Automobile Club of Southern California

In case you thought AAA was there for you in times of distress, I'v got news for you...My car broke down the Friday before Labor Day about 9:30 P.M. in Monrovia. I called AAA for help. A guy came out and before looking at my car, he told me I needed a new battery. I told him that AAA had just checked it two weeks prior and I was told it was a strong battery. I insisted that he look at it. He did and said it was the battery. He installed a "new" battery and the car didn't start. That's when he started hammering on my starter with a wrench. Finally the car started. I asked how I should pay for the "new" battery and he said "cash only". I told him I didn't have $120 cash and he pointed to a Chase bank across the parking lot. I asked him, "What if there wasn't a Chase bank close by?" and he said he'd have to follow me to an ATM. I insisted on paying by check or credit card for a long time before he finally relented. Cut to the next morning and my car wouldn't start. I called AAA again and I was told that the problem was with my starter. This AAA guy asked me what had happened to my starter as it had gashes in it. I had to have my car towed on Tuesday morning (as Monday was a holiday). My mechanic was not in to receive the car so the AAA driver recommended a "AAA certified mechanic". I said okay as I needed to get to work. Tuesday afternoon, I went to pick up my car with the new starter and there was an unbearable grinding noise when I started the car. The mechanic said it the sound was unavoidable as I had a chipped flywheel. I got in the car and drove it to my mechanic down the street; He told me that the problem was an INCOMPATIBLE STARTER and the flywheel was new as it had been replaced last year. To top things off he said the BATTERY WAS BAD, WHAT??? Apparently it was a used battery although AAA had charged me for a new one. I have explained this story four times to people at AAA, most notably to a supervisor named AVO and ABSOLUTELY nothing has been done. Calls are not acknowledged or returned. No action has been taken in nearly four weeks. Cut to tonight, my battery goes dead in a dark parking lot. The AAA guy said it was the "new" battery. He took it out and it was swollen like a balloon. He said he has never seen a battery look like that. Thanks AAA.

Everything worked out fine. The person that helped me was Carlos Valencia.

They have quick response time and the person who helped me seemed to know what he was doing.

They are off the charts. If you call them, they come out within a half hour. Before they come out, the company they contract calls you and tells you when they will be out. Whatever they do, it is superior. They tow you for free for fifty miles, that's all the time. If you needed one tow, it would triple pay for you membership.

I had already done some online research on our trip and had a pretty good idea of what we were looking for. The agent at AAA was helpful and I appreciated that she could offer first-hand information about our destination, as she had traveled there many time before. However, she was a bit older and appeared to have some difficulty navigating through the computer site (in fact, had to call another agent over to assist her). The price for the trip she offered was reasonably comparable to what I was finding online, however I learned that AAA uses Pleasant Holidays for their trips-and Pleasant only contracts with certain properties and airlines-therefore, the direct flight we were interested was not available for booking through AAA-nor was the major airline we were hoping to fly on. Plus-one of the resorts we were considering was not available through Pleasant/AAA. Due to the limitation of selection, we chose not to use AAA-however the experience in using AAA was pleasant-the agent was helpful-if we had not already known of the other options that were available outside AAA/Pleasant's contracted vendors, we would likely have been fine booking our trip with AAA.

Response has always been prompt, within a half hour. But service quality has varied. A few responders have been exceptionally kind and helpful, going out of their way to help me and any passengers get back on the road or to a car repair shop. But one was totally unhelpful, recharging my battery without informing me it was defunct, and sending me back out on the road only to have my battery die 5 miles later, stranding me in an inconvenient location. He had actually reported my defunct battery to headquarters but had not told me that my battery needed replacement not just a jump start. Still, all in all, service has been good and I plan to continue my membership for years to come.

I like that they now sell batteries. I don't want to waste having my car jumped when I could just put a new battery in. I am in conflict with them. I love the service that they provide. They are a money making enterprise and their interest is putting more cars on the road and getting more members. I am concerned about our earth. I like that they have a direct line to the DMV. You never know what towing company that they will send and what of level of expertise that they have. But they have saved me and rescued my car. I have have been a member for thirty seven years.

THEY WERE VERY LATE. I WAS WAITING FOR THREE HOURS. THEY SAID THEY WOULD BE THERE IN FORTY-FIVE MINUTES BUT IT TOOK THEM THREE HOURS! I WAS VERY DISAPPOINTED. BUT EVERYTHING ELSE WAS VERY HELPFUL AND FINE.