European Breakdown for Motorhome
Our new Motorhome comes with a European warranty for the base vehicle (Peugeot) which includes breakdown cover. I am undecided as to whether I also need Red Pennant or similar, particularly in France where there should be a lot of Peugeot garages. Any thoughts?
Comments
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I would read the T&C's of that service carefully as it might only offer roadside assistance or recovery to the nearest garage. What if you need recovery back to the UK for either mechanical or medical reasons will it cover that?
David
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Medical would be a separate cover anyway and mechanical problems can be fixed locally, I guess the only problem would be recovery to UK after an accident.
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Recovery to a repair shop after an accident is down to your annual motor insurance. Breakdown insurance is for breakdowns.
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Medical would be a separate cover anyway and mechanical problems can be fixed locally, I guess the only problem would be recovery to UK after an accident.
or a puncture which you cannot deal with yourself. Breakdown under a guarantee doesn't usually cover anything other than mechanical failure.
peedee
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When we bought a new Peugeot van eight year ago I noticed that the Peugeot cover did not include assistance regarding tyres/punctures. We were not happy about the possibility of having to change a wheel ourselves (getting the spare from under the vehicle
would be difficult) so we kept with Green Flag for UK breakdown cover and we always take out European breakdown cover through the Camping and Caravanning Club (same level of cover and reputation as Red Pennant but at a lower cost). We feel that the cost is
worth it to know that we are covered for every eventuality.The choice is yours but I do recommend that you check exactly what is coveed by the Peugeot package.
I recommend you
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Personally I would not rely on a manufacturers package. I had a problem with a warranty claim on my vehicle in its early life and the manufacturers did not play with a straight bat (although the converter/retailer was superb). Consequently the danger is
that manufacturer would try to slip through any gaps in the warranty and in my case quoted and sought to rely on exclusions which were non existent but were said to be "policy". There are various options to package European Rescue and recovery cover with
your annual insurance or purchase separately. What you buy may also depend on what medical cover you have/need for travelling and how many days you want to travel in Europe.Red Pennant is relatively expensive. I have no experience of using them except once in 2009 when they totally failed to address the problem a smashed mirror following a relatively minor hit and run on the Czech motorway . However for fairness and balance
I should say that they subsequently explained the communicational and logistic reasons for non attendance. On the other hand for my trips last year I used Red Pennant because they offered (for me at the time) the best combination of value and content in the
package. As always the key is to look very carefully at what the various options are and look carefully at what you are getting. Obtain policy documents and actually
read them. With a bit of effort you can understand in detail what is and is not covered.Summary
Think carefully about what you need (medical, breakdown, recovery, annual, trip by trip, how many days in total )
Obtain various quotes RP, Comfort, Safeguard standalone medical standalone recovery)
Analyse quotes carefully looking at detail.
Make a decision based on best offering cost being a factor but sufficiency of cover being the most important.
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Medical would be a separate cover anyway and mechanical problems can be fixed locally, I guess the only problem would be recovery to UK after an accident.
Some breakdown policies also cover for the eventuality that a sole driver cannot drive for medical reasons e.g. the following is an extract from the Brittania Rescue UK & European Breakdown policy:
Section G5 – Relief Driver
If the only available driver cannot continue a journey because of illness or injury, we will:
• Provide a qualified driver to drive your vehicle and up to 7 passengers back to your home address in the UK; or
• Pay any extra costs to transport your vehicle, up to 7 passengers and luggage back to the UK as long as these costs are not higher than the market value of your vehicle.0 -
My Fiat Ducato Camper Assist for a new Swift covered everything you would expect or need for all areas for the first 3 years so I only needed to get a separate policy this year and did so via my insurers, Comfort, which was also very good value and
covered everything too. Regards, Roy0 -
Thanks for all the comments above. I am clear on what to look for in terms of breakdown cover but confused about what happens in the event of an accident and the vehicle cannot be driven? Presumably European Breakdown does not include recovery after an accident,
or does it?0 -
Thanks Val. I just checked RP booklet and it does cover accidents as well as breakdown. Should have checked before blogging! I also need to check insurance policy.
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Val is correct, your motor insurance will cover you for repatriation of the vehicle after an accident but do remember you have to get back too so depending on the cover the insurer gives additional cover might still be wise.
There is also the point that the manufacturers cover might leave you short in the event of a serious mechanical failure which cannot be fixed within your time scale and you either have to leave it there uintil it is fixed and go out to collect it later
or bring it back to be fixed at home.You may need to check to see what cover you have.A lot depends on where you are going, if it is near the port then may be the cost is bearable, but if it was the South of France then the whole thing gets very expensive.
