Imagine your frustration when your vehicle breaks down on the roadside to an important meeting; all you require then is breakdown cover to keep you going.

Breakdown cover, as it is commonly referred to in the UK, is essentially a service designed to help motorists, to quickly resume their stalled journey due to a mechanical failure of their vehicle.

In Europe, the National Automobile Association usually provides breakdown cover for its members. The major players in this industry not only provide services in the UK but also in Europe. Sometimes, the breakdown cover is sold as an add-on to motor insurance.

If you surf around, you can find some special discounts and offers, which the companies are offering.

Breakdown cover consists of roadside assistance, home assistance, onward travel, and vehicle recovery. It may not include problems due to empty fuel tanks or wrong fuelling (filling petrol into diesel tank or vice versa).

Roadside assistance may include jumpstarting a vehicle due to battery discharge, minor mechanical repairs, vehicle towing, opening vehicle doors after being accidentally locked out, changing flat tyres, or moving vehicles out of the snow.

Statistics show that the older your vehicle, the more chances of it having a break down. Therefore, it would make good common sense as well as economic sense to get vehicle breakdown cover.