will be happy to let you know what my renewal is, I genuinely will try to remember. It will also be interesting to hear what your AA renewal premium will be next time, presumably it’ll then be without your new customer discount.
Anyway, I have given my experiences, maybe they might just be of interest to someone and also maybe not! So I will have nothing more to add - other than that I hope neither of us need our respective cover!
I’ve had some rather epic service from the AA over the last 25 years, Needed them a few times. Did RAC for a few years until they effectively abandoned me in Dublin. Bad experience with Greenflag.
I’ve been thinking about taking out a separate breakdown cover from the one I get with my insurance.
iv decided to go with the AA, the reason for this is mostly based on the fact that the AA still has their own vans driving about whereas I haven’t seen a RAC or green flag vehicle in years.
there is also the fact that the RAC left a friend of mine sitting for 8 hours in a “puddle” that was 3 feet deep before they finally sent someone out to rescue him!
I’ve been using Autoaid for a number of years now and had excellent service from them.
I also have a Nationwide Flex current account which has included excellent European holiday insurance. This insurance cover is now being withdrawn.
I’m currently looking at a Coop Bank Everyday Extra account. The cost of this is £15 per month so £180 per year. This account bundles the following.
Worldwide travel insurance provided by AXA Travel Insurance
UK & European breakdown cover provided by RAC
Mobile phone insurance provided by Lifestyle Services Group.
If you have a joint account, you’ll both be covered independently for the same price.
As we are both now in our 60s the fact that the travel insurance coverage runs until 80th birthday is a big plus. No worries of increasing premiums at 65 or 70.
Taking into account what I’m currently paying Autoaid and what I would have to pay for similar cover on an annual travel policy it looks very good value. No minimum monthly pay in and no direct debits needed. I’ll just open the account and pay in £180 each year to cover the fees.
I’m with the aa. Over the years I have called them out many times, never had an issue. When I was a child I remember being recovered with my parents and siblings 8 people in total from Cornwall to Lincolnshire.
Now I’m the parent I have me the gf and daughter covered on my policy, daughter is 18 so her car is a bit of a banger, we have an aa warranty on it. So far they replaced a front spring, guy was with us quickly, removed it on the drive and came back with a new one and fitted it. They also replaced a starter motor. I had to pay 35 each time but hey small price to pay.
Every year they put the price up, every year I phone up have a moan and get a discount. Which I find is the same with every insurance policy and company I deal with.
OK I could probably get it cheaper else where, but they have never let me down, so I’ll pay a bit extra for the peace of mind
