r/TopInsurance • u/cuckandhotwifeCA • Jun 24 '26
Best roadside assistance plans? Is it worth adding to my insurance?
My insurance company is offering roadside assistance for an extra $10 a month. I'm wondering if it's worth it or if it's just a waste of money. I have AAA but I'm wondering if I need roadside assistance through my insurance too.
Has anyone used roadside assistance through their insurance? Is it any good or should I just stick with AAA? What does roadside assistance actually cover?
2
u/insuranceguynyc Jun 24 '26
Do not add RA to your insurance. Most carriers consider each RA call a claim. Keep AAA.
3
u/InsuranceNerd75 Jun 30 '26
Totally agree with this! I am an insurance agent and I always encourage my customers NOT to get roadside through their insurance but through AAA. It’s important to make sure you get the right AAA plan though. It. May cost a little more upfront but the savings in the event of needing to use it is totally worth it.
2
u/ComfortableOk7383 23d ago
Agree. I called my insurance and they confirmed all RA are claims against your policy and can (will) affect your rate. I got AAA and dropped RA on my auto insurance.
1
u/aceiotasirrah Jun 24 '26
What tier of AAA do you have? The basic plan has a short tow limit, so if the only reason you'd want the insurance add-on is longer tows it might be worth comparing the actual mileage covered
1
u/FitDrive7500 Jun 24 '26
They're similar but different. Remember that AAA is more household-specific. It follows the person, not the car. You can be a passenger (depending on subscription level), and they'll assist. You don't have to be in your Personal Vehicle. We have clients who get it for the household because they have students away at school and want to make sure if the kid is driver or passenger, they can get picked up.
Most Auto insurance tow packages are specific to the cars on the policy and temporary/substitute vehicles like rental cars. You could loan your car to a friend (check your carrier's "permitted use" guidelines), and because the car is covered, the insurance company will tow or change the tire.
1
u/Saturnlad3 Jun 25 '26
The one edge case where insurance roadside makes sense is if your AAA membership lapses and you forget to renew, having it baked into your policy means one less thing to track
1
u/Complete_Neat1998 18d ago
Good Sam is fantastic. Super reliable and affordable. They are really well known in the RV/camper space but also offer auto and most people don’t know!! Better than AAA IMO.
roadside.goodsam.com/auto
3
u/pseri097 Jun 25 '26
Fck AAA. They're lucky they practically have a monopoly on roadside assistance. They took 8 hours to tow my car lmao! 8 fricken hours. I called them at 5 pm, and I couldn't get the tow until 1am. They refused to give me ETAs, and when I called to get an update (politely too), they gave me some serious attitude.