Drivers have been left furious after being told to report vehicle breakdowns online rather than being able to call directly from the incident.
The RAC, the popular car breakdown operator, changed its service in a bid to promote quicker responses via its website rather than having drivers be left on hold, but the move has not been met with concern.
In one case, a driver was left with no choice but to ditch their vehicle and return home to use the computer as they did not have a smartphone.
In the incident reported by The Telegraph, an 85-year-old motorist, who had originally called for help when a wheel fell off his car, had to return home on foot to write in for assistance.
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The RAC response team told drivers to log any issues online
PA
The loyal customer, who has been with the insurer for over 40 years, had to wait more than 15 minutes after calling up and was hit with an automatic message urging the driver to log the issue online for more ease.
He told the paper: “If you’re sitting in a car with traffic going past at 90 miles an hour on a motorway, that’s not the sort of response you want.”
After being stuck on hold and unable to get a response on time, the driver resorted to sorting the issue out himself and paying a friend to tow truck his vehicle home.
The incident, which took place in Berkshire on a busy B-road, meant the vehicle was stuck there for nearly two hours.
The driver added: “One of [the call handlers] actually just told me to go online and cut me off.
“If they don’t answer their phone and I’m stuck on a motorway, how on earth do I get in touch with them? And I think that is the big problem facing not only me, but a hell of a lot of other drivers. You know, we don’t all have smartphones.
“I tried to ring them, and I think I was on the phone for 15 or 20 minutes [with] no response, and then the phone line kept coming back to say ‘the easiest way to get in touch with us is online’. So I waited, and then I eventually went online.”
Towing the car cost the driver £100, a sum the RAC has yet to repay and still leaves him waiting up to eight weeks to resolve the lodged complaint.
An RAC spokesperson told GB News: “We’re sorry Mr Rayner thought the only way to log his breakdown was online. This isn’t the case – we offer members the choice to call or go online. In fact, over half of all breakdowns are reported by phone.
“While many of our members prefer to go online – as it allows us to locate them more easily and keep them regularly updated on when we will arrive – we appreciate this isn’t the case for everyone.
“This is why we have fully staffed call centres in three UK locations that take tens of thousands of member phone calls every week. We pride ourselves on the service we deliver, and our focus is on continuing to improve in the experience we provide to millions of our members every year.
“We’ve apologised to Mr Rayner for any confusion and offered him a gesture of goodwill that he has accepted. We’re happy to say he remains a valued member of the RAC.”
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Driver had to pay £100 after the incident to have his vehicle towed
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The incident was just one case where the RAC had failed to respond to a breakdown on time and with the right support measures.
In another case, someone shared online that they had been left waiting up to six hours for the RAC to arrive.
The driver detailed: “No human operators now to ring and get help you have to download the app and report online. Onlyissue is in many rural areas there’sno signal or it’sweakso the app is useless. The app has no facility to contact RACnot even a chatbot.
“They’ve cut back on service vans and recovery vehicles so generally I’ve waited four to six hours for a patrol to arrive.”
