RACV Roadside Assistance

Recently I was travelling and stopped for a break and lost my car keys. Everyone at RACV that I spoke to were overwhelmingly kind and considerate. I would especially like to commend Matthew on his customer service,

Bad luck with a dead battery this morning at school drop off. Blessed with a current RACV ROADSIDE ASSIST membership. With less than a 25minute wait, The service agent was very helpful and reassuring with a holistic description of what to expect next. Jazz, the serviceman was so professional and had me up and running in no time, with sound advice on next steps.

Called on Friday to arrange a tow for vehicle unable to be driven for Monday morning. Was just told to call back as they "work on a live system" (why design a system and product like this when it's a reasonable and common scenario?), what I wasn't told is that there is a 3hr wait on Monday mornings. Imagine going to work and waiting 3hrs to have… Read more

your vehicle towed in potentially heat/cold/rain where your vehicle may not be able to run.

Terrible capacity planning when they're well aware of volumes. When they transferred me to complaints, I was given attitude when I simply summarised the above - that every consultant seems to know Monday's are busy but the complaints officer Liz advised they would all say this because they don't know how busy it will be - even though they all know Monday's are busy?

Come to think of it, despite paying for the service for 7-8 years, the other time we called heading to a wedding on a Friday night it also took 3 hours for the tow truck to arrive.

I've also been advised they've now changed the product construct, so you're no longer covered for any vehicle you drive, they want each car "nominated", so you have to nominate a relative or friend's vehicle before driving it. If you nominate more than 2, you need to pay ~$85 to upgrade the account. The next plan only allows for 3-5 vehicles, so if you nominate more you now have to pay for an additional plan of almost $400 on top. In addition, they now insist on a car coming out to check if you need a tow first before it's called, so count that 3 hour delay more like 5 hours.

This used to be a valuable product, now it's just a rort with poor capacity planning, poor customer experience with consultants that hang up on you because you're confirming that they knew there was a 3hour wait time Mondays but didn't want to tell you.

It feels like the product has become all about taking in as much revenue as possible and making it as hard as possible to actually get a call out unless you've got 5 hours to wait around each time.

I need to change my user name for this one because I was far from being disappointed. Recently, I required assistance twice within twenty four hours during late December 2025 and I found the service to be excellent. From their call centre to the technician, I found the attitude to be excellent and the response very fast. They acknowledged my long-term membership and went out of their way to help me.

I have CHERY roadside assistance and they sent Daniel out to change my flat tire. He was exceptional Came with 5 minutes and changed to the spare tire also gave me advice on getting new tire asap and not drive on freeways with spare tire Could not praise him enough. Jacque.

RACV road assistant helpful, and reassuring. They provided clear updates on arrival time, and the technician who helped me was professional, polite, and solved the issue quickly. It was such a relief to know I was in good hands. This service is absolutely worth it for the peace of mind alone.”

Had to call bc broke down in shopping centre carpark was told by the first man that answered it will be 30 minutes approximately as someone was nearby to help. This was not what happened. Sitting in the car waiting on a sizzling Sumner's day it was almost 3 hours and five phone calls later. Finally he shows up. The starter motor was shot so… Read more

nothing they could do it was going to be even longer for the wait for the tow truck. We had random ppl in the carkpark offering to help with jumper leads over that 3 hours bc they felt so sorry for us. Bc it was the starter motor there was nothing they could do to help us. But it was so kind of so many ppl who went out of their way to try to help us it was really amazing. I never knew how many kind ppl there were in this world it was incredible. The ppl of Keysborough are a kind lot and very friendly ppl. RACV on the other hand who should have been helpful they had us waiting far too long.

I've been a (roadside) member of this company for almost 30 years and I think in that time I might have used them perhaps twice. Earlier in the week I made a common mistake - being distracted I put unleaded in my Diesel ute. Realizing my mistake, I pushed the car into a vacant carpark and called a flatbed tow truck to get it home (about 10km) I… Read more

got it towed home knowing that this was in all likelihood going to be an expensive mistake and rather than take the first "wrong fuel" company that google showed, I'd thought it better to ring around and get a few prices. I settled on a local workshop (I'm rural) who quoted me a touch under $500 - other quotes were upwards of $800. Called the RACV, they absolutely will not take the car to the workshop as they say they will only take it back to their depot which also happens to be a mechanic that quoted over $950. THEY HAVE TO DRIVE PAST THE WORKSHOP I'D CHOSEN TWICE, to get here and back to their depot. Will not be renewing roadside care, absolutely useless.

