Guides
Practical advice from the recovery floor
Short, honest guides written by the team that picks up the phone. No fluff, no sales pitch — just useful answers to the questions drivers actually ask us.
What to do when your car breaks down
Breaking down is stressful. A clear plan keeps you safer and gets you moving again sooner. Here is how we recommend handling it.
Read guideHow much does car recovery cost?
Recovery prices vary, but you should always know the cost before the truck is dispatched. Here is how the pricing usually works.
Read guideBreakdown cover vs pay-per-use recovery
An annual policy and a single call-out are different products. Neither is automatically better — it depends on how often you break down and what you drive.
Read guideHow much does towing a car per mile cost in the UK?
Per-mile pricing is common once a job goes beyond local recovery, but the way it's calculated varies a lot between firms. Here's what typically sits behind the number on your quote.
Read guideFlatbed vs spec-lift vs wheel-lift towing explained
Not every recovery truck works the same way, and the wrong method can risk damaging a car. Here's a plain-English guide to the main types.
Read guideHow vehicle recovery works, step by step
If you've never needed recovery before, not knowing what happens next can add to the stress. Here's the typical process from start to finish.
Read guideWhat to do after a non-fault accident
Being hit by someone else is stressful enough without worrying about who covers the recovery bill. Here's a sensible order of steps.
Read guideHow to move a non-runner legally: tax, insurance and trade plates
Moving a non-runner isn't as simple as just getting it onto a truck. A few legal points are easy to overlook and can catch people out.
Read guideHow to prepare a car for transport
A little preparation before the truck arrives can make loading quicker and reduce the risk of anything going wrong in transit.
Read guideRecovering an electric vehicle safely
Electric vehicles bring some genuinely different recovery considerations compared with a petrol or diesel car. Here's what typically applies.
Read guideWhat to do if you put the wrong fuel in your car
Misfuelling — putting petrol in a diesel car or vice versa — happens to plenty of careful drivers, especially with similar-looking nozzles. What you do in the next few minutes matters.
Read guideMotorway and smart motorway breakdown rules
Breaking down on a motorway is one of the more frightening situations a driver can face. Knowing the guidance in advance makes it easier to act quickly and calmly.
Read guideBuying a car at auction and getting it home
Auction cars often can't simply be driven away — plenty are non-runners, untaxed, or need proper transport arranged. Here's what to think about once the hammer falls.
Read guideStoring a vehicle after recovery
Sometimes a vehicle can't go straight to its final destination — after an accident, a purchase, or when a garage or owner isn't ready to receive it. Here's what storage typically involves.
Read guideHow to choose a recovery company: red flags and questions to ask
Most recovery firms are straightforward and do a good job, but it's still worth knowing what to check, especially if you're booking one you haven't used before.
Read guideCar will not start, what to check before you ring anyone
A car that will not start is not one fault, it is about six, and they sound completely different from each other. Five minutes of listening usually tells you which one you have.
Read guideBroken down on the motorway, what to do
A motorway breakdown is the one situation where the order of your actions matters more than anything else. This is the sequence, shortest first.
Read guideWhat to do after a breakdown, once the car is off the road
Most advice stops the moment the truck arrives. The awkward decisions come afterwards, when the car is sat at a garage and somebody has to decide what happens to it.
Read guideWho pays for vehicle recovery?
Whoever pays, somebody does. The answer depends less on what happened and more on who arranged the truck, so it is worth knowing before you agree to anything.
Read guideFlat tyre: what to do at the roadside
A flat tyre is the most common reason drivers stop unexpectedly, and it is also the situation where people take the biggest risks. This guide covers how to stop safely, how to judge whether changing the wheel yourself is sensible, and when a recovery truck is the better decision.
Read guideHow to jump start a car safely
Jump starting looks simple and usually is, but doing it in the wrong order or on the wrong type of vehicle can damage electronics that cost far more than a battery. Here is how to do it properly and how to know when to leave it alone.
Read guideCar battery warning signs and how to test one
Batteries rarely fail without warning. They give several weeks of small hints first, and knowing what those hints look like is the difference between a planned replacement and a morning spent waiting for a recovery truck.
Read guideLocked out of your car: what to do next
Being locked out is frustrating rather than dangerous in most cases, but the wrong response can turn a twenty minute problem into hundreds of pounds of damage. Here are the options in the order worth trying.
Read guideCar overheating: what to do and what not to do
Overheating is one of the few faults where the next five minutes decide whether you need a repair or a new engine. Getting it right is mostly about stopping early and resisting the urge to carry on to the next junction.
Read guideAccident recovery: what happens to your car next
After a collision, most people are focused on injuries and insurance, and the car itself becomes an afterthought until a storage bill appears. This guide explains what actually happens to a damaged vehicle and where you still have a choice.
