Automobile Roadside Assistance Tips for Fast Service

It's amazing how many of us drive cars about which we know so little and can't provide the most basic information when seeking emergency roadside assistance. We travel daily but sometimes have great difficulty when asked to name the streets, towns, counties, and sometimes even the states in which we've broken down. Add our stressed out attitudes and personalities into an already trying situation, and you've got double trouble.

Here are some tips to expedite fast and smooth roadside assistance service.

Have your membership information ready. Provide your membership number to the service. Regularly check your wallet or purse for your card with the membership or account number. If you've lost or misplaced it, get it replaced immediately. Have the representative provide the number over the phone, write it down, and carry it with you receive your replacement card. Be prepared to provide other identifying information without your membership or account number: your name, address, and phone number.

Have the car information ready. Know the following things before making the call: the year, make, and model of the car; your license plate number and the state in which it is registered; whether the car is a 2-door, 4-door, or other passenger vehicle; the color;

Identify Your Location. Provide as much concrete location information as possible to help the service find you. For streets, the best information is an address (e.g., 255 South St) that pinpoints your location. The next best things is to offer the street you are on, plus the two cross streets that border that block. For highways, it's best to provide the highway's name, the direction you're traveling on it, the exits you're between, and a mile marker. Also, it can be helpful to know the county in the state you're located. If you're at a shopping center or mall, include it's name, and the store your car is parked in front of or nearest.

When you've traveled off a beaten path and are lost, there's no way a service can find you without strong clues. Try to remember some of the places you've passed. Give the name of a store, post office, or restaurant. It's possible for the representative to Google the name and get a street address. Identify the direction you were traveling. Which direction did you turn onto a side road--left or right? What direction were you traveling on the last road you remember--east, west, north, south?

Carry maps and destination-to-destination instructions from mapping services. They help to retrace your route and provide accurate road names to the representatives.

Towing. Be ready to state the tow destination, including the name of the place (if a dealer or mechanic), street address, and city or town. Let the representative know if your car is a 2-wheel, 4-wheel, or all-wheel drive car. Certain cars require flatbed towing. If your car requires flatbed tow service for reasons other than the type of wheel drive, give this information before the call gets dispatched to a regular truck.

Lockouts. It's extremely important to know the year, make and model of your car to get the right service. A number of cars made after 2000 require a locksmith, and can't be opened by the regular auto service station responding to the call. Let the representative know if the car is running. This typically makes it a priority case.

Flat Tires. Know which tire is flat on the car, and tell the representative if you have a spare. Most responding stations want to know if your vehicle has lug locks, and whether you have the key and any other required tools to remove the wheel if so. Stations have the tools to remove regular lug nuts; not wheel locks. If you have more than one flat tire, chances are your car will need to be towed.

Priority Service. Certain calls may receive priority dispatch service, so let the representative know if any of these apply to your situation: you're a doctor, firefighter, police officer, or ambulance worker on call; you're disabled; you have a baby, small child, or pet in the car; you're in an unsafe location; you've been in an accident, or you're blocking traffic.

Stay out of double the trouble when you need roadside assistance. Be prepared by following these tips.