I've just been offered, as part of my bank account upgrade, free membership with Green Flag including HomeCall. I'm currently a member of the AA and have been now for 6 years, paying £90 per annum for membership including Roadside and Relay and, even though I've only used them once, I'm more than happy with the service they provide- they got to me in 20 minutes when my head gasket failed on the M5.
Before deciding whether to stay with the AA or switch to Green Flag to save myself £90 per year, I would like to hear some people's experiences of Green Flag, both good and bad before making the switch. I do approx 20k per annum, much of it on motorways, so membership of a decent breakdown organisation is essential.
Thanks in advance
Martin
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Included with the Bank account will be basic cover i.e roadside assistance - it will extra to upgrade to Relay type & homestart - that is wwhere they make the money from the customer.
The £6-£10 / month you pay for your special current account does not get highly rated "in the value for money stakes". Often better with a normal current account (free) and buy the cover you require separately.
I have Greenflag cover inc relay & homestart and pay £102 for 2 cars but this includes a discount for 5 yrs no call out.
I have used them twice in the last 10 years and both times they were spot on - towed home 50 mls once and homestart once.
Both times they came in 45 minutes and knew what the problem was almost immediately. In my opinion they do what it says on the tin.
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I'm with Green Flag. I couldn't tell you what it costs or what package I have but the one time I've needed to use them, they've been great. This was when the Fiesta...ahem....locked itself with the...*cough* engine running
They sorted someone coming out and sorted it even though I wasn't covered for home...or something. The family's cars are all Green Flagged and have been since an unpleasant experience with another larger one.
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one year (2004), all 3 cars in my family had to be recovered by Green Flag - all separate incidents; one was an accident. All were quick with excellent service. Before that,I'd probably used them twice - again with excellent results. Before that, I was with one of the major breakdown services and have had to wait for more than 4 hours on the two occasions that I called them out - not good at all.
If I was choosing a car breakdown service now, it would be Green Flag
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I used to be with Tesco Recovery (because I got a discount as I worked there). The service was managed and operated by Green Flag.
My old Citroen AX (my first car) once broke down outside my house. They sent out a local garage from near where I live (Kettering). They couldn't fix it at the roadside so arranged to recover the vehicle the next day (terraced street parking meant recovery of an evening was complex to say the least). They turned up, as arranged, recovered the vehicle, repaired it and delivered it back all in one day - at the whole time keeping me informed and without any additional recovery costs. I was extremely impressed.
I am now with autonational rescue who are cheap and also were excellent when called upon by my girlfriend when she suffered a puncture late night in Birmingham.
With regards to the level of cover you'll receive through your bank account - I can't advise.
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A good friend runs a recovery company in the Thames Valley. He does contract work for all the majors inc. GF. I asked him who to use, and he said GF were the best. He's a very successful and hard working guy, so I'd trust his judgement.
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Green Flag (used to be National Breakdown until the move from Bradford to Leeds) has always been spot on with its service.
Much of this is to do with the fact that it uses the services of around 1,500 independent breakdown businesses in the UK and pays them promptly for work done.
That's a great incentive for small to medium businesses and probably even more so if they also work for Green Flag's rivals.
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What\'s for you won\'t pass you by
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I've had varying experiences, the problem being that GF don't control the politeness of their local operatives. I was once recovered from South London to the Wirral overnight, absolutely no problems and very good operatives.
However, I once broke down in a petrol station near home and called GF. The guy arrived and drove into the petrol station so fast it frightened the life out of me. He got the car going and I dared to ask him what the problem was? "Trick of the trade mate - if I told you that I wouldn't have a job" - I was extremely unimpressed! He got my signature and couldn't wait to get away, didn't even acknowledge my 'thankyou'.
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I dared to ask him whatthe problem was? "Trick of the trade mate - if I told you that I wouldn't have a job" - I was extremely unimpressed! He got my signature and couldn't wait to get away, didn't even acknowledge my 'thankyou'.
How utterly despicable. Fairly widespread in practice, trying to blind punters with science (London black cab drivers are particularly given to damned cheek when they're going the long way round), but I would call that a very blatant example. I believe people like that must sometimes have very nasty experiences with punters nastier than they are, and serve them right.
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All my family cars are with Green Flag have used them tthree times for flat batteries (my fault) ,fast courteous service and , most important, they don't sing!
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Changed from AA to Green Flag earlier this year. Can't tell you how good they are, I'm afraid, because, to date, I haven't needed to take advantage of their services.
However, I have made a considerable saving by moving; better cover, e.g. Homestart, for less money than I was paying the AA.
I believe Green Flag are owned by Direct Line.
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I always fine it's best to change brekdown company every year, otherwise you end up paying £90 for cover worth £60 minus £20 Marks and Spencers vouchers (£40)!
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Been with National Breakdown/Green Flag/Direct Line since 1982, probably used them about 10 times. Reasons for callout have ranged from puncture with stuck wheelnuts to through bust radiator to cambelt failure with a mix of roadside repair and recovery to home/garage. Agents have been, without exception, good to excellent. Callouts local to home are usually routed to Freeways of Weedon, who on one occasion were at the car before I'd walked the quarter mile back from the 'phone box. In another 30 seconds he's spotted arcing on the LT side of the coil and replaced the defective connector.
If you're recovered home out of hours they will return later to collect the car and ferry it to repairer, not all breakdown services do this.
My only gripe with them has been lack of geographic knowledge at the control centre , one girl stuggled to find Bakewell, another asked me if an East Midlands village between Bedford and Wellingborough was in London. On a much ealier occasion the recovery vehicle was in orbit round a Tesco in Southampton while we waited patiently on the A45 by the store at West Hunsbury (Northampton)!!
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