paulob1 Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 Hi guys, I have been working on an idea for recovery of our precious toys for a long time now and things are sort of coming together. I had to recover a friends Gaz 66 over the weekend, it has cost him a small fortune and took all night and most of Sunday..we were called last and got him home...after a lot of hassle... So my thoughts are to start a recovery club. if we get enough people it should be viable to offer good support throughout the UK and just maybe Europe...but thats maybe for the future or maybe on a planned basis... my thoughts being that we will prioritize the club members. obviously our trucks are working on other jobs from time to time but its more of a service to our club members than a service for general use.... Anyway just gauging interest... no need to help with trucks under 3.5 tons and I think the RAC will do up to 7.5 tons nowadays but i am thinking for the bigger stuff... thoughts please... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulbrook Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 Autohome already do classic lorry recovery. When you go on their site it looks like they only cover up to 3.5t, but if you select the appropriate level in the drop down boxes you will see that other options are available. Over 16t (including drawbar and artics) runs out at £165 a year Here's the link: http://www.autohome.co.uk/content/classic-commercial-vehicle-rescue-only-9350-year They also do commercial vehicle breakdown and recovery - very reasonable rates too. I should add that I have nothing to do with them other than as a user of their services - and when I have needed them they have been really excellent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulob1 Posted September 30, 2015 Author Share Posted September 30, 2015 yes, AUTOHOME to my mind are the best out there price wise....however its 165 per vehicle, and they will only recover a truck, you have to register the trailer at extra money. They will try to fix you at the side of the road first commendable but not always possible. They have never recovered my vehicles, I was stuck at the side of the road for over 12 hours until I fixed the truck and we sped off, autohome couldn't really help... my ural broke down, it took them hours to get to us, by the time they had arrived I had worked out what was wrong, the police had put out bollards all around us and we didn't get any help from them... I had a breakdown on the m11, in the daf, with trailer fully loaded they sent a tilt and slide 7.5 tonner after about 5 hours...they did help us fix the fuel problem after 9 hours...but they were thinking they could tow us off the motorway with the 7.5 tonner...oops I am 40 tons worth... I have to add that of the lot Autohome are the cheapest and they were great when they had the multi-policy but now they don't. They only use local firms that are paid very little so you are very low priority...they are still great and everyone should have this as a minimum, but like me with over 70 trucks at 165 per truck...hmm maybe I will recover myself is how my head worked...and I can honestly say that with all the trucks I have it has always been quicker to call one of my boys than get the RAC or AA or Autohome to attend...I still have autohome. my service would be a service, you breakdown we come to get you..we drop everything else we are doing and we recover you home. This would be a priority service not secondhand service...anyway offer is there...PM me if you have any interest. just so you know we run a manned 24/7 operation, so you will always call someone who is awake and ready. we will come to you as fast as we can once we know what is the problem...we don't do punctures..but can do temporary repairs to some tyres to get you off the road, but we do have a lot of military wheels and we can usually provide a temporary spare if needed. We are Military enthusiasts so we understand the issues... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
datadawg Posted September 30, 2015 Share Posted September 30, 2015 yes, AUTOHOME to my mind are the best out there price wise....however its 165 per vehicle, and they will only recover a truck, you have to register the trailer at extra money. They will try to fix you at the side of the road first commendable but not always possible. They have never recovered my vehicles, I was stuck at the side of the road for over 12 hours until I fixed the truck and we sped off, autohome couldn't really help... my ural broke down, it took them hours to get to us, by the time they had arrived I had worked out what was wrong, the police had put out bollards all around us and we didn't get any help from them... I had a breakdown on the m11, in the daf, with trailer fully loaded they sent a tilt and slide 7.5 tonner after about 5 hours...they did help us fix the fuel problem after 9 hours...but they were thinking they could tow us off the motorway with the 7.5 tonner...oops I am 40 tons worth... I have to add that of the lot Autohome are the cheapest and they were great when they had the multi-policy but now they don't. They only use local firms that are paid very little so you are very low priority...they are still great and everyone should have this as a minimum, but like me with over 70 trucks at 165 per truck...hmm maybe I will recover myself is how my head worked...and I can honestly say that with all the trucks I have it has always been quicker to call one of my boys than get the RAC or AA or Autohome to attend...I still have autohome. my service would be a service, you breakdown we come to get you..we drop everything else we are doing and we recover you home. This would be a priority service not secondhand service...anyway offer is there...PM me if you have any interest. just so you know we run a manned 24/7 operation, so you will always call someone who is awake and ready. we will come to you as fast as we can once we know what is the problem...we don't do punctures..but can do temporary repairs to some tyres to get you off the road, but we do have a lot of military wheels and we can usually provide a temporary spare if needed. We are Military enthusiasts so we understand the issues... I'm not even in UK, so my feedback is pretty much useless from standpoint of being prospective customer, but I think it's a good idea. The real issue is whether the service will charge based on "market" rates and how logistics work out. If I break down in London and you are in Manchester, clearly you can't provide service - unless you subcontract someone else or have a network. And in that case, you become