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RAC: Breakdown cover reviews

Name: Breakdown cover
Rating: 1.85 (211 reviews)

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1.85

Based on 211 reviews, last reviewed 22nd Jul 2026

100% decrease in 5 star reviews

in the past 90 days

33% decrease in 1 star reviews

in the past 90 days

12%

81%

Latest highest rating:

5

Very positive Renewal Experiece. I recently renewed my R.A.C. Breakdown Cover. The RAC Call Taker was called Ezan based at Bristol R.A.C. Office. Ezan was one of the best Call Takers ... Read more Reviewed on: 25th March 2026

Latest lowest rating:

1

BE VERY CAREFUL. BE VERY CAREFUL. I had an online quote from the RAC for front disc and pads for my Ford Grand Tourney. The quoting system found the car and proceeded ... Read more Reviewed on: 22nd July 2026

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About this product

RAC breakdown cover is available in three levels – Basic, Standard and Extra.

RAC claim to get to most breakdowns in 60 mins or less and say that patrols fix 4/5 breakdowns on the spot. In the myRAC app you can get savings on fuel and tyres. Options are available for vehicle cover, personal cover and family cover.

RAC breakdown cover reviews help you find out what it’s really like to be a customer. If you’ve used RAC before, you can also leave a review and share your experience.

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RAC Breakdown cover reviews (211)

BE VERY CAREFUL.

BE VERY CAREFUL. I had an online quote from the RAC for front disc and pads for my Ford Grand Tourney. The quoting system found the car and proceeded to give me a quote of £249. Very similar to the AA price. I booked the car in to have the job done. The tech turned up on Monday, stripped the car down removing the parts that needed replacing only to find that the parts supplied where the wrong parts. He then rebuilt the car , checked the parts locally and apologised and said he would return the next day between 10-12am to complete the job. Later that day I received an email to say this would now be done on Wednesday and not the Tuesday as said by the Tech. After speaking to the RAC they said it would be Wednesday at the earliest for the job and I would get contacted by another tech to sort the job. Wednesday came and I get a call late morning from a tech named Jay who said " your not gonna like this but the price is now £770" no explanation other than GSF where quoting more for the parts. I asked him to recheck and come back to me as my car had been off the road for 3 days and was costing meoney not working ( private hire vehicle) he didn't call back but text saying nothing he could do and gave me the wrong number to call customer services. Spoke to a nice girl at customer services who explained their was not a lot she could do on the day but escalate a complaint further on and she would pass me through to the tech booking team again. While on hold I contacted the local ford garage who quoted me £264 for genuine ford parts and GSF web site where they ranged from £120-£170 for non genuine parts. Got me thinking that they were going to charge over £500 just to fit the parts. Put through to a lady called Katie who just basically wanted me off the phone and not interested in the price. It was a case of that's the price. End of. She went away and spoke to somebody senior then came back to me and said that it was an inbound call centre and I could not speak to anyone senior even though she had. Again no explanation as to price increase of the job. I said I wanted to talk to someone more senior which her reply was I'm now going to terminate the call as nothing else I can do. Really disappointed in an organisation like the RAC to treat customers this way. It's left me in a really bad situation with a car that's off the road. I must not be the only person they have done this to and makes me question have they done this as they know I'm desperate to have the work done. I would never recommend RAC to anybody else again after this and would advise anyone to tread very careful because apparently it says in the small print they are allowed to change the quote. Reviewed on: 22nd July 2026

Waiting for them two days no one comes and respond o...

Waiting for them two days no one comes and respond on telephone, don’t waste your time and money Reviewed on: 3rd July 2026

Horrendous lie after lie still haven’t brought my ca...

Horrendous lie after lie still haven’t brought my car back to me called 1am and it’s now 18:30 lie after lie Reviewed on: 2nd July 2026

Terrible experience with RAC today.

Terrible experience with RAC today. The mechanic they sent was careless and almost caused severe damage to my engine. I couldn't trust them to finish the job safely, so I had to call out a different mechanic out of pocket. Instead of giving me peace of mind, RAC just caused me extra expense and a massive amount of stress. Avoid at all costs. Reviewed on: 29th June 2026

My experience with RAC was incredibly frustrating fr...

My experience with RAC was incredibly frustrating from start to finish. On 29 April, an engine warning light appeared and the engine began rattling and running unevenly. An RAC mobile mechanic attended and advised that the vehicle was still safe to drive. I booked a service for 1 May, during which the warning light was cleared, but it returned during a journey to Nottingham later that day. On 3 May, a drivetrain warning light appeared and the vehicle entered limp mode. A second mechanic attended on 4 May and identified nine fault codes relating to the VANOS solenoid. Recovery was arranged for the following morning. This is where the real problems started. Recovery was booked for between 07:30 and 08:00 on 5 May, but nobody arrived. Throughout the day I was given multiple revised ETAs, promised callbacks that never happened, and no clear explanation as to why the recovery kept being delayed. By the evening I was told a third-party contractor would attend the following day. The next morning, a tow truck arrived unexpectedly at around 7am with no prior notification. As I was asleep, the driver left and I was told I would have to rebook. After rebooking, I was given another collection time, only to discover later that the recovery had been cancelled without anyone informing me. Again, nobody could explain why. After two days of chasing updates, waiting at home, and repeatedly contacting RAC for information, the vehicle was finally collected at 4:53pm on 6 May. Even the recovery driver questioned why the vehicle was being taken into storage rather than directly home and described the process as "lazy". I am also concerned about the advice I received from the first RAC mechanic. When the engine warning light first appeared and the vehicle was running poorly, I was advised that it remained safe to drive. A few days later, after the vehicle entered limp mode, a second mechanic identified nine faults relating to the VANOS solenoid and recovery was arranged. The vehicle has since required repairs costing approximately £5,500. While I cannot say with certainty whether earlier diagnosis or recovery would have altered the outcome, it is difficult not to question whether the advice that the vehicle was safe to continue driving contributed to the situation becoming significantly worse. What disappointed me most was RAC's response to my complaint. After detailing the delays, missed appointments, poor communication, financial losses, and concerns about the initial advice I was given, the complaint was largely dismissed. RAC refused to reimburse even basic expenses such as meals purchased while I was effectively stranded waiting for recovery over two days. I appreciate that delays can happen, but the repeated missed ETAs, lack of communication, unexplained cancellation of recovery, and dismissive handling of my complaint fell far below the standard of service I expected. Based on this experience, I would have serious reservations about relying on RAC in the future. Reviewed on: 25th June 2026

