Since 13 July, the National Roadside Assistance Alliance has been holding talks with the leading companies in the sector, ruling out strikes and protests for the time being.
The National Roadside Assistance Alliance has now held around ten meetings with representatives of insurers, motoring clubs and roadside assistance platforms, with the aim of putting on the table the problems besetting roadside assistance in Spain. These meetings have been taking place since the first half of July to put forward proposals to improve the situation.
Xavier Martí, spokesperson for the Alliance, has described these weeks of intense work as “a serious process built on constructive and open dialogue on both sides”. In this regard, the members of the Alliance expect a written commitment, or some unequivocal statement -from insurers, clubs and platforms-, that guarantees peace in the roadside assistance sector.
Such a commitment, while negotiations are under way, would prevent the representatives of roadside assistance companies from taking more drastic measures, such as strikes and protests during the holiday departure and return operations. The Summer Departure Operation, which begins today, Friday 29 July, at 15:00 and will run throughout the weekend -30 and 31 July, 1 August-, will have roadside assistance tow trucks operating at full capacity. The second summer traffic operation anticipates 6.9 million journeys by road.
Price updates due to rising fuel costs
Both parties at the negotiating table are reportedly focused on the need to comply with current legislation on price updates due to rising fuel costs. This update is the foundation for an understanding that will allow progress on all the issues needed to guarantee the viability of roadside assistance companies. These include maintaining the resources to meet 24/7, 365-day demand, preventing the deterioration of the service and of road safety; and the occupational risk protection of tow-truck operators on public roads.
As for the average increase in rates, this would need to be between 8 and 12% on prices at the start of 2022. The mandatory regulations, however, are being applied only to a limited extent by some insurers and assistance platforms, which barely reach 3%. In this respect, there is still a great deal of room for improvement, Martí explained.
The National Roadside Assistance Alliance is made up of the following regional and national associations and business organisations: ABEAC (Balearic Islands), ABEAC (Basque Country), ASCA (Catalonia), AMEAC (Madrid), ANESAV (National), ASCALEAC, (Castile and León), ASEDA (Andalusia), ASEGA (Galicia), ASEXTEAC (Extremadura), GRUPO CARTER (National), CEPAS (National), FEGRUAL (National Federation) AGREGA-GRUAS and REAC (National Grouping).