This is a picture of my brother-in laws car that I took yesterday. It happened as we were going back to his house and as I am a member of a certain breakdown service where the card member is covered no matter which car they are in so I called them at that is where the story starts. I briefly as I can this is the story.
Around 8pm the above happens.
After 10 minutes or so of “oh fuck” I call the ZZ (initials changed to protect the whatever)
15 minutes in a queue waiting to speak to a rep of this “emergency” service.
Gets through, very poor connection at other end can barely hear the guy, gives him the name of the road we are stuck on and spell it out twice, also give him the names of the other roads that connected on to it, yes we are broken down at a junction.
Statement from guy “Okay it is now 8:30 someone will be with you between now and 10:30″
Time passes Stuart goes back to the house (we were not far away) gets warm jackets and flasks of tea.
10:30 comes and goes.
10:50 mobile phone rings. ZZ emergency service rep. “Exactly where are you?” Spells out road name another three times. Gives general area other roads and the church we were outside and the school just up the hill.
Has a “Computer says no” moment, then “oh yes, found it” I will call you back.
Me being a naive idiot expects a call within 10 to 20 minutes.
An hour goes by.
Tries to call back, another queue thanking me for being patient with the ZZ emergency services. Battery getting low on phone.
I give my sister membership details and she calls them from the house.
They are experiencing “technical difficulties” and we had “fallen off the bottom of the screen”
It is being passed to a recovery services and someone will be with us in 45 minutes and the person my sister spoke to will call my mobile to confirm, she wasn’t just making it up ??!!
No call to confirm.
45 minutes passes, call from recovery service. “ZZ have given us very sketchy details, where are you?”
Gives road and the connection roads “Yep no problem, someone will be with you in 20 minutes”
5 minutes later another call from guy with tow truck low loader thing (you can tell I know my stuff!) I am on my way be there in 10 minutes, and he was.
Car on low loader thing, down the road, off low loader thing.
I pick up my car and get home at 2:25 am.
Guess which breakdown service will soon be getting replace, the whole episode persuaded Stuart to get breakdown cover, but by the end of the night it wasn’t going to be with the ZZ.
We were both heartened by the number of people who stopped and offered help and lifts, someone even apologized for not having any tea to offer us, which was frightfully British and sweet.