Read guideDashboard warning lights: which mean stop immediately
Modern cars show dozens of symbols and most drivers ignore the ones they do not recognise. The colour system is the shortcut: it tells you how urgent the problem is before you know what it is.
Read guideRunning out of fuel: what to do and the damage to avoid
Running dry is embarrassing rather than complicated, but it causes real mechanical damage on some vehicles and leaves you in a dangerous place on others. Here is how to handle it properly.
Read guideClutch and gearbox failure: signs and what to do
Transmission faults almost always announce themselves before they strand you. Recognising the difference between a clutch on the way out and a gearbox that has already failed decides whether you drive to a garage or wait for a truck.
Read guideBreaking down with children or pets in the car
The standard advice to leave the vehicle and stand behind the barrier gets complicated when you have a toddler in a car seat or a dog in the boot. Here is how families and pet owners should handle a breakdown.
Read guideUK towing laws and regulations explained
Towing law in the UK covers who may tow, what they may tow and how, and it changed meaningfully in recent years. Getting it wrong risks penalty points, an insurance problem and an unsafe load.
Read guideWinter driving and breakdown preparation
Winter does not create new faults so much as expose existing ones. Batteries, tyres, coolant and wipers that were merely adequate in September fail in the first hard frost, and the same handful of checks prevents most of it.
Read guideBreakdown recovery costs explained
Recovery pricing is not arbitrary, but it is rarely explained. Understanding the handful of factors behind a quote makes it far easier to judge whether a price is fair before you agree to it.
Read guideMulti-storey car park recovery and low clearance access
A car that fails inside a multi-storey or underground car park is a different job from a roadside breakdown, because a standard recovery truck physically cannot reach it. Knowing how these jobs are done saves a lot of wasted time.
Read guideVehicle checks before a long journey
Most long distance breakdowns are caused by something that was already visible before departure. Ten minutes on the driveway prevents the majority of them, and the checks are simple enough for anyone.
Read guideMotorcycle recovery: how bikes are moved safely
A motorcycle is not simply a small car, and recovering one badly causes damage that is expensive and entirely avoidable. Here is how bikes should be handled and what riders need to know.
Read guideCaravan and trailer breakdown: what to do
A breakdown with a caravan or trailer attached involves two vehicles, a longer stopping distance and far less room to manoeuvre. The priorities are different from a solo car breakdown and worth understanding before you set off.
Read guideDPF warnings and limp mode explained
Diesel particulate filter problems are one of the most common reasons modern diesels end up on a recovery truck, and most of them are preventable. Understanding what the light is asking you to do is usually enough.
Read guideElectric car out of charge: what happens next
Running an electric vehicle to zero is less common than people expect, because the car warns repeatedly and reduces power first. When it does happen, the recovery is different from a petrol or diesel car in ways that matter.
Read guideVehicle impounded or clamped: how to get it back
A removed vehicle is a clock running: storage is charged daily and the total climbs fast. Knowing exactly what is needed to release it, and in what order, is the difference between a modest bill and a large one.
Read guideBattery light on while driving: battery or alternator?
The red battery symbol on the dashboard is one of the most misread warnings in the car. It rarely means the battery itself is flat. It usually means the car has stopped charging it, and you are now running on whatever is left. This guide explains what is going on and how long you realistically have.
Read guideTowing a car to a garage: what decides the cost
Most tows are not dramatic motorway rescues. They are a car that will not start on a driveway, and a garage a few miles away that has space tomorrow. People search for the cost of that job more than almost any other, and the honest answer is that it depends on a handful of specific things. Here they are, so you can give the right details and get a firm figure first time.
Read guideBroken down with no breakdown cover: what to do
Plenty of drivers only discover they have no breakdown cover at the exact moment they need it: a lapsed policy, a new car that was never added, a borrowed vehicle, or cover that turns out not to include home start. Being without cover changes who you ring, not whether you can get help. Here is how to handle it calmly.
Read guidePersonal or vehicle breakdown cover: which suits you?
Short answer: personal breakdown cover protects you in any car you drive or ride in, while vehicle cover protects one named car whoever is behind the wheel. Which is better depends on how many cars you use and how many people drive the one you own. Below is the plain comparison, plus the questions worth asking before you pay for either.
Read guideCheap car recovery: how to keep the cost down honestly
The cheapest car recovery is the one priced correctly the first time. Most bills go up because of surprises: a car that turned out not to roll, a destination that changed halfway, or a second truck because the first one could not load it. Give the operator the full picture, agree a flat price before anyone sets off, and you remove almost every reason for the figure to change.
Read guideRecovery truck hire or a driven recovery: which do you need?
If you only need one car moved, booking a recovery truck with a trained driver is usually simpler than hiring a truck and doing it yourself. Self-drive hire makes sense for people who move vehicles regularly and hold the right licence. This guide sets out what each option really involves so you can pick the one that fits the job.
Read guideNeed recovery now?
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