Suppose you are a woman, driving alone on a dark stormy night, and suddenly your tire blows out. The benefit of having roadside assistance is that you can use your cell phone to call someone to come out and change the tire for you. Even if you know how to change the tire, roadside assistance insurance is still a good idea.
Safety Features of Roadside Assistance Insurance
We have heard of casualties along the roadsides due to someone being out of their car. They may be inspecting the car for problems, or may be attempting to change a flat tire. News reports indicate their car may have been rear-ended, or that the person was hit by a passing car.
Roadside assistance insurance protects drivers from being in a position to be run over by a passing vehicle. A tow truck or rescue truck warns approaching drivers that there is a disabled vehicle on the side of the road.
Roadside assistance insurance keeps motorists safe from danger as well. If you must drive alone or after dark, it could be dangerous to be out of your car attempting to change a flat, or survey any other mechanical problems. It is safer to use your cell phone to call for roadside assistance and stay in the vehicle with the doors locked until help arrives.
Convenience of Roadside Assistance Insurance
My husband and I were traveling to Florida one year. We were pulling a motorcycle trailer with our pick-up truck. Late one night, the truck decided to quit running on a dark two lane highway, just outside of Birmingham, Alabama.
We were fortunate enough to have the motorcycle in the trailer, so we unloaded it and drove it back to a motel we had passed. We used a phone book to call for a tow truck. The tow truck came to the motel, picked my husband up, and went and towed the truck and trailer back to the motel parking lot, as we requested.
Had we not had roadside assistance insurance, the trip might have been completely ruined. As it was, the motel was a small quaint place that we enjoyed. The owner brought out tools the next day and my husband was able to get the truck going with a short trip to an auto parts store.
Most car insurance policies offer roadside assistance as an inclusion, or for a very nominal fee. Auto club memberships also offer roadside assistance packages. Each policy may have different benefits, so be sure to know what your roadside assistance insurance covers.