I broke down twice, 50 days after each other and was made to pay upfront for the recovery (costing £250) and send proof of the previous repair before any recovery could happen. Despite there being similarities with the fault, first my oil filter came loose and secondly the timing chain and crankshaft broke (so the oil light was on in both occasions), the problem is clearly different. As there has been substantial damage to the engine after the timing chain and crankshaft has broken, I cannot repair the car and am scrapping it instead. Since I cannot provide proof of the second repair, I cannot get reimbursed for this recovery.
During the breakdown the customer service was unsupportive, I felt lucky to keep my receipts in my car and to have good enough signal to be able to send an email. And feel that throughout the call, I was not taken seriously, made to feel like the situation was my own fault and that I had planned to breakdown.
I have been a customer of covermybreakdown for 3 years and these two occasions are the only time I have had to call out breakdown. Unfortunately, they happened 50 days after each other meaning I had to pay upfront to be recovered, which caused a huge amount of stress at an already stressful time. This policy does nothing other than prey on people in unfortunate situations who have no other option. I am a young female, and was on the side of a main road, alone, a long distance from any public transport. I pay for breakdown cover to protect me in these instances and to help when clearly I have no other option. Due to this policy, I do not feel protected at all.
Their website rightly describes breaking down as a "nightmare situation... one that can be a scary and stressful situation" - it even goes on to suggest you will "be there when [customers] need" and that customers "won't be left stranded on the roadside". Clearly they understand the difficulties of breaking down, however, have created a policy that makes the situation even more stressful to those who unfortunately find themselves in that "nightmare situation" twice in a short period of time. I feel completely let down by this cover, and their statement suggesting that your customers "won't be left stranded on the roadside" is obviously completely fictitious, as if I did not pay, I would have been stranded. I felt like I had no choice but to pay upfront.
I do not recommend their cover at all - get AA or RAC that actually values their customers and helps to keep them safe when broken down.
Reviewed on: 12th November 2023
