Community Forums

Hudsoner · 02-17-2011, 07:12 PM

To reopen this thread again. I am just at the point to make the decision with which service to take. did Good Sam improve over the last years? or is Coach-Net still the better ERS?

What would you do?

Bob and Inga · 02-18-2011, 05:27 AM

Hudsoner,

We had Good Sam ERS for our first 3 years on the road, called them a couple of times with no problems and I have no complaints about them at all.

But I made the switch to Coach-Net after attending a seminar held by them at an FMCA Rally. The big thing with Coach-Net is that they will say 'we don't want to tow you, we want to get you back on the road again'. I like that attitude. I had a problem once with a jack that was not retracting, I called Atwood (they made our jacks) and ended up talking with someone at Coach-Net. Turns out that Atwood's tech support is contracted out ot Coach-Net which has a team of RVDA certified technicians available 24/7. I like having that resourse available as well. So if you have something like a jack problem or slide problem you have a technician available to help walk you through some of the things that can be checked and possibly corrected by the DYI method. Worst case they will help locate a mobile RV service to dispatch to you at your cost.

In the event of a tow, Coach-Net pays for both a drive shaft disconnect as well as the cost of the reconnect.

They also have an emergengy messenger service in the event that someone needs you get ahold of you ASAP and your somewhere like in Big Bend NP which is miles from anywhere and has zero cell / TV / radio reception they will get the message to you.

FMCA has partnered with them as well, so for us folks with class A's I feel that Coach-Net is the best way to go. Hope this info helps,

Bob

Hudsoner · 02-18-2011, 05:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bob and Inga

. Hope this info helps,

Bob

Bob
Thank you for the detailed explanation!

begete · 02-18-2011, 10:44 AM

At the moment, we have no separate Emergency Service for our RV because when we purchased Good Sam insurance for the motorhome, and I read what was covered, it appears that towing to a service facility, tire changes, battery charges, unlocking, etc. is already covered by the insurance, so I could not see the point in paying for ERS twice. I actually called the insurance company to verify that all of this was covered, and not just in the case of an accident, so why are you all paying for ERS? What do you get from ERS that is NOT covered by your insurance?

Fred and Bonnie · 02-18-2011, 03:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by begete

At the moment, we have no separate Emergency Service for our RV because when we purchased Good Sam insurance for the motorhome, and I read what was covered, it appears that towing to a service facility, tire changes, battery charges, unlocking, etc. is already covered by the insurance, so I could not see the point in paying for ERS twice. I actually called the insurance company to verify that all of this was covered, and not just in the case of an accident, so why are you all paying for ERS? What do you get from ERS that is NOT covered by your insurance?

Seems strange that Good Sam's web information makes no mention of any roadside assistance coverage in their RV Insurance Policy.

Are you sure you don't have auto coverage on your RV?

Fred

Monacoach · 02-18-2011, 05:11 PM

Quote:

What do you get from ERS that is NOT covered by your insurance

We have roadside coverage through our insurance company but it is quite limited so we chose to go with Good Sam. Also in the event of a break down who do you call? I call Good Sam and they make all the necessary calls to the area of my break down. My insurance company will reimburse me I believe up to 250 dollars for towing and a few other things but like I said, I would not know who to call for help.

Fred and Bonnie · 03-04-2011, 07:04 PM

Rather than hijack this thread, I'll start another
fred

denochs · 03-04-2011, 07:18 PM

This is our second year with National Interstate Ins. They included Coach-Net in with the policy this year that was not there last year. No increase in premium either. I called to make sure of the coverage and for sure we have the full Coach-Net roadside assistance.

We've never had to use roadside assistance of any type thus far.

Dave

Wayne MD · 03-04-2011, 10:48 PM

The use of Camping World ERS treated me well. Had used them 3-4 times and in all cases, treated well. Tows arrived in due time, and the service reps called to ask if we were doing o.k. and at end requested we do a survey for the service we got. I had thought I was with GS but my card states Camping World . HMMM//

jsabatinos · 03-04-2011, 10:56 PM

Have used both Good Sam and Coach Net since 2004. I have noticed a SIGNIFICANT decline in the capability of Good Sam especially at the time of the initial call. THe folks on the other end of the phone have very little clue about Class A MHs. Coach Net has been 100% every time. I have cancelled my Good Sam Platinum

