Anybody who has ever been stranded on the middle of the motorway in a broken down car will be able to tell you about the value of paying for road-side assistance services. These services cover everything from simple mechanical fixes, to car-tows for more serious situations. Most of the companies who provide this service have quite far reaching areas of operations, with the two biggest being RAC and AA. They need big areas of operations, as they are covering their customers travel areas. The way you decide upon which is the best depends upon their network of staff, and the speed with which their support staff works. Breakdown cover can be paid for through a variety of ways. The two main ones are where you pay for a membership monthly, and get coverage whenever you want, or you just pay for individual breakdowns. The second option will usually cost anywhere from £30-£50 each time, where you will receive basic mechanical assistance and car-tow if necessary.