AARP Roadside Assistance Reviews

Let me begin by saying The Hartford has the absolute worst representative and the worst website I have ever encountered. Second, I experience two flat tires right at the entrance to the highway with my daughter strapped in a car seat. I called the roadside service that I'm supposed to be covered for, and they were total disaster. First, they said I wasn't covered. Then, after multiple calls, they kept transferring me to 911. To top it off, they told me I had to pay for the towing, which I did at 10:20 am. After waiting for four hours with no one showing up, I made my own calls and managed to get someone to come with 20 minutes flat.

My experience with the service has been horrible. I tried to get a jump start today for my car but in the end I could not request service without paying $92 up front with my credit card. In addition, the app I used asked for my membership number, which is 11 digits, but it would only accept 10 digits. So, in order to complete the request I dropped the leading digit, a 0, and it took. I called AARP Customer Service to complain, and they seemed unsure if I was even still in the program.

I have been an AARP Premium Nationwide Roadside Assistance since 2001. Today was the first time I needed their assistance to assist me with a dead battery. It took them over an hour and a half to respond. The weather was clear and I was located in a very accessible part of town. I told the dispatcher that I needed quick response because it’s a wheelchair van and my wife was in a wheelchair in the van. The dispatcher told me it could take up 80 minutes before someone would be at my location. When assistance finally arrived it was a person in a car. He was nice a got me started. My complaint is with the response time not the responder.

If I could give half a star I would. The worst experience ever. They promote same-day service and when I called for service, they hit you with a same-day fee of $125. Now experiencing the need for roadside assistance, I’ve been waiting for 1 hour and 40 min and no text notification like they say they will provide you with. I don’t know what happened to this company, but they are not what they used to be. The service is mediocre. I wouldn’t recommend this membership to anyone I care about.

A few years ago, I called for Lock out service for a folb. They had no service and told me to find one myself and they would reimburse me gave me an address to send the receipt. I did and never got reimbursed. This time around May 7 2025 I called for a tow about 2 miles to my service center. They never came and the next day they do not have service in Fairfax VT. Then they told me to find my own and they would reimburse me. I did not fall for it. I can not wait to cancel after being a member for 14 years.

In November, 2024, I had an accident with my car. By some miracle, no one was hurt. I immediately called AARP at a few minutes after 9 a.m., and the dispatcher said a tow truck would be there in about an hour. An hour later, a friend arrived to take me home. Over the next three hours, she and I repeatedly called AARP and the towing company, National Roadside Services, at least seven times. Each time except the last, NRS basically lied and said a truck would be there in 5-10 minutes.

AARP seems to be totally detached from whatever situation that is occurring. The automated assistance does absolutely nothing. After waiting for over an hour for a tow, I received several texts from AARP saying that the truck would arrive in 5 minutes. These texts continued for 1 hour and 40 minutes so far. Their tracking system consists of a dot that says driver is on the way. Still waiting.

My keys got locked in car when I parked at my gym. I contacted AARP Roadside Assistance through the app at 3:10 pm and got an arrival time of between 3:50 and 4:20 pm. No one came -- also no updates in the app. I called the responder's number that was provided in the app and was promised that someone was on the way and would meet me in 30 minutes. Again, no one showed up and no updates in the app.

One would think something like AARP would make sure they partner with a company that actually does what it advertises. I've had this service for 5 years and never needed it until today. Coming back from taking my daughter and her friend to college orientation, I and 3 other vehicles hit a pothole that burst our tires. I call the number, it says to request service through the app for faster service. I do so, and it tells me the provider will be there in 2 hours! Okay, it's been raining so I guess there are lots of tow calls. Have my husband come pick up the kids and take them home while I wait on the tow truck. 2 hours comes and goes and still no truck. Contact the roadside assistance, they say the provider is delayed and it will take another hour, hour and a half!

5 year clients. Our annual renewal date is July 1st. Our bank account is drafted monthly on the 3rd. Today, which is July 2nd, we broke down on the side of the road. Tow service was refused allegedly because my annual program renewed yesterday and my draft hadn't processed yet for this month even though I've paid for the Last 5 Years including last month (June), which should have carried me through July 3rd. Last a couple of Senior Citizens basking in the heat on the side of the road for over 3 hours while I spoke to every foreign supervisor they employ with no luck. Allegedly our monthly payments carry us for 30 days except the last month before your renewal. They wanted me to spend $300 through them for the tow and then wait up to 6 weeks for reimbursement. AAA, here we come.