robgendreau
Explorer
Since this is where we discuss what happens when we break down, I thought it might be the appropriate place to post some info I found regarding emergency roadside assistance, which for most of us is towing.
I was a member of the Northern California/Utah AAA. And I have a Sportsmobile, an E250 weighing in at about it's GVWR of 8700 lbs. With a fridge (turns out to AAA that's important).
I had a friend who blew his tranny between Hawthorne and Mammoth Lakes, so we had to get a tow. We learned a lot.
First he tried State Farm, which offers towing as part of his RV insurance (duallie with fifth wheel). Turns out they contract with an outfit in Miami, as do many of the companies offering towing. Big pain; they'd tow him to the nearest repair shop. In Mammoth. But a call to the repair shops nearby revealed they had never worked on his tranny, and basically it seemed rather beyond their capabilities. Tough luck, in sum, said the towing company. My friend said he wouldn't even require them to tow the trailer, and that they should tow him about 100 miles to the nearest tranny shop in Gardnerville. Nope.
We then turned to AAA. A friend with us had a card, and they said since it was RV+ coverage they'd tow 100 miles anywhere he wanted. Success! Turns out that the service you pay for with AAA runs with the cardholder, not the card, unlike some towing benefits that exist as part of your vehicle insurance. AAA's term explicitly INCLUDE duallies, so the guy came, they got it up the ramp, and good to go. The RV+ also covers motorcycles and trailers.
So we got to thinking, and a group of us began comparing our coverages. I called, and was told my camper van WAS NOT covered by my AAA Premiere membership. Well, I asked, how 'bout adding RV+? No dice said NorCal AAA, we only offer that in Utah. ?? I explained that I knew other NorCal AAAers who had their vans towed. So they checked; they asked if it had a fridge (yes, but NOT propane). I gave them the weight; the AAA person said it was over one ton (I guess she confused cargo capacity and gross weight). Verdict? no tow. I went around and around with others at NorCal via email and phone (they take forever getting back to you) and was variously told it wasn't an RV but not eligible, or was an RV and therefore wasn't eligible. Never could find anything in writing that specified whether it was or wasn't covered. The website said they offer $300 in reimbursement to NorCal AAAers for RV towing (that doesn't get you far, BTW), but was told my van maybe now isn't an RV. Sigh. Given this lack of assurance, I bailed on them.
But it turns out each AAA branch has it's own policies. And you can join other AAAs. So I joined SoCal AAA (I got the name of an agent down there, Rob Sara, and he contacted me immediately and gave me more specific info in one phone call than all the NorCal AAA droids I talked to in two weeks; contact info below). I got the RV+ coverage for the van and it cost less than what I was paying in NorCal. The downside is that when you call a dispatcher, you get the SoCal person, and it will likely take them more time to find a tow if I break down in NorCal. But for us, BFD: we're probably most gonna need this outside our home area anyway. Some language in their terms of service seems to say they'd only reimburse you for tows outside your home area, but he said that's not what SoCal AAA does anymore.
We also compared this with another member's Good Sam coverage. They run their coverage with vehicles. So even if you aren't with your ride, the relative who is can use the coverage. Different than AAA. They tow with their best package to a facility that can fix your rig, if it's an RV. The irony here is that the dude with this coverage had a Class A bus; he'd get towed farther than any of us without extra charge, and by a specialized wrecker, because in the boonies there aren't that many shops that can even get one of those beasts on a rack. Life ain't fair. I was informed by a guy who worked in the industry that Good Sam contracts through Miami as well, and it can take them longer than AAA to dispatch a tow. But their coverage extends to basically all the vehicles you own, and unlike my NorCal AAA they were very transparent about their terms.
We delved a bit deeper into the terms. There are sometimes some interesting exclusions, like "forest roads" or snowbanks with some companies. Or modified vehicles (eg your rig is too tall to carry on the flatbed sent to rescue it). Some, like SoCal AAA, explicitly mention extrication/winching; they will pull you out if you're one a normal road. Some limit that service to the use of only a certain number of wreckers.
A point to remember is that the person who shows up with the tow vehicle has some say; one Sportsmobiler was refused because he was at the height/weight limit of the tow vehicle. But the guys who show also wanna make some money from the tow, so they may be much more flexible than the terms of your policy might suggest. But as in my case with NorCal AAA, I don't wanna run that risk.
So I'd recommend you take a look at your ERS terms of service and maybe verify that you're gonna get what you paid for if an emergency happens. And compare the coverages; some things like trip insurance and other benefits (pet transport!) are now covered with ERS as well.
If you're interested in AAA, as I said the fellow in SoCal I dealt with was very helpful:
Rob Sara
Sara.Rob@aaa-calif.com
714-734-4476
Good luck, and hope you never need it.