Broke down on M25 they said my car wasn’t taxed .

Broke down on M25 they said my car wasn’t taxed . I had forgotten to renew it only ten days out . Did it on the side of motor way but they refused to come . Just left us there with hardly any phone battery left . Terrible Reviewed on: 16th June 2026

Cold, Dark, and Forgotten: How RAC Left Me Stranded

I have been a loyal RAC customer for more than 10 years and, until now, I had never needed to call for help. Sadly, when I finally did, I was completely let down. On 19th May, my car broke down on a road near Bath. I waited over 4 hours for the first patrol to arrive. After inspecting the vehicle, I was told I needed a flatbed recovery truck and that it would arrive within 90 minutes. I trusted them and waited. Hours passed. Another patrol arrived later and again reassured me that the flatbed was “on the way.” I repeatedly called RAC and every time I was given the same promises and reassurances. Meanwhile, it became dark, cold, and rainy. I am almost 70 years old and was left stranded on the roadside for more than 8 hours with no real help arriving. What made the situation even more dangerous was that my lights were no longer working, yet the patrol did not even attempt to fix or recharge the battery so I could at least use my hazard warning lights while waiting in the dark. By 10:30 at night, RAC suddenly told me a private contractor would come instead. No one came. Eventually, exhausted, freezing cold, and deeply distressed, I had no choice but to leave my car on the roadside and somehow make my own way home. RAC promised again late night the recovery will come tomorrow between 7am and midday. Once again, nobody arrived. After more waiting and more broken promises, I finally had to arrange and pay privately for a flatbed truck to take my car to a garage. What hurt most was not just the delay — breakdowns can happen — but the complete lack of honesty, compassion, accountability, and care shown throughout the ordeal. I only needed RAC once in over a decade of membership, and when I truly needed support, they abandoned me. I am sharing this as a warning for others, especially elderly drivers and vulnerable people. Please think carefully before trusting a company that can leave someone stranded for more than a day with empty promises and no concern for their safety or wellbeing. Reviewed on: 21st May 2026

Shambolic company of lying thieves.

Shambolic company of lying thieves. My car broke down and I called them. I was told their system was down and they won’t do anything. No one has ever arrived. When I complained they blatantly lied that a patrol attended. Not only that, they even say that my policy does not cover recovery which is another lie because my policy booklet states the exact opposite. Reviewed on: 20th May 2026

Waited two days for RAC to recover my vehicle.

Waited two days for RAC to recover my vehicle. Unbelievably incompetent. Promised vouchers for food but didn't pay. Lost two days waiting by the vehicle. I can't put into words how crap they are. Reviewed on: 20th May 2026

Absolutely shocking service!

Absolutely shocking service!!! Was paying over £30 per month for breakdown cover. Our car broke down once and was recovered to a garage after a 3 and a half hour wait. The problem was found to be a faulty oil pressure switch, so we had this fixed and collected the car. Unfortunately, a few days later the car broke down again for a different reason (nightmare, right?) and of course, this time it was a busy road in Exeter city. My partner (a woman on her own who suffers from Generalised Anxiety Disorder) was panicking and called me and I told her not to panic, we were covered, and to go on the app as before and report the break down. This time, the app rejected her report and gave her a number to call instead. She called the number and was told that because we had broken down within 7 days we had to get the mechanic to email to confirm what work had been completed. The only problem was, the mechanic was not available, was not at work, and we couldn’t get hold of him. We had no choice but to pay for her car to be privately recovered back to a garage and have now fixed the second problem. So, we were paid policy holders but had to pay to have our car recovered. I wrote a complaint and the case handler responded that there was “no record of our second breakdown” presumably because she couldn’t see it on the app. So essentially, despite a 3-minute call to the RAC recorded on her Iphone during which they outlined the reasons they wouldn’t come out, and this being evident on her call log and presumably on their system, my partner is a liar and must have imagined the whole thing? They refused to refund the money I had paid for private recovery so understandlably, I chose to cancel my membership moving forward. Fast forward a few days and the RAC have written me a threatening letter saying they have been unable to take a new payment (naturally I cancelled my direct debit) and have threatened me with referals to credit agencies if I don’t pay THEM a cancellation charge of £130!!! I have called several times only to be told my “case handler” will “get back to me” via email. She hasn’t. The letter says if I don’t hand them £130 by 26/05/26 for a cancellation fee I am at risk of damage to my credit. I have just submitted a second complaint. AVOID THIS COMPANY AT ALL COSTS they will charge you through the nose, fail to recover you and then harass and threaten you when you (understandably) choose to take your custom elsewhere. APPALLING. Reviewed on: 11th May 2026

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