Car insurance
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COMPARE CAR BREAKDOWN COVER POLICIES
Breakdown cover helps you get back on the road if you can’t get your vehicle up and running.
You can purchase it for cars, motorbikes or vans, and it’s typically not included in your motor insurance policy.
Assistance will be sent if your vehicle breaks down and you’re unable to continue your journey. It will either be fixed by the side of the road or towed to a garage for repairs.
Some policies will even visit you at home to get your vehicle started.
You can choose between:
This covers you rather than the vehicle, whether you’re the driver or a passenger. It tends to be more expensive than vehicle breakdown cover and you can include more than one person from your household on your policy.
This covers one specific vehicle, and it doesn’t matter who is driving when it breaks down (provided they’re insured to do so). You may be able to include multiple vehicles registered to the same address under one policy
There are a few different levels to choose from, so it’s important to understand how they differ so you can pick the right option for you:
This could be the right choice for those who rarely travel far from home. It provides assistance if you break down at your house or within a certain distance from it – usually up to a mile, but it will differ between providers
More about home start breakdown cover
If you break down by the side of the road, a mechanic will be sent to help. If they’re unable to repair your vehicle, you’ll likely be towed to a local garage
More about roadside assistance cover
You’ll receive roadside assistance and if it can’t be fixed, you’ll be towed to any location you choose in the UK. If you tend to work away from home a lot or travel around the country, you may want to consider this type of cover
This can help you reach your destination, even if you break down. Your policy may provide overnight accommodation, public transport tickets, or even a courtesy vehicle
If you’re travelling through Europe, your plans won’t be scuppered if your vehicle breaks down while you’re away. You may want to check whether this can be added as an optional extra and which countries it covers
It’s possible to get roadside assistance by purchasing emergency cover that starts immediately. But it can be an expensive option as you’ll be expected to pay an emergency call-out fee, the cost of repairs, and the policy premium. You’ll need to do this by calling rather than purchasing online and not all breakdown providers offer this type of policy.
Alternatively, you may be able to find a local garage that can assist, but again you’ll be charged a call-out fee and it will depend on where you breakdown.
As a last resort, you could contact National Highways (if you’ve broken down in England) to recover your vehicle, but this will be pricey.
Check whether you already have breakdown cover in place, because it might have been included as a perk when you opened your bank account or took out a car insurance policy.
Try these tips to save on your breakdown cover:
One of the best ways to find cheaper breakdown cover is to shop around and compare policies from different providers. It takes a couple of minutes and can save you money
Leaving your policy to auto-renew annually could mean you’re paying far more than you need to. Make sure you shop around before your renewal date to see if you can get the cover you need at a cheaper price
It may not be necessary to have a comprehensive policy if your vehicle is relatively new and hasn’t had any issues. Take a look at cheaper, more basic levels of cover, and consider upgrading when the vehicle is older
It may be cheaper to get a joint policy with your partner, rather than two separate policies
It’s generally cheaper to purchase a policy that covers your vehicle, rather than the driver
It works similar to a car breakdown policy in that you can choose between different levels of cover. If you have a job that requires you to drive multiple vans, you may want to think about personal cover.
Have your motorbike fixed roadside or towed to the nearest local garage. You can even get European breakdown cover for your next trip.
It’s likely you’ll need specialist cover as most standard breakdown policies won’t include vehicles with living accommodation or that are over a certain weight.
It’s possible to get a breakdown policy for a fleet of vehicles, including cars, taxis, delivery vans, and minibuses. If you only have one vehicle that you use for your business, you can just get standard breakdown cover.
It’s possible to add optional extras to your breakdown cover for an additional fee. This could include:
Depending on the provider, this could cover replacing your car and home keys if they’re lost, broken, or stolen. It may even pay out for new locks and the use of a hire car
Pays for replacement tyres if yours have been punctured and they can’t be repaired. There will be a cap on the number of new tyres you can get per policy term
Get a new battery if yours breaks down and can’t be recharged
Get assistance if your vehicle needs repairs while you’re travelling around Europe
Add two or more cars to the same breakdown policy rather than taking out individual ones. Usually, they’ll be required to be registered to the same address
Towing a caravan or a trailer may require you to have an added level of cover
If you’ve accidentally put the wrong fuel in your vehicle, a mechanic can flush out the fuel and replace it so you can get on your way
It’s possible for breakdown cover to be included as an optional extra on your car insurance policy, but there’s likely to be an extra cost and it may not provide everything you need.
It’s always best to check what you get for your money and compare it against standalone breakdown cover to see if it’s worth it.
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Page last reviewed: 10 August 2023
Page reviewed by Holly Thomas