Seriously so over calling these guys. EVERY tow truck driver and caller has a serious attitude problem. Could Shaz on the phones perhaps explain things to me in a calm and clear way, instead of giving me a tone and getting short with me?!

RACV. Why do we bother giving you make and model if it’s not even looked at when called for “assistance”??? Waited two hours for a basic battery replacement only to be told you won’t do it in that type of make/model. I mean what level of assistance do you think you have actually provided in this instance? Ai wouldn’t have stuffed it up.

My 18 year old daughter was stranded on the roadside when her car broke down tonight. She called RACV Roadside Assistance for help and was told that she was not covered, despite providing both her rego and membership number plus my details too. This is the second time this has happened in less than 2 months. She works part-time as she is still at… Read more

school and pays her racv membership for peace of mind and yet they tell her she is not covered when she needs them even though she is covered! She is 18 and to leave her stranded on the roadside when she needs help, when she is a roadside member who always pays on time, is extremely disappointing!

My battery was flat and I called the RACV who quoted $308 to replace it. I was outside Jacks Tyres so popped in there and they quoted $309 so I accepted the RACV price. However when I checked my credit card, I was billed $348. They added GST. I am a private person and retail prices include GST. I checked with Jacks Tyres and their price included… Read more

GST. RACV also state that they give members a 15% discount but they add on that amount first so are quite deceptive. There is no discount on the RRP in fact, they are more expensive !!

My sons car broke down on Saturday night and he wasn't with RACV. We picked him up as he was 30 kms from home, I advised him to join RACV, which he did and when he called today he was advised by a very rude lady on the customer service hotline that they could not help him as he had broken down before he had joined. She did not advise him that he… Read more

could pay the two years up front which he would have been happy to do so they could come out an look at his car. It clearly states on their website that if you have broken down, you can pay upfront on the spot and they will assist. How is it that she failed to pass on this information to my son? She advised that she could not help him in any way. He has now had to pay for a tow truck to collect his car and take it to the mechanic. Very poor service!

Called RACV last night in Mornington Saturday night very busy, waited just over an hour and the guy who came out was excellent, very friendly and courteous. He explained what the problem was, fixed it and we were on our way. Great service great guy.

Very poor refund of accommodation and towing after 9wks. Pickup of caravan and car good but very poor when still waiting for refund after 9 weeks. We had top cover as well

Be warned: Total Care is not "total care". I have Gold membership and have had good help from RACV with flat batteries, keys locked in cars, etc. But my recent experience left me very unhappy. Before starting a 5000 km road trip to Queensland recently I upgraded my Basic roadside assistance to Total Care. In central NSW on the way back to… Read more

Victoria, just after dusk a kangaroo jumped in front of the car and left me no chance to avoid it. The car was damaged and became undriveable. I called RACV for assistance, only to be told that Total Care is no different to Basic Care in the benefits, except that it operates interstate, not just in Victoria. It only applies to a breakdown, and does not help with accidents that make the car undriveable. As the RACV customer service person said on the phone, "it should be renamed, because it's not 'total' care." Unless you're insured with RACV, they won't help you. I was advised to call my insurance company, which I did and got the assistance I needed, but of course with a $1000 excess to pay. Not happy and will reconsider my ongoing membership with RACV when it comes up for renewal next, as my insurance company also offers roadside assistance.

Disgraceful behaviour they refused to refund me 1 and half years money after canceling policy because of new car comes with 10 years roadside assist they told me i cannot receive any money back. Court action will be coming their way after that rude customer service if you can call it that, ombudsman also are getting involved. They are theives and their roadside assist is crap most of these guys do not know what they are doing.

I am incredibly disappointed with the ongoing lack of accountability and response regarding damage caused to my vehicle by a tow truck engaged through RACV. The incident occurred on 14 April, when RACV was called to tow my car from a staff parking area due to a tyre issue. During the towing process, the tow truck driver hit my vehicle, causing… Read more

visible damage.

I reported the incident promptly and have followed up multiple times over the past several weeks. Despite back-and-forth communication, I have still not received any resolution. I even provided video evidence from the premises’ CCTV clearly showing the tow truck driver hitting my car – this was confirmed by security staff on site.

Despite all of this, the tow company has been difficult to deal with, and RACV has not taken responsibility or even responded to my latest communications. It has now been over a week since my most recent contact, with no reply or update whatsoever.

This experience has left me extremely frustrated. I expected better service and accountability from RACV and the third-party companies they engage. As a long-time customer, this level of disregard is unacceptable.

