elamessa Posted July 11, 2015 Share Posted July 11, 2015 I agree that French garages have a two hour lunch break but they do in fact open earlier and close later than UK garages most from 7.30am and the rest from 8am and close between 7pm and 8pm. :-D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted July 11, 2015 Share Posted July 11, 2015 audiseller - 2015-07-11 9:27 AM............................I haven't looked for the original correspondence yet but Section 9 states: " This policy will not cover any vehicle or their contents during transit". That may well have been the clause they relied upon to evade responsibility for the negligence of the recovery operator that had been engaged (but who did not act as their agent!). The only vaguely similar clause I can find is in the exclusions to the accidental damage section, where it excludes "Any loss that is not the direct result of the insured incident itself". However, that part of the insurance is not provided by RAC, but by Aviva. In the section dealing with recovery from abroad, which is provided by RAC, the 2013 conditions state: "In providing breakdown assistance RAC employees and contractors will use reasonable care and skill when providing this service." That statement, to me, admits responsibility for the conduct of their employees and contractors, because otherwise its inclusion would be misleading and pointless. The current conditions can be viewed on-line at their website, and it is possible that wording may have changed. The phone number of Comfort Insurance is 0208 984 0777. If you explained the background to your query regarding damage in transit, I think you would get a definitive answer, as they have an in-house Aviva underwriter. Probably best to phone during normal office hours to get the most constructive reply. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yeti Posted July 11, 2015 Share Posted July 11, 2015 After similar experiences,I am considering joining ADAC slightly cheaper than the RAC/AA European agents, but more efficient. https://www.adac.de/mitgliedschaft/adac_membership/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bulletguy Posted July 11, 2015 Author Share Posted July 11, 2015 elamessa - 2015-07-11 10:09 AM I agree that French garages have a two hour lunch break but they do in fact open earlier and close later than UK garages most from 7.30am and the rest from 8am and close between 7pm and 8pm. :-D These are the opening times of the Dunkerque Ford Garage. Mon-Fri: 9: 00-12: 00 14: 00-19: 00 Sat: 9: 00-12: 00 14: 00-18: 30 By comparison my local Ford Garage does Mon-Fri 9 - 5 and Sat 8.30 - 1pm. The main difference being it's kept open and running by the mechanics taking staggered breaks. That practice is nothing 'new'. I worked that way the last 30 years of employment. It wasn't just expected.....it was the norm. Shutting down in the middle of the day is what i expect from tiny little shops in country villages in back of beyond.....like the sub-PO and Pharmacist in the village where i live. yeti - 2015-07-11 1:42 PM After similar experiences,I am considering joining ADAC slightly cheaper than the RAC/AA European agents, but more efficient. https://www.adac.de/mitgliedschaft/adac_membership/ I doubt you could go far wrong with ADAC......it's German so has a reputation to look after! My breakdown cover comes as part of the insurance and i'm happy with my insurance company. Not sure if they can quote without the b/down cover included though. One of the best experiences i had was with a company called Europ Assist (yes there is no 'e') which cost the princely sum of just £45 for European breakdown around eight years ago. I had a brake master cylinder pack up on me in Bavaria. Called the B/down and took into a Ford Garage. They booked me into a B&B and told me to take a Taxi there and ask the driver for a receipt. The B&B alone cost more than what i'd paid for the b/down cover plus my taxi fare was paid as well! The van was fixed by 11am the following day.......but then this was in Germany! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest pelmetman Posted July 11, 2015 Share Posted July 11, 2015 Bulletguy - 2015-07-11 6:12 PM I doubt you could go far wrong with ADAC......it's German so has a reputation to look after! My breakdown cover comes as part of the insurance and i'm happy with my insurance company. Not sure if they can quote without the b/down cover included though. One of the best experiences i had was with a company called Europ Assist (yes there is no 'e') which cost the princely sum of just £45 for European breakdown around eight years ago. I had a brake master cylinder pack up on me in Bavaria. Called the B/down and took into a Ford Garage. They booked me into a B&B and told me to take a Taxi there and ask the driver for a receipt. The B&B alone cost more than what i'd paid for the b/down cover plus my taxi fare was paid as well! The van was fixed by 11am the following day.......but then this was in Germany! Yep have to agree with that ;-) ......The prompt response from ADAC although using the AA in the UK was far better, than when I called out the AA the last time my Fanny broke down *-) .............. I put it down to actually being an AA member again :-|............ Still it was £70 well spent on the Friday.....as I called them on the Monday :D ........ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Soap Posted July 13, 2015 Share Posted July 13, 2015 Perhaps you should try the Caravan Club Red Pennant service. They were absolutely wonderful when my Boxer based coachbuilt lost its 5th gear. They arranged for the whole repair to be carried out, sorted out a hire car, agreed a hotel to stop at overnight whilst the repair was carried out and refunded all costs for hotel, meals, phone calls, hire car, labour etc. I only had to pay for parts. Wonderful service on all counts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bulletguy Posted July 16, 2015 Author Share Posted July 16, 2015 Found it.....i knew it was somewhere on my hard drive! When i mentioned i'd once had a breakdown some years ago in Germany,well this was the Garage my van went to......a Ford main agent and whilst i was there i took this photo of their work times. The middle section "Werkstatt" is the important one. That's the mechanics hours. Note......no mid-day shut down. They work continuous due to practising staggered lunch breaks...just the same as we have here and what i did my entire work life. Job got sorted ready to drive away by noon the following day. http://oi62.tinypic.com/2dln32v.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muswell Posted July 16, 2015 Share Posted July 16, 2015 My local VW dealer works from 0730 to 1800 with staggered breaks too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bulletguy Posted July 16, 2015 Author Share Posted July 16, 2015 Muswell - 2015-07-16 4:23 PM My local VW dealer works from 0730 to 1800 with staggered breaks too. France lives in a long bygone age! Even a local auto electrician who runs his business single handed works from 0730-1800hr Mon - Fri and Sat 0730 - 1300hr. Damned hard working guy and THE best auto electrician in my area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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