essentially a dispatch service, offering coordination as the main value added. If you are essentially a middle man between the ultimate recovery agent and vehicle owner, then you either have to charge the owner more or pay the agent less, in order to feed your overhead/profit. That's the conundrum. Here in USA, AAA has this model for regular vehicles, and they basically pay the towing service nothing. The towing service only does it to have a captive customer for doing repairs, since once they bring you to their garage, you are most likely getting the repair there. And then they recapture their loss on the tow. With MV owners, the AAA model is not likely viable, on many levels. AAA covers the person, not the car, so if you have 5 cars you are covered. It sounds like you are thinking of the same thing, except that with MV you now have multiple breakdown probabilities if multiple vehicles are involved. So the fee structure has to recapture the exposure, else you will go out of business. I think the theory is nice. I would definitely pay to have peace of mind that if I break down, I can call one number and not sweat it out on the side of the road. I'm just not sure it's possible to design a system where both provider and user of the service have a fair pricing structure if it's based on a single pay system. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simon jameson Posted September 30, 2015 Share Posted September 30, 2015 Keep me in mind as Northumberland/Cumbria Network operator if this service takes off Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulob1 Posted October 1, 2015 Author Share Posted October 1, 2015 Yes this is a club, where ever you start from a vehicle has to either get you thee or get you back. if you start in manchester and finish in London but want to get back to Manchester then the vehicle is travelling a good distance one way or another. My thoughts are that this is a paid service but is a very specialist service. you wont be sitting there wondering if someone with the right kit is coming.... someone will be coming... I am just gauging interest initially... so far I have a handful of interested parties... keep PM'ing me if interested. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Shopland Posted October 2, 2015 Share Posted October 2, 2015 Nice idea but I wonder how practical it would be? Modern rules and regulations tend to make things difficult. Hi guys, I have been working on an idea for recovery of our precious toys for a long time now and things are sort of coming together. I had to recover a friends Gaz 66 over the weekend, it has cost him a small fortune and took all night and most of Sunday..we were called last and got him home...after a lot of hassle... So my thoughts are to start a recovery club. if we get enough people it should be viable to offer good support throughout the UK and just maybe Europe...but thats maybe for the future or maybe on a planned basis... my thoughts being that we will prioritize the club members. obviously our trucks are working on other jobs from time to time but its more of a service to our club members than a service for general use.... Anyway just gauging interest... no need to help with trucks under 3.5 tons and I think the RAC will do up to 7.5 tons nowadays but i am thinking for the bigger stuff... thoughts please... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulob1 Posted October 7, 2015 Author Share Posted October 7, 2015 Modern rules and regulations? We run a recovery business we know the rules and regulations thanks. We are not offering an illegal service...there is always someone. I will offer the service to those who have taken an interest. Just let me know if anyone else wants to join... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gas 44 Posted October 7, 2015 Share Posted October 7, 2015 Modern rules and regulations? We run a recovery business we know the rules and regulations thanks. We are not offering an illegal service...there is always someone.I will offer the service to those who have taken an interest. Just let me know if anyone else wants to join... I dont think he was trying to be dufficult. I did't read it that he implied you were offering an "illegal service" just that things are not maybe as easy as they used to be. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Markheliops Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 I have always used Autohome and can only report their service as excellent. I blew an engine on the Ward La France pulling the Love Trailer and they came out, hitched me up and took me home without any extra charges. Twice as it happens. Failing that, I know some heavy owners use RAC Commercial as a cover. Paid by the hour but at least you know you won't be left at the side of the road. What's your recovery firm Paulob1 - I'll stick in my phone just in case as I'm not with Autohome anymore. Regards Markheliops. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gas 44 Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 I have always used Autohome and can only report their service as excellent. I blew an engine on the Ward La France pulling the Love Trailer and they came out, hitched me up and took me home without any extra charges. Twice as it happens. Failing that, I know some heavy owners use RAC Commercial as a cover. Paid by the hour but at least you know you won't be left at the side of the road. What's your recovery firm Paulob1 - I'll stick in my phone just in case as I'm not with Autohome anymore. Regards Markheliops. Out of interest and the fact you are singing the praises of Autohome why are you not with them now ? Not a loaded question just interested. