When Roadside Assistance Should Be Recovery

Last checked 31 August 2026

Most breakdowns are dealt with where they happen: both the AA and RAC say they fix around four out of five at the roadside. It is the remaining one in five that decides whether your policy was the right one, because at that point the only options are a recovery policy or a tow to whichever local garage they choose.

When A Recovery Policy Is Preferable

If you are happy being towed to a local garage, the cheapest roadside assistance option may still be right for you. When things are more serious, a recovery policy gives you the choice of where in the UK the vehicle is taken.

Faults That Usually Mean Transport, Not Repair

• Brakes: brake problems should not be repaired at the roadside. They need a competent garage and a road test before the car is used again.
• A ripped tyre with no spare: if you carry no spare, an emergency get-you-home repair canister may still not be enough to let you drive away. All tyres need to be safe, and as patrols cannot carry every size and rating of tyre in the van, often nothing can be done on the spot.
• Suspension: if you have clipped a kerb or something in the road and damaged a spring, the job is too big to do outside a garage. Tracking arms come under the same heading.
• Misfuelling: petrol in a diesel will not be fixed at the roadside. Each provider has its own arrangement, from paying a third-party specialist to simply taking you to a nearby garage.
• Fire: although this may be covered by your vehicle insurance, it is clearly too serious to be repaired where it stands.
• Gearbox: things like linkage arms can sometimes be fixed easily, but a failure inside the box means the vehicle is going on a truck.
• Engine: there is a decent chance of getting you moving again with ignition, spark or simple fuel supply problems. Timing belt failure, pistons or a cylinder head issue will need specialist help.
• Pothole damage: a broken suspension spring is the most common pothole casualty in RAC callout data, and it is not a roadside repair. See potholes and your car.
• An electric car that cannot be fixed: EVs generally cannot be towed with the driven wheels on the ground, so they go on a flatbed or an all-wheels-up rig. Patrols carry the kit, but the policy still has to include recovery.

That is not an exhaustive list, just an indication of what can go wrong. It is also true that a newer or well-serviced vehicle is less likely to suffer something major than an older or neglected one.

So, Upgrade To Recovery?

The decision comes down to the likelihood of anything major happening, weighed against the cost and inconvenience of dealing with it without recovery cover. If any of these faults occur a long way from home, the cost can be considerable — certainly more than the recovery policy would have been.