Here is the honest answer first, because it is the one that saves you money: if you break down in a hire car, a courtesy car or a lease car, call the company whose name is on the agreement before you call anybody else.
That is not us being modest. Arranging your own recovery on somebody else’s vehicle can breach the agreement you signed, and it can leave you paying for a recovery that would have been free while the hire company sends their own operator anyway.
Why it works differently
When you break down in your own car, you decide what happens to it. When you break down in somebody else’s, you do not. The vehicle belongs to the hire company, the dealer or the leasing firm, and their agreement almost always says who may move it, who may work on it, and where it goes.
Most hire and lease agreements include breakdown cover as standard, because the owner has an obvious interest in controlling what happens to their asset. That cover is usually already paid for in what you are being charged.
What to do, in order
Get safe first. None of the paperwork matters compared with this. If you are on a motorway or a fast road, get off the carriageway if you can, get everyone out on the nearside, get behind the barrier, and call 999 first if the vehicle is in a live lane or anyone is hurt. Our motorway breakdown guide covers the detail.
Find the agreement. The number you need is usually on the rental paperwork, in the glovebox pack, or on a sticker in the windscreen or on the key fob. Lease and courtesy cars often have a card in the door pocket.
Call them and let them arrange it. Tell them where you are, what the car is doing and whether it is safe where it stands. They will either dispatch their own operator or authorise one.
Do not authorise repairs. Not a jump start that involves opening anything, not a tyre change, not a top-up. On somebody else’s vehicle, work you authorise can become work you pay for.
Write down who you spoke to and when. If there is a dispute later about delays or costs, that note is the only evidence you will have.
When it is genuinely your call
There are situations where an independent recovery is the right answer, and it is worth knowing which:
The hire company tells you to arrange it. Some smaller firms will ask you to organise recovery and reclaim it. Get that in writing, even a text message, before anyone moves.
The vehicle is causing an immediate hazard. If it is blocking a live lane, a junction or a tram route, it may need moving before anyone can reach the right department. Safety outranks paperwork.
You are being told to wait an unreasonable time in an unsafe place. Standing on a hard shoulder at night is not a place to wait four hours. Tell them that, and if they cannot improve it, say clearly that you are arranging recovery to a place of safety and record that you told them.
It is not a breakdown at all. If somebody has driven into you, that is an accident claim rather than a breakdown, and the position is different. Our guide to who pays for recovery after a non-fault accident explains it.
If it turns out to be our job. Where the hire or lease company asks you to arrange recovery, or where the vehicle needs moving to a place of safety first, DK’s Recovery covers Sheffield and South Yorkshire 24 hours a day. Tell us it is a hire or lease vehicle when you call on +44 7867 860723, because it changes the paperwork we need and where the vehicle is allowed to go.
Courtesy cars are their own trap
A courtesy car from a body shop or dealer while yours is repaired is often the least clearly documented of the lot. People frequently do not know who insures it, who covers it for breakdown, or who to call.
It is worth five minutes when you collect it: ask who the breakdown provider is, whether it is insured on their policy or yours, and what the excess is. Nobody ever regrets having asked.
The wrong fuel problem
Misfuelling deserves its own mention because it is the most common expensive mistake in an unfamiliar vehicle, and hire cars are unfamiliar vehicles by definition. You have driven a diesel for years and the hire car is petrol, or the other way round.
The rules are the same as in your own car and the first one is the important one: do not start the engine. Then tell the hire company, because misfuelling is very often specifically excluded from the cover included with the rental. Our guide to putting the wrong fuel in explains what happens next.
If it is your own car and the problem is a test rather than a breakdown, our practical guide to MOT testing covers what you can and cannot legally drive.
Vans and commercial hire
If you have hired a van, add two questions to the list: whether the cover extends to a loaded vehicle, and what happens to the load if the van has to be recovered. A van full of somebody’s house contents is a different problem from an empty one, and it is better answered before you set off than at the roadside. Our guide for van operators covers the same ground for businesses.
Frequently asked questions
Who do I call if a hire car breaks down?
The hire company, before anyone else. The number is usually on the rental paperwork, in the glovebox pack or on a sticker in the windscreen. Most hire agreements include breakdown cover already paid for in what you are being charged, and arranging your own recovery can breach the agreement.
Can I arrange my own recovery for a hire car?
Not usually, and doing so can leave you paying for a recovery that would have been free. The exceptions are where the hire company asks you to arrange it, where the vehicle is an immediate hazard, or where you are being told to wait an unreasonable time somewhere unsafe.
What if the hire company will not come for hours and I am somewhere dangerous?
Safety comes first. Tell them plainly that where you are is not safe to wait, and if they cannot improve it, say clearly that you are arranging recovery to a place of safety and make a note of who you told and when.
Am I liable for damage that happens during a breakdown?
It depends on the agreement, which is why authorising repairs or work yourself is risky. On somebody else’s vehicle, work you authorise can become work you pay for. Let the owner arrange it.
I have put the wrong fuel in a hire car. What now?
Do not start the engine, then tell the hire company. Misfuelling is very often specifically excluded from the cover included with a rental, so it matters that they know early and that the engine has never run.
What about a courtesy car from a garage?
Ask when you collect it who provides the breakdown cover, whose insurance it is on and what the excess is. Courtesy cars are frequently the least clearly documented, and the roadside is a bad place to find that out.