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Markheliops Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 Out of interest and the fact you are singing the praises of Autohome why are you not with them now ?Not a loaded question just interested. I was a member with Autohome for around 4 years whilst I drove my Ward LaFrance and living van to various shows. For the last few years I have been using my S26 unit and low loader carrying the Chieftain ARRV. Gross train weight 82 tonnes. Autohome are pretty good - but not that good! If I came a cropper with that outfit A Long Recovery is on my speed dial! If I were still driving the Ward to shows, I'd still be with Autohome. As said, I've never had any issue with Autohome and I think they are good value for money! Markheliops Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cosrec Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 just a quick one I think but not 100 per sure A long is agent for auto home what ever all the original poster is trying to achieve is all ready in place if they take you on they will find some one who can do job. So rather than start new club offer to those clubs services that exist an extension to there services eg obsolete tyre sizes chance of unobtainable spares/ or even if they want to be dragged up the motorway on a pole at 35mph Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulob1 Posted October 15, 2015 Author Share Posted October 15, 2015 If I did not have my other machines I would still be with autohome but after three episodes of some very very long waits on the sides of the road...You now have to do cover each vehicle its not cheap for all my vehicles. They don't have their multiple vehicle policy any more that was the real killer blow.. Cosrec, pardon ? As I said those who are interested PM me those who are not, no problem. Its your choice, that is the way of the world. Sometimes you cant help people no matter how hard you try... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gas 44 Posted October 18, 2015 Share Posted October 18, 2015 I was a member with Autohome for around 4 years whilst I drove my Ward LaFrance and living van to various shows. For the last few years I have been using my S26 unit and low loader carrying the Chieftain ARRV. Gross train weight 82 tonnes. Autohome are pretty good - but not that good! If I came a cropper with that outfit A Long Recovery is on my speed dial! If I were still driving the Ward to shows, I'd still be with Autohome. As said, I've never had any issue with Autohome and I think they are good value for money! Markheliops Thank you for your answer, I now understand that is some weight...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ot-90 Posted October 18, 2015 Share Posted October 18, 2015 Paul, could you recover my drops with my ot-90 on it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stinkypete618 Posted October 18, 2015 Share Posted October 18, 2015 Paul, could you recover my drops with my ot-90 on it? Guess your up creak without paddle if you loose hydros and rack is stuck on! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Farrant Posted October 18, 2015 Share Posted October 18, 2015 Guess your up creak without paddle if you loose hydros and rack is stuck on! If you have a dead DROPS vehicle, you can unload with another one using connecting hoses from one to another. Just in case anyone does have a problem it might be worth knowing. I did it on the training course 25 years ago. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lowfat Posted October 18, 2015 Share Posted October 18, 2015 Hi Paul Could you have moved my 2 stollies from Norwich to newquay ? one runner one not? I just used Mr Crouch.. twas not cheap but 2 men a big rig and 400 odd miles all add up I guess Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulob1 Posted October 18, 2015 Author Share Posted October 18, 2015 Hi Neil yes we would move you first to somewhere safe, unloading where needed, or simply straight pull you. A dead DROPS, should be pretty rare with the right maintenance, things can break but they have a good record with no particular vices.. hauled two stollies from A&S, (never to use them ever again) to Guildford, without a problem... But I am not a haulier and I am sure crouchie did a fine job. The Daf is not efficient compared to more modern trucks...which will be getting over 10mpg fully loaded, the daf struggles to get 6 mpg empty, and will not do 5 when fully loaded. not cost effective...for ever 1 mile that means my cost is around 1 pound per mile before I start...at 10 mpg that reduces to 50p. I have use of a low loader and daf rig, its only a 20 ton low loader..he rents space on site and has offered me the use of it if needed, but I really need some modern hardware if we get to that stage...and so far I am just doing it for a small group of friends for now...the business work is again from people who know us... the 7.5 ton spec lift truck is regularly in use and very economical at about 15 plus mpg empty...my ideal truck would be one of the newer super efficient MAN trucks which I have heard are claiming around 12 mpg, fully loaded, that is amazing...we will see... locally I have a lot of gear, telehandlers, tractors cranes winch trucks etc...I use them all the time...well my staff do...i play now and again..although the new tractors are like lessons in electronics these days... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cosrec Posted October 19, 2015 Share Posted October 19, 2015 Hi I think if you are thinking of offering a recovery service you going to have to do better than that reply to get a good take up. the question was can you recover an 8 wheel drops with a load on its back yes or no My reply would be of course sir where do you want it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulob1 Posted October 19, 2015 Author Share Posted October 19, 2015 Are you blind cosrec, I know for sure you know a good deal about recovery but you cant read for jack.. Perhaps your drinking a bit too much... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ruggyjohn Posted October 19, 2015 Share Posted October 19, 2015 Hi I think if you are thinking of offering a recovery service you going to have to do better than that reply to get a good take up. the question was can you recover an 8 wheel drops with a load on its back yes or no My reply would be of course sir where do you want it why is it paulob1 seems to get up people's noses Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Degsy Posted October 19, 2015 Share Posted October 19, 2015 The same could be said about Cosrec but everybody is different and you can't please everyone all the time. I think sometimes people write something in a rather abrupt way without realising it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
N.O.S. Posted October 19, 2015 Share Posted October 19, 2015 The same could be said about Cosrec but everybody is different and you can't please everyone all the time. I think sometimes people write something in a rather abrupt way without realising it. Agreed. Sometimes you just have to read between the lines. I hope that if I was in trouble up in Cosrec Country (which would probably mean being bogged a long way from any tarmac and well out of reach of flash recovery trucks), I could rely on him to haul me out. And I hope that if I left a sad trail of oil and gears down in paulobland I could call him with confidence. :sweat::cellphone: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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