Photo courtesy of Thinkstock
AAA has long been the standard when it comes to roadside assistance, but the development of travel technology has once again spurred movement toward alternative options.
More and more roadside assistance apps are popping up these days, which allow for travelers to pay for services only when they need them without membership dues or hidden fees.
And many of these apps are receiving rave reviews and causing travelers to rethink who they turn to when their car breaks down on the side of the road.
The Urgent.ly app tabs itself as the "Uber for towing." Like Uber, when you need assistance, you can view nearby tow trucks that are available via GPS technology. Simply pick your car trouble from a menu, confirm the closest tow truck and watch in real time as the truck comes to service you.
Urgent.ly has received 4.5 out of five stars from reviewers on the Apple App Store, and it's no wonder why. It's incredibly comforting to know where your help is when you're stranded on the side of the road, and some apps like Urgent.ly can deliver service within 15 minutes (instead of waiting for hours when AAA is busy with other customers).
Urgent.ly also offers the "FamilyView" feature, which allows accounts to link up so whenever someone's in trouble everyone in the network receives an alert and updates on the service. It's particularly helpful for parents, who can pay for their kids' roadside assistance through their phone.
One reviewer wrote on the Apple App Store, "This app allows me to not have to pay for a service I may or may not use every year, yet still know I'm covered at an affordable cost if that fateful day comes! The set up of all my information was smooth and seamless, and it is comforting to look on it at random times and see that more times than not a tow truck is less than 15 minutes away!"
Another top roadside services app is Honk. Honk boasts more than 20,000 tow trucks in its network (second only to AAA). Like Urgent.ly, Honk generally provides service in about 15-30 minutes and additional services such as tire changes, jump starts, fuel refills and lockout assistance, while also offering one-time prices as low as $49.
Car brands such as BMW, Volvo, Lexus, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Acura, Mazda, Audi and Ferrari have also developed roadside assistance apps to gain loyalty from customers with the help of companies like Allstate or Signature Motor Club.
AAA naturally has its own roadside assistance app, but-so far-its app hasn't received the same amount of acclaim as other competitors in the app market and you, of course, need a membership for the app to do you any good.
Granted, the standard "Classic" annual membership for AAA is currently only $48 (with a $20 new member admission fee), but members can only have their vehicles towed for seven miles before additional fees kick in with this plan.
Apps that offer towing services aren't anything new, but perhaps what has changed recently is that apps like Urgent.ly and Honk have grown their service networks exponentially. Honk-as mentioned-boasts the second-largest roadside assistance network in the country, while Urgent.ly currently offers services in more than 80 U.S. cities (and growing).
And, given AAA's saturation in the market and a member network that numbers 54 million, it's not hard to figure out why some travelers are receiving faster service with other apps (and changing their allegiance accordingly).
Right now, AAA is undoubtedly still the king of roadside assistance, but if other companies continue to offer cheaper and more user-friendly options, it may not be long before AAA starts facing some serious competition.
Topics From This Article to Explore
