Thanks Redheads... am pleased to say that we had no serious injuries. We were badly shaken for a day or so and my forearms were burnt by the airbag but apart from that all was well.
Good advert for seat belts. I have always worn mine. I think without them we would have been injured, and bearing in mind where it happened we were probably a long way from medical assistance.
I could write a book on those happenings but what was so amazing to me was how everybody involved rallied round to help and treated us like old friends. Mayday phone operators, recovery staff, Police, and CC wardens, just brilliant.
Have to agree with you baileyman, the subject of breakdown cover was discussed here a couple of months or so ago and on the couple of occasions that we've had to use Mayday the operators have been brilliant and gone out of their way to sort out our problem. The one thing I would say is make sure you read the small print and be sure you know what level of cover your paying for. As we discovered, Green flag impose a restriction on the length of caravan they cover whereas Mayday, although still operated by Green flag but through the Caravan Club, do not. Not something you want to discover when your stuck on the hard shoulder somewhere!
------------- Sonrich
Discounted Insurance Quotes for UKCampsite.co.uk visitors! Up to 12.5% off!
In this topic there's a number of references to length of caravan being limited to 7 metres.
This is most likely body length and not shipping length, so these operators need to be challenged on this.
Yep, agree Onewheelonmywagon, we only found out about this when we had an electrical problem with a Shogun we once owned, rang Green flag, who we were with at the time, they sent out a mechanic from a local garage who fixed the problem on site. It was only when he was packing his things away that he mentioned in passing that it was just as well we didn't need recovery as we wouldn't be covered due to the size of our caravan ( Bailey Pagent Bordeaux at the time ). Rang Green flag and they told me he was correct and suggested we transfer over to Mayday, which meant joining the Caravan Club of course.
Hi, I feel sorry for all of you who have had negative experiences with breakdown recovery services. The whole experience can be very scary particularly if it’s on the motorway as was my one and only need to use the recovery mode of my membership.
They sent a recovery truck to load my 4x4 on and towed my single axle bailey Valencia (just under 24’) to the next service station (approx. 20miles) where we were met by a patrol repair who made temporary fix of my vehicle so we could continue our journey and arrange a more permanent repair when we arrived.
I am with the AA and have to say they were fantastic. I never informed them at the time of joining that we were towing a caravan from time to time. They only found out when I brokedown on the motorway last year. Never questioned me just got to us as quickly as they could and recovered us to a safe place and repaired the car. Absolutely brilliant service but that’s only my opinion…
I have towed for many years and never gave a 2nd thought to it.
Then reading the termss i found out that anything that fails on the caravan wont be covered.
So if your bearing gave out on the way to your destination, They would arrange transport for you but you would need to pay for it yourself. And they said it would be classed as commercial so quite costly.
With the correct cover they will get it sorted for you. Also if the car broken down on the way to your holiday and couldnt be fixed promptly they will take you there and then bring you home again afterwards.
We have had a few problems on the road over the years.1 crash with car written off but no caravan.we have had flat battery on our drive. puncture on car at campsite and puncture on caravan on motorway. Green flag Mayday were brilliant on each occasion and we would never consider using anyone else. Can't remember the exact price but for not much more than £100 we get their top cover for both me and wife in any car we happen to be travelling in. Bargain!!!
------------- Redshoot. May 2014
Pembrey cc. May 2014
Longleat cc. June 2014
Fursdon farm Liskeard. July 2014
Haycraft cc. Aug 2014
Quote: Originally posted by the black fox on 27/4/2014
went through all this crap last year and cancelled our holiday as i found out to late .
RAC who i had full home recovery with the top one ,will not even come out to a caravan puncture ,AVOID THEM LIKE THE PLAGUE .
the AA is the same
there are various cheap options out there like auto-national rescue etc but i decided to opt for normal car recovery/relay with green flag and this will get you your car and caravan home .yes you can join one of the clubs and get extra cover etc i know but its a unneeded expense imho .all i want is to get car and van and ourselves home .
Do you travel far with the caravan though? If your journey was 300 miles or so and your 20/30 miles from your destination which is a 2 week holiday would you really want to be taken back home?
Proper cover will take you to the campsite and if the car cannot be fixed then they will take you home after your holiday.
Why should breakdown cover come out for a puncture on the caravan?When you take out the policy it is for the motor vehicle. Ok you might have to advise them that you tow but that is only to prevent issues with recovery so they can send the correct type of recovery vehicle. If you want breakdown cover for the caravan it must be purchased separately.
A good example is the road traffic accident, most people will call AA RAC ect. You have not broken down and the issue is the responsibility of your insurers but dependant on your policy breakdown will turn out but only on very rare occasions. They usually refer you to your insurance.