Break Down Cover
Providing assistance to travellers and drivers whose vehicles have suffered a mechanical failure is a long standing service in every country, and knowing which companies provide the service when you are travelling can really save the trip should you break down. Emerging as a need in the early century, when car ownership greatly expanded.
This service is generally called Triple A in the US, for the AAA company that offers it generally there. For a modest yearly fee, you get free towing, gasoline, and roadside assistance at all hours of the day or night. Also you get access to maps and directions. Each state and municipality has a local office, but online services make it even easier for travellers with laptops or smartphones. GPS adds to the convenience.
In the UK and former members of the British Empire or current members of the Commonwealth, the service is generally called breakdown cover but can also be referred to as emergency roadside repair or roadside assistance. Canada may use either, being closer to the continental US.
In the early 20th century the rise of cars on the road with their more primative systems gave rise to a need for roadside assistance and a niche market emerged across Europe and the United States.
In the UK, there are several companies that offer breakdown cover-Green Flag, The AA, and Tesco, to name a few.
Roadside assistance, or Breakdown cover may include but is not limited to:
Providing minor mechanical repairs on site
Brining gasoline to stranded cars
jump starting
towing a vehicle
helping to change a flat tire
pulling stuck vehicles out of snow or mud.
Helping people with Lock out.
