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Wednesday, March 22nd
You've probably seen a AAA (American Automobile Association) auto insurance commercial or two. As it turns out, they also offer Roadside Assistance, home security, identity protection, notary services, and other types of auto services. They've been in business since 1902 and have over 61 million members who use their Roadside Assistance plans. While driving your own car or as a passenger with someone else, AAA says they protect you 24/7. Unfortunately, many customers would say otherwise and it has reflected poorly on the company's overall reputation online.
3 straightforward plans
When you reach AAA's website, the first step to finding coverage is providing your state and zip code. The membership cost for the Roadside Assistance plans will depend on where you live in the United States. There is about a $40 difference between each tier. There are three plans to choose from including:
Emergency services
In addition to the perks that come standard in the 3 plans outlined by AAA, anyone who signs up for the AAA Premier or AAA Plus plans also gets some emergency services coverage. Plus members get up to $750 per occurrence for trip interruption and up to $250 per occurrence for baggage coverage. Premier members can claim up to $25,000 for emergency medical transportation, $1,500 per occurrence for trip interruption, and up to $500 per occurrence for baggage coverage. For the nitty-gritty details of what counts as an "occurrence" we highly recommend reading through AAA's terms and conditions.
Call AAA anytime, anywhere
You can call AAA regardless of whether or not your car breaks down in the state you live in. They operate all throughout the United States and Canada. Once you sign up for their services, you need to wait 48 hours before you're able to access and use your Roadside Assistance benefits. You can reach AAA through their app, by phone, or online, but according to many customers, you can't be sure they'll actually show up for you. You're allowed up to 4 emergency roadside services per membership year.
7-day refund policy
If you select and pay for a Roadside Assistance plan from AAA and change your mind about it, you can get a full refund within 7 business days from enrollment. After those 7 days are up, you can still opt to cancel your membership for a prorated refund as long as no emergency services were utilized.
Great membership perks
No doubt AAA is one of the most well-known and widely used Roadside Assistance providers available. Their plans are straightforward but we are disappointed that despite their reputation, their plans include such low mileage towing options. In this area, it is hard for them to compete with some other big-name Roadside Assistance companies. However, they do have a lot of great membership perks like discounts on pet insurance, rental cars, home security, restaurants, electronics, glasses prescriptions, and more. You could easily save hundreds of dollars a year by taking advantage of all the perks that come with an AAA membership.
Poor customer satisfaction
The biggest shocker to us about AAA is that they receive an "F" rating from the Better Business Bureau because they haven't responded to over 75 complaints made about them. Many of these are not resolved and they have a long list of unhappy customers wanting compensation for services they feel they paid for and did not receive. Customer reports online all sing a similar song of anger toward the company being slow to pay out claims, tow trucks taking hours to show up or being cancelled altogether, difficulties with customer service, and more. It seems obvious that their services are going downhill, which is unfortunate. We recommend using a more reputable Roadside Assistance company to ensure your safety.
Whether you're just running errands around town or you're cruising along on your family road trip, having your car break down is an extremely frustrating event. It completely throws off your day and sometimes even leaves you in danger. Having a reliable Roadside Assistance plan takes a load off by having someone quickly come to your rescue and help you figure out the next steps to get your car back up and running.
Sometimes we don't think about unfortunate circumstances like a car breaking down until they happen and we are left without options. It's important to plan ahead and evaluate which of the many Roadside Assistance plans fit your circumstances so that you don't have to worry about unforeseen car troubles that will inevitably happen. Plans might include towing, jump-starts, fuel delivery, theft protection, lockouts, tire changes, and more.
You can customize your plans with additional add-ons like trip interruption coverage or even financial assistance with legal defense help if you get a speeding ticket. The cost for Roadside Assistance will depend on the plan you choose. Most plans allow for you to use your coverage regardless of who owns the car you're driving and you can easily get protection for the whole family.
When shopping for a Roadside Assistance provider, here are a few important things to consider:
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