Kayjulia · 03-07-2011, 09:39 AM

I had GS ERS once and they left me on my own after a storm and never called back I cancelled. Now have Coach Net, the first time we called they responded well and got a tire guy out to us in a very reasonable time. The second time was a different story the lady on the phone and her supervisor couldn't find the rig on their map, we were on I-20 mile post 56. They didn't know that towing the rig to a Cummings repair shop wasn't going to work for a Class C with a gasoline motor, which they were told several times that we had. Then they said it was all they could do and hung up.
A lot of these services have consolidated their call in points and hired people with no RV experience and they haven't trained them well to respond to customers needs. I believe this is to save money on labor costs. The bottom line is you never know who is going to answer the phone and what level of service your going to get with these companies anymore.
Good Sam annoyed the heck out of me with all the mailings even after I dropped them. Every once in a while I still get mail from them and it has been years.

tnau · 03-09-2011, 05:56 PM

I've had GSERS for three years and used it the first and second time in December, on the same day. I could not be more happy with the service. The customer service representatives were informed and helpful. One let me hang up while she researched a responder, and called to check if they had gotten there on time. Both companies that responded were prompt and gave awesome service, including 2 tires changed on the side of I20 in LA. I'm sure there are bad service companies and misunderstandings with carriers, but I'll keep by GSERS as long as I own a Motorhome.

SteveR161 · 03-10-2011, 08:16 AM

Just wanted to chime in. Have used GS ERS for 13 years and have no complaints. The most trying experience for us was a MH breakdown on I-65 just south of Montgomery, Al. Both the ERS and tow company kept in touch with us throughout the wait time. We were towed to a campground as the service center was closed and unsafe to park at night. We were also offerd a tow to the service center on the Monday AM, but we were able to limp over to the service center on our own power. All in all no complaints with GS ERS and I'm sure the cost of our last experience has paid for all 13 years of ERS service.
Breakdowns are part of RVing. They make great campfire stories.

MegaRoadie · 03-10-2011, 09:14 AM

Have had AAA PLUS with RV Option, Coach-Net, and now Rt-66 ERS. So far no need for Rt-66 on our coach. Past experience with Coach-Net was positive, if just a tad slow, but maybe that was due to being in the Boondocks along the Oregon Coast.
AAA has been both great and dismal... leaning towards great for the majority of time until a breakdown/Engine failure left us stranded along Hwy19 8 miles South of Chiefland, Florida at 7:15 pm. Now, it was on Dec 29th, and I admit the road was near devoid of traffic, but the "original responder" took over 2 1/2 hours to arrive and when he did he had a flatbed that would have made the tow well over 15 feet high !!! This after very clear description of my rig, Chevy C/K 3500 with 11 ft LANCE Camper aboard !!! He spent almost an hour trying to describe what was needed to his "dispatcher", measured and looked, measured and walked around as if this would resolve the basic size of it all and make it perfect... all of course to no avail. He offered to take us to Chiefland to a motel but we had two small dogs and many valueables in the rig that I did NOT want to leave along this desolate road. He tried to convince me to leave the camper there and let him tow the truck which was completely unagreeable to me. When I asked if he could at least tow us 1/8 mile down the road to a pullout area with safer place to be "OFFROAD" he refused and simply got back in his truck and left us there. So much for Southern Hospitality :(

I recalled AAA, explained the tow operator's antics and was told to "Please stay in a safe place and be patient while they looked for an appropriate tow service." At 10:15 pm the AAA office called, said they were unsuccessful in finding a "boomtruck" on their network that would respond and do the tow the correct way. I was advised that I could call a service in Invernes, Fl, pay over $1100.00 out of pocket and they would reimburse the entire cost to me with proper receipts and validation. I weighed the options, verified I was safely off the roadway and shoulder, even with room to extend my slideout so I decided to NOT pay an unreasonable operator who I felt was taking advantage of the situation, advised AAA of the same, called the local sheriff's office and had a note put on the road patrol division of my location, put out my breakdown safety triangle markers, set the stabilizer jacks, fired up the generator, had a late night snack, walked my dogs and turned in for a night's rest with my 1911 at the headboard.

I had a local Ford Dealer Service Mgr stop to see if he could help in any way. The sheriff's deputy stopped and verified all was well, and that we were safe and legal, and that we were on the docket to drive-by every now and again. This restored my Southern Hospitality beliefs and I actually had an almost peaceful sleep.

Next morning a very professional and courteous operator, named Kenny, from Scally's Lube & Go in Dunellon, Fl arrived with a BoomTruck, disconnected the driveshaft on truck, and carefully towed me the final 60 miles to local Chevy Dealer in Spring Hill.. He reconnected the driveshaft and even gave me, the wife, and my two dogs a ride to our home while we awaited the repair verdict on the rig. What a wonderful experience after a night of failures. Having the AAA PLUS with RV Option that includes free up to 150 mile tow was a definite plus. Highly recommend this as a cost effective option. Fingers crossed that the Winnie is trouble free but always feel secure knowing that 35 years of AAA Membership experience is behind me keeping the wind at my back !