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The AA

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Breakdown Services: What The AA Offer

The AA is the largest breakdown provider in the UK, with around 2,700 directly employed patrols and roughly 3.3 million paying personal members. It says four out of five cars are fixed at the roadside, and aims to reach you in about an hour.

Figures published on theaa.com, checked August 2026.

How AA Cover Is Sold Now

The AA no longer sells a simple ladder of four named tiers. You start by choosing what the policy attaches to, then add the extras you want:

Step one: person or vehicle

Personal cover follows you as an individual, whichever car you are travelling in as driver or passenger. It comes as single, joint or family. Vehicle cover attaches to one named car and covers it whoever is driving.

If several people use the same car, cover the car. If you regularly drive other people’s cars, cover yourself.

Step two: what is included as standard

Every level includes 24/7 roadside assistance — a patrol attending your vehicle and attempting a repair on the spot, from a quarter of a mile from home upwards.

Step three: the add-ons

These are sold as options rather than tiers, so you build the policy you want:

  • At Home — covers a breakdown on your drive or within a quarter of a mile of it, which roadside-only cover specifically excludes.
  • National Recovery — transport for the car, you and your passengers to anywhere on the UK mainland if it cannot be fixed.
  • Onward Travel — a hire car, accommodation or alternative transport so you can continue your journey.
  • Parts and Garage Cover, Tyre Cover and Key Cover — each a separate option.

Electric vehicles cost no more to cover. The AA charges the same for an EV or hybrid as for petrol and diesel, and says more than 98% of its patrols now hold high-voltage awareness training. In the second quarter of 2026 it resolved 88.4% of EV callouts at the roadside, against 84.6% for petrol and diesel — EVs are now fixed on the spot slightly more often than conventional cars. More on roadside assistance and electric vehicles.

Who Owns The AA?

Despite the club heritage, the AA has been privately owned since it left the stock market, held by a consortium of investment firms. Its owners have spent 2026 weighing a sale or a return to the London market, with insurance groups reported among the interested parties. Nothing has been confirmed, and it makes no difference to an existing policy — but it is worth knowing that none of the big three is the members’ club it started out as.

AA Travel Tools

Route Planner

A long-standing free service for planning a route through the UK and Europe. You do not need to be a member to use it. Enter a start, a destination and any via points and you get a route you can print or send to a phone.

Traffic News

Visit the AA traffic news page for current disruption across the UK — incidents, roadworks, lane closures and congestion. On a mobile it will use your location.

News And Guides