AAA worth it?
 

Hi,

I just got my renewal email for $172 which is long distance towing included. I have had it for 16 years and only have needed to be towed once in town.

I now have enough money/credit line to just pay for a tow if needed.

Are there good reasons to stay a member, is there some sort of guarantee that they would come get you in the middle of nowhere when a private company might decide it isn’t worth it or is a 200 mile tow a small fortune and I have no clue on price?

Peace of mind or risk tolerance.

Sounds like your risk is low.

I sold a civic last year and a 20 mile in town tow was 150$. 3 dollars a mile comes to mind.

Does your state use them for DMV business at the AAA offices? I got it just for vehicle registration things and it's well worth it.

Why is it $172? I have AAA Premier and it's $125. I get:
Towing up to 100 miles with 1 tow up to 200 miles
✔Vehicle Lockout service up to $150
✔$10K ID Theft Insurance with ID Theft Monitoring
✔4 Sets of Passport Photos
✔$25 off a AAA battery* purchase
✔Complimentary Rental Car with tow - One Free Day
+And all Plus Benefits

I used my 3 tows for the year already but they gave me one more for free getting an 01 Tacoma down to my shop.

The 200 mile tow is awesome.

Doesn’t your auto insurance cover tows? We had AAA years ago when one of our daughters took a car out to college in Texas. After we cancelled they continued to hound us to renew with one deal after another. Maps and “Trip-tics” are a thing of the past with GPS. I don’t think they’ll be around much longer.

I thought being a paying member was mandatory to maintain a lower premium.

Yes, but the city one is closer and works fine.

I don’t have insurance with them.

Good point, I need to pay my Porsche renewal this week and I will ask. Thanks!

Hi Shaun,

Just looked it up on the website and it says $166 a year for premier, the extra to make it $172 is probably tax. I do think that there are different “club” territories, so that could be the difference?

Or more likely, they give you the handsome boy discount!

Rutager

I think I must get the Brad Pitt/George Clooney discount. AAA Premier is $113 if I want it. lol

I needed a tow 12 miles to my Indy shop in Northern New Jersey. I had to wait 4 hours for the truck to show up. I’m reconsidering my AAA membership. Although, I did call several other towing companies while I waited and most went straight to VM.

We’ve had it probably for 15+ years and it’s coming handy several times. When Ms. Rocket’s Tahoe wouldn’t start recently, they came out several times and got it started. When I had a flat tire during rush-hour, they swapped out the tire for me.

That said, a couple years ago. I was about an hour and a half outside of Atlanta on the way home to Charleston, in the middle of nowhere, and after stopping at a rest stop, my 2014 F150 would not start. This was at at about 5:30 PM. I called AAA multiple times and a truck didn’t show up until about about 2 AM. We took it to a Ford dealer and he dropped me off at a hotel. Super nice guy, but the eight hour wait was ridiculous.

I think around town, you’re good to go. Out in the boonies, good luck!

If you were in California the best reason to have AAA is they have DMV services. Ever go to DMV in LA? Oh boy, long waits but there is a freak show to entertain you.

I also switched from State Farm to AAA and saved $2600/year on all my real estate and vehicles.

The only benefit I can think of is you would only have to call them no matter where you are and they then find the tow company rather than you having to try and find one that serves where you are stranded?

I believe in Murphy's Law so I've been paying the AA for decades. I know what would happen if I stopped.

It's triple A so throw in Chris Hemsworth for the trifecta.

Over a period of 30 years, I only used the towing twice. I mostly got a few maps, passport photos once, and did DMV a couple of times with therm. The towing did come in handy, but the total amount of use didn't come close to the membership outlay over the years. I cancelled mine a few years ago. My insurance covers the first $70 of towing, which isn't a lot.

If you have AAA car insurance you get the roadside coverage and towing for free. WIN WIN.

Definitely worth it for me. I use them for DMV services and got new auto insurance through them. I saved 4k for 2 cars for a year. They offer tons of services.

You better have good tow coverage if you drive a 928.

I had AAA for quite a few years....not sure, but I don't think I ever had to use it.

I checked with my State Farm agent and it was far cheaper to use their emergency road service.
I dropped AAA and haven't used State Farms either.

If you have TMobile, they give you one year free AAA.

I just did my insurance renewal and added coverage for $7 for six months. She told me what the coverage was and was upfront in saying it wasn’t as good as AAA, but it seems to have enough for my comfort.

This. I would leave California if I had to deal with the DMV

I have a time or two wondered why you have remained in CA. I just figured the wife made you cause of the grandkids & other family being close by.. All this time it has in fact been AAA's DMV services, who'd have thunk? :D

I've been with AAA forever for insurance plus Premier membership or whatever they call it, 200 mile towing/RV towing/the works. I'm sure that the cost varies somewhat from state to state.

I use them for most DMV transactions and it's a breeze but I have to tell you, I've been to my local DMV office a few times over recent years for things that needed to be done there and it did not live up to the hype presented here at all. I was in and out quickly, got excellent service and they even erased back penalties on vehicles that I've let sit unregistered due to lack of use, etc...

They can't do that at AAA, btw. Once again, no drama and no hassle at all. This was at the Hollywood DMV, big office on Formosa just south of Santa Monica Blvd. In LA, they separate out the drivers license and road test offices from the vehicle registration offices, this was the later. I've been there at least twice in the last year or so, both times were no issues at all. No freak show either, just people sitting in rows of chairs waiting for their number to be called. It went quickly.

Reality vs. the internet, I guess. :cool:

I've used the long distance towing twice over the years. It is well worth it.

Last flat tire was a puncture is in the tire shoulder, tire ruined, I'm now stuck on a two lane desert highway with a a sand shoulder.
Its a 110 degrees and its a 100 mile tow either direction. Being able to talk to a dispatcher through out the process for info and timing was as good as the tow service. Happy wife, happy life.

Moe's tire customer service resources are limited.

A friend who buys & sells cars frequently uses AAA to have cars flat-bedded from the seller's location to his place, as long as they're within the 100 mile limit.

They recently rescued my wife's car with a damaged tire on a winding mountain road. Truck showed up within an hour and had her back on the road pronto. We use their DMV services too...sure beats dealing with the brain-dead govt. employees working at the local office.

The people helping you at AAA with vehicle registration are DMV employees...same people, same training as the ones you are calling, "brain-dead."

Also, AAA will not tow cars that you just purchased or any vehicle that is not currently registered and broken at the time. He must be doing some serious lying if he's using it as a transport service.

Yes.

When the 356 died on me, they couldn't find an available flat bed and were prepared to roll one down from Valdosta (I'm 90 miles s. of Ga. border)

When my truck was stolen while I was camping, they were prepared to get me a place to sleep, etc. and when the truck was recovered they offered to pay any storage fees etc (there were none)

Just based on those two incidents I'll never be without. My son has used them quite a lot (to the point of he better not use any for a while...) and knowing my wife and daughter have it is great for peace of mind. Any tow around my parts will be 10 miles at a minimum....

Not true...they may have similar training but those folks are AAA employees.

I don't know what kind of story he gives them, but he's done it several times that I know of.