I was a member of the Northern California/Utah AAA. And I have a Sportsmobile, an E250 weighing in at about it's GVWR of 8700 lbs. With a fridge (turns out to AAA that's important).
I had a friend who blew his tranny between Hawthorne and Mammoth Lakes, so we had to get a tow. We learned a lot.
First he tried State Farm, which offers towing as part of his RV insurance (duallie with fifth wheel). Turns out they contract with an outfit in Miami, as do many of the companies offering towing. Big pain; they'd tow him to the nearest repair shop. In Mammoth. But a call to the repair shops nearby revealed they had never worked on his tranny, and basically it seemed rather beyond their capabilities. Tough luck, in sum, said the towing company. My friend said he wouldn't even require them to tow the trailer, and that they should tow him about 100 miles to the nearest tranny shop in Gardnerville. Nope.
We then turned to AAA. A friend with us had a card, and they said since it was RV+ coverage they'd tow 100 miles anywhere he wanted. Success! Turns out that the service you pay for with AAA runs with the cardholder, not the card, unlike some towing benefits that exist as part of your vehicle insurance. AAA's term explicitly INCLUDE duallies, so the guy came, they got it up the ramp, and good to go. The RV+ also covers motorcycles and trailers.
So we got to thinking, and a group of us began comparing our coverages. I called, and was told my camper van WAS NOT covered by my AAA Premiere membership. Well, I asked, how 'bout adding RV+? No dice said NorCal AAA, we only offer that in Utah. ?? I explained that I knew other NorCal AAAers who had their vans towed. So they checked; they asked if it had a fridge (yes, but NOT propane). I gave them the weight; the AAA person said it was over one ton (I guess she confused cargo capacity and gross weight). Verdict? no tow. I went around and around with others at NorCal via email and phone (they take forever getting back to you) and was variously told it wasn't an RV but not eligible, or was an RV and therefore wasn't eligible. Never could find anything in writing that specified whether it was or wasn't covered. The website said they offer $300 in reimbursement to NorCal AAAers for RV towing (that doesn't get you far, BTW), but was told my van maybe now isn't an RV. Sigh. Given this lack of assurance, I bailed on them.
But it turns out each AAA branch has it's own policies. And you can join other AAAs. So I joined SoCal AAA (I got the name of an agent down there, Rob Sara, and he contacted me immediately and gave me more specific info in one phone call than all the NorCal AAA droids I talked to in two weeks; contact info below). I got the RV+ coverage for the van and it cost less than what I was paying in NorCal. The downside is that when you call a dispatcher, you get the SoCal person, and it will likely take them more time to find a tow if I break down in NorCal. But for us, BFD: we're probably most gonna need this outside our home area anyway. Some language in their terms of service seems to say they'd only reimburse you for tows outside your home area, but he said that's not what SoCal AAA does anymore.
We also compared this with another member's Good Sam coverage. They run their coverage with vehicles. So even if you aren't with your ride, the relative who is can use the coverage. Different than AAA. They tow with their best package to a facility that can fix your rig, if it's an RV. The irony here is that the dude with this coverage had a Class A bus; he'd get towed farther than any of us without extra charge, and by a specialized wrecker, because in the boonies there aren't that many shops that can even get one of those beasts on a rack. Life ain't fair. I was informed by a guy who worked in the industry that Good Sam contracts through Miami as well, and it can take them longer than AAA to dispatch a tow. But their coverage extends to basically all the vehicles you own, and unlike my NorCal AAA they were very transparent about their terms.
We delved a bit deeper into the terms. There are sometimes some interesting exclusions, like "forest roads" or snowbanks with some companies. Or modified vehicles (eg your rig is too tall to carry on the flatbed sent to rescue it). Some, like SoCal AAA, explicitly mention extrication/winching; they will pull you out if you're one a normal road. Some limit that service to the use of only a certain number of wreckers.
A point to remember is that the person who shows up with the tow vehicle has some say; one Sportsmobiler was refused because he was at the height/weight limit of the tow vehicle. But the guys who show also wanna make some money from the tow, so they may be much more flexible than the terms of your policy might suggest. But as in my case with NorCal AAA, I don't wanna run that risk.
So I'd recommend you take a look at your ERS terms of service and maybe verify that you're gonna get what you paid for if an emergency happens. And compare the coverages; some things like trip insurance and other benefits (pet transport!) are now covered with ERS as well.
If you're interested in AAA, as I said the fellow in SoCal I dealt with was very helpful:
Rob Sara
Sara.Rob@aaa-calif.com
714-734-4476
Good luck, and hope you never need it.