Gem Motoring Assist

...of road accidents. Even today, GEM Motoring Assist today is the UK's leading driver based road safety association and has over 65,000 members. As a member you sign a charter to say you agree to drive with care, courtesy and concentration.

GEM also puts it's money where it's mouth funding campaigns for the introduction of laws to allow random breath testing, better testing of drivers' eyesight and encouragement for drivers to improve ...
...and reclaims as appropriate from GEM Motoring Assist

But your membership also provides a range of other bonuses!

FREE keycare for new members means that if you lose your keys and they are not handed in with the incentive of claiming a reward from a number on your Keycare keyring, you can claim up to £300 towards:

Replacement locks, keys and locksmith charges when keys are lost or stolen. Up to 3 days car ... more

Breakdown cover is fast becoming an everyday necessity with ever more feature packed cars meaning even more things can go wrong with it.

And if I asked how many people knew how to change their tyre in the case of a flat - I would be very surprised if that figure was over 50%.

That's why breakdown companies are growing in popularity today - and the number of companies offering such services is also on the rise.

I've been a member of a few in my time - Britannia, RAC, AA and Green Flag. The one thing I've always found is that the larger the organisation, the worse the service they provide has tended to be.

I suppose it only makes sense when companies are so large they are always going to trade on their reputation to an extent - rather than the service they provide.

But in my case I'm always looking for a company that always delivers what it promises at a decent price.

It was by sheer luck that I came across GEM. How many people have heard of them let alone seen any advertising for their services?

And yet as soon as i hit upon their website by some sheer fluke, I knew I'd found a company I could believe in.

The company has a long history in the UK and was first established way back in 1932 to combat the increasing number of road accidents. Even today, GEM Motoring Assist today is the UK's leading driver based road safety association and has over 65,000 members. As a member you sign a charter to say you agree to drive with care, courtesy and concentration.

GEM also puts it's money where it's mouth funding campaigns for the introduction of laws to allow random breath testing, better testing of drivers' eyesight and encouragement for drivers to improve their skills by undertaking an experienced driver assessment.

Its breakdown service started a little later on in 1978 and has cornered a niche market for low cost, responsive cover.

There are three cost effective levels of cover to choose from, but unlike many other motoring organisation all cover is issued on a personal basis so no matter vehicle the named person(s) is in will be covered.

You also pay a flat fee therefore - no hidden charges for cars over a certain age.

And if you want to cover more than just one person in your family, you can do so for as little as an extra £15.

The three levels of cover are:

Roadside Assistance (from £28 online) provides 24 hour roadside assistance or recovery to local garage or members home address within 15 miles of breakdown

Recover Extra (from £70 online) provides comprehensive service, includes roadside assistance, recovery anywhere in UK, home assistance, onward travel and emergency accommodation

Recovery reclaim (from £52 online) provides as for Recovery EXTRA, but member pays attending garage, travel or accommodation charges and reclaims as appropriate from GEM Motoring Assist

But your membership also provides a range of other bonuses!

FREE keycare for new members means that if you lose your keys and they are not handed in with the incentive of claiming a reward from a number on your Keycare keyring, you can claim up to £300 towards:

Replacement locks, keys and locksmith charges when keys are lost or stolen. Up to 3 days car hire when stranded due to loss or theft. Cover for locksmith charges if your keys are locked in your home, office or car - up to the value of £25 per callout.

And it doesnt stop there. You also get a quarterly magazine, Good Motoring; free road safety and motoring advice, discounts on many services such as insurance and vehicle checks.

And whats the service like - well the one time I've had to use it I was extremely pleased.

I have the Recovery Extra tariff for £70 and had to call them out when I was in a mates car, she got a flat and remembered she hadn't fixed the spare tyre from when that ran flat nearly a year ago.

My call was answered within 3 rings by an operator who was polite and helpful and didnt sound like he couldnt wait to get home.

The recovery vehicle itself turned up after little more than 25 minutes and the mechanic not only smiled but didnt make us feel like idiots for not being prepared!

The magazine itself whilst not being the main reason I joined provides up to date information with the campiagns GEM are pushing.

And whilst I thankfully havent had to use Keycare it was a nice little freebie thrown in.

All in all I can recommend them highly enough.

Visit their website if you are interested in joining http://www.motoringassist.com/ 

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