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I have just checked my standard car insurance and, indeed, it covers getting occupants back home and the vehicle to a suitable repairer. This extends to the main European countries. It also covers overnight accommodation if needed. I am assuming that motorhome
insurance is much the same and given that there is a one year free European breakdown cover and that we have separate multi trip medical insurance I can see little point in taking out RP. In fact, I suspect that after the first year's warranrty I can probably
get very competitive breakdown insurance through the main insurer.Now that we are retired, time is not so important and we can afford to hang around a few days getting things fixed.
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How are you covered if one of you have an accident or are taken seriously ill when you might want to be together it being repatriated to the UK and travel in the motorhome was not possible. How would the motohome get back to the UK under your arrangements?
David
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Fair point. I would leave it somewhere and go back and collect when able. The problem is that you are paying a lot for insurancing an event with a small probablility. The other features of the insurance are covered elsewhere and already paid for, of which
the major risk is repatriation of the vehicle which can cost several thousand pounds.In general our view on insurance is that we cover for major problems only. For example, we have medical insurance but with £500 excess because it is there to cover for serious illnesses not routine consultations. We never insure domestic appliances - just
pay to have them fixed or replace. It all depends on your view of risk.0 -
A point to watch is which drivers are permitted drivers on your policy. This may become important in the context of repatriation when the (main) driver is ill. My wife does not drive my van but used to be on the policy so that in an emergency she had the
potential to drive. In 2103 I was suddenly ill 1850 mile from home. In the event I managed to drive home but if I had not been able to the insurers would NOT have repatriated the vehicle because so as far as they were concerned a driver was available. Realistically
she could not have made the return journey on her own due to inexperience of European driving. So now she is not on the policy0 -
A point to watch is which drivers are permitted drivers on your policy. This may become important in the context of repatriation when the (main) driver is ill. My wife does not drive my van but used to be on the policy so that in an emergency she had the
potential to drive. In 2103 I was suddenly ill 1850 mile from home. In the event I managed to drive home but if I had not been able to the insurers would NOT have repatriated the vehicle because so as far as they were concerned a driver was available. Realistically
she could not have made the return journey on her own due to inexperience of European driving. So now she is not on the policyThis is a very good point. I am in a similar position where Margaret would not feel comfortable to drive the motorhome. She is insured to drive it as insurance companies don't like single driver policies. Because I was concerned she would be put in an untenable
position I contacted Red Pennant and they assured me that she would not be put in that position. Whether that would be the same for other breakdown insurances I don't know.David
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I don't know how other European breakdwon cover works, but RP cover you from home - home, last year this proved to be very good for us as we broke down on the way to the ferry. We didn't make the ferry, in fact we had to wait out the weekend until the garages
opened on the Monday, the van it turned out needed a computer update, but it did go into limp mode and couldn't be driven. How would other European brake down cover deal with this kind of breakdown. RP dealt with everything, including booking us another much
more expensive ferry crossing, other than the RP policy cost we had no other expense.0 -
I haven't read the RP cover in detail for a while but i will next time I use it although the scenario I described in academic with only one driver on the policy. . It is however clear (because I had a specific conversation with the underwriters) that Comfort
(Aviva) will not provide a driver is one is "available" i.e. on the policy. It is likely that other mainstream insurers will have similar policy terms but as always read your policy thoroughly.0 -
I don't know how other European breakdwon cover works, but RP cover you from home - home, last year this proved to be very good for us as we broke down on the way to the ferry. We didn't make the ferry, in fact we had to wait out the weekend until the garages opened on the Monday, the van it turned out needed a computer update, but it did go into limp mode and couldn't be driven. How would other European brake down cover deal with this kind of breakdown. RP dealt with everything, including booking us another much more expensive ferry crossing, other than the RP policy cost we had no other expense.
We broke down at Dover dockside whilst waiting to board and the AA came out under our Saga European Breakdown cover. The ferry company were very sympathetic and said we could just rebook at no extra charge. Due to the confusion there was a misunderstanding and we turned up on the wrong day. No problem; we just drove on.