I had an issue after having a coil replaced on my Honda Civic the error code remained on. I called the RACV and was told 1 to 1.5 hours wait. This wasn't an issue as I was staying home anyway. The mechanic arrived in about 10 minutes, as he had completed a job nearby and fixed the issue promptly. Some things never change and one of them is the excellent service provided by RACV Roadside Assist...

We broke down while travelling interstate and were relieved when an RACV worker arrived quickly. Unfortunately, the experience went downhill from there. He was rude, dismissive, and, quite frankly, sexist and misogynistic. He immediately assumed the breakdown was our fault, questioned whether we (three women) even knew how to check our oil, and… Read more

offered no real assistance.

We were left confused, upset, and still stranded, on an active lane of traffic. With no local knowledge of Melbourne mechanics, we were relying on support, but instead, he got back in his car and drove off without a word. We had no idea if a tow truck had been called and had to ring roadside assistance again just to find out what was going on.

In a stressful situation, kindness and communication go a long way. This experience was deeply disappointing. I wish I had his name to share. RACV, please do better.

My 1981 car "failed to proceed", suspected ignition coil, none available where I was on Phillip Island. RACV could not fix (understandably). No quibble. Flat bed to a friend's house (just within 100 km) and then a few days later when I had it booked in to a workshop I trust, RACV took it by flatbed another 40 or km. I was asked if I needed a hire car or a motel but I didn't. Perfect.

Be aware, batteries are definitely expensive that buying from the store, however this include installation the battery. If you mention that you can get battery cheaper, the staff will try lure you by saying RACV price match and will refund the money to the card you paid with. This is totally false and if your vehicle is parked in the garage and… Read more

you can get a battery and install yourself do not get caught to this gimmick. Complained to RACV and the response was pretty pathetic.

I have been with you service for many years when I ring up the lecture me to be even though I have paid my yearly thing rather than come out and do their job if it wasn't for you guys been in the main one I would go elsewhere.

Really unhappy with the changes to total care roadside assistance with zero consultation with MEMBERS. First I heard of not being covered in any vehicle I drive was the invoice for nearly $300 renewal - called up and directed to pay on app and manually add only 2 standard vehicle and family members (I don’t to be paying for others memberships -… Read more

was happy with previous product where I had one chosen car covered and any car I drove). What has really annoyed me is the lying from staff who said “all our customers” asked us to change it. Total nonsense obviously and more than a month after paying I am receiving harassing ‘overdue’ letters by post and on RACV stupid app. Lodged a formal complaint and nobody even bothered to respond. Was about to switch multiple insurances. Won’t be nor renewing membership again. Waste of money and crappy service.

the consummate pro arrived within twenty minutes to salvage my out of breath hummer . jim papa is the sweetest most knowledgeable grease monkey I’ve ever encountered. not only did he change the battery in my H3 immaculately, jim analysed my car thoroughly to ensure safety & contingency of my vehicle. RACV’s jim papa is an exemplary gentleman who will leave you with your motor running & a smile ..

We broke down near Heywood vic, the guys from Portland racv depot attended in good time frame, provided excellent Customer Service. Vechicle was repaired and they even washed the ute before we picked it up. Very happy with everything, guys were professional and polite, thankyou.

Would give 0 star. Tire split, my partner needed it changed. She waited 3 hours then called back and they cancelled without telling her. What a joke. They think it's uber eats and can just cancel jobs

Just tried to upgrade by phone as things have changed at RACV - was told I had to pay there & then on the phone or upgrade would not be accepted. I said I pay at the post office with a paper renewal by cash, as I have done for many many years for my total care. RACV is next to useless now. 30/4/2025 - Have tried 4 times via the phone to renew… Read more

because racv have sent "PAPER" renewal notice that they say cannot be done - BUT AT THE WRONG price - no matter what i try they say despite sending the paper renewal i cannot renew and this is a computer error . Have now had " THREE " different prices for the new cover they have invented that would replace my previous cover = YES = 3 DIFFERENT PRICES for the same total care cover . They also say it CANNOT be sent out via a paper renewal yet they have sent "TWO" additional notices SO FAR ?? . Racv is awful now - if a minus score could be given it would be -10 - i WISH there was an alternative to racv because they are really awful to deal with now.

How disgusting is this by racv my wife and daughter on Friday had a issue with her Honda hrv she had a gone over the gutter at 80 km and damaged her car tyer big split had a some one come out from racv he didn’t even wanted to help wife’s car battary went flat because she had her hazard lights on for so long and flattened the battery he didn’t… Read more

even offer to give her a jump start or offer to change the tyer all he did was pass it on to another guy to tow her home how pathetic is that