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I don't know how other European breakdwon cover works, but RP cover you from home - home, last year this proved to be very good for us as we broke down on the way to the ferry. We didn't make the ferry, in fact we had to wait out the weekend until the garages
opened on the Monday, the van it turned out needed a computer update, but it did go into limp mode and couldn't be driven. How would other European brake down cover deal with this kind of breakdown. RP dealt with everything, including booking us another much
more expensive ferry crossing, other than the RP policy cost we had no other expense.We broke down at Dover dockside whilst waiting to board and the AA came out under our Saga European Breakdown cover. The ferry company were very sympathetic and said we could just rebook at no extra charge. Due to the confusion there was a misunderstanding
and we turned up on the wrong day. No problem; we just drove on.That's good to know Hitch, I would think Dover wouldn't be a problem getting another ferry however Hull and Portsmouth/Santander could mean a long wait. It was very annoying that it happened on a Friday afternoon and no garage would look at until Monday
(we were on a Sat night ferry) what was even more annoying it was just a computer software update required
an expensive delay
for a 20 minute update.0 -
This thread and the one in Overseas sites and Touring about ADAC’s cover came at the right time for me. My Mayday breakdown policy was up for renewal and I have also to make a decision about cover for my next trip on the Continent, probably to France and Spain. I have always used Mayday and Red Pennant but the later is turning out very expensive, especially as I have to pay extra to cover the size of my motorhome. I have therefore taken a few days to seriously look at some of the alternatives in detail in conjunction with what my vehicle insurance offers which is not very much especially the European Continental cover.
I have some mandatory requirements. I have no spare wheel and my wife cannot drive my motorhome so cover for lack of a spare must be clearly spelt out and a relief driver must be available in the event of me being unable to drive. Repatriation costs of the vehicle and ourselves must also be included in the event of a serious breakdown or an accident and preferably this should also include animals although the last point can be circumnavigated if a hire car is an option. My NFU vehicle insurance offers none of the above for continental Europe and of course it does not cover breakdown in any country.
I eventually ruled out ADAC as suitable to provide any form of cover. Mainly because of lack of confidence in the policy due to the difficulty of fully understanding the T&C. These and the business are conducted in German and are governed by German law for which I have no knowledge. I also could not find anything about the cover for the lack of a spare wheel.
I have had a long hard look at the C&CC.s Arrival breakdown policy for the UK provided by the RAC, all 52 pages of it. What first attracted me to this was I noticed there were a number of options you can insure against. The one of immediate interest is that available for travel on the continent of Europe for the additional cost of £89p.a. You can also insure for the cost of replacement tyres and the T&Cs met all my mandatory requirements. These include the repatriation of both vehicle and ourselves in the event of serious breakdown or an accident, therefore the lack of the latter in my vehicle insurance is covered. There is no limit on vehicle size. The cost of Arrival, £90 for UK single personal coverage and lack of a spare wheel is clearly covered. Further, for £89 extra I can obtain 99 percent of the cover I require for continental Europe.
I have taken out UK Arrival cover in preference to Mayday and will probably add on continental European cover when required and carry the risks of lack of cover for animal repatriation. RP charge extra for this anyway. I already have world wide medical insurance for up to 45 days in anyone trip. At the end of the day this will result in a 50 percent saving in travel insurance costs for no to very little risk.
peedee
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Does it provide 'take you to your destination and subsequentially home' like Mayday? Your requirements are probably slightly different to caravanners as everything is in one unit.
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Sorry CY I had to dash off otherwise I would have provided a link to the T&Cs which are >here< Have a look at the summary of cover on page 5 onwards. Also >here< You don't have to be a C&CC member to read them but I assume you have to be a member to take out the insurance.
Another thing that sparked my interest was if ADAC can provide the cover they do for under £100 how come other organisations can't! The cost of "Arrival" with Euopean breakdown is not much more than that of ADAC but at least I can be more confident in that I have understood the T&Cs and you are dealing with a UK organisation.
peedee
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For those people who, like us, travel with a dog, and worry that some breakdown policies do not include pet repatration, you can get a separate policy for this.
For our forthcoming trip to France I have paid £19 for a policy with
Equine & Livestock which covers vets fees, third party liability ie if the dog escapes and causes an accident, quarantine costs of there is an issue with the Pet passport and reptriation of the dog in the event of an accident or other event which means
you can't bring him home yourself. They do one trip or annual policies. Well worth it for peace of mind in my view0 -
Is this yet another case of the CC charging top dollar for a similar offering that can be obtained elsewhere? Perhaps they see themselves as the Waitrose of the leisure market. Given the enthusiasm expressed for Aldi elsewhere on this forum, one wonders
at the loyalty to Red Pennant or is the fear of being stuck abroad?0
