I’ve had AAA for probably 20 years and have used them about 3 times in the past. A couple times when my vehicle was disabled at home (battery issues mainly) and once on the road (stuck in some sand off the road). Today, was the first time that I could say I was stranded in a semi-rural area with a flat tire after my vehicle struck something unavoidably in the roadway. My wife immediately requested assistance from AAA and the issues began. It took about 45 minutes to get the first response from AAA that we were in que. Ummm, what does that mean? So my wife called and she was told we were in que but they have not been able to dispatch someone to our location but would be notified when someone is dispatched. Well, 3 hours passed, and a couple more calls to AAA followed each time with no better ETA or when someone would be coming. Then mentioned something about an alternative option being someone could come and stand by with our vehicle and we could leave. What? What kind of option is that? Thankfully, I had enough sense to research other roadside assistance companies in the area and was able to get them there in 45 minutes and they fixed the issue. Mind you still no response from AAA. As of now, I’m still waiting for an ETA 6 hours later. Are you kidding me? The area I was in was Orlando outskirts in proximity to a populated area but was stranded on a side road that was not so populated. I can tell you for sure that I will be cancelling my membership with AAA and ensure I will never sign up with them again as I will find another company to utilize that is dependable and communicates well with their customers. What a waste of money they have been and cannot rely on them when you are stranded and really need help. I will also be demanding a complete refund of my annual dues based on this experience as well and inform everyone I know to not waste their money. My past experiences were fine as I was at home or had many options available to me but utilized them because I paid for the membership. It appears AAA has many customer service issues based on all the reviews with only a 1.5 star review average so that tells you a lot and I should have considered those but I’ve been a long-time member but won’t be any longer. It was terrible to watch my wife have an anxiety attack (which she never does) wondering what we were going to do and concerned about the potential hazards and safety issues we would face being on the side of the road in a rural area without any help. I had a jack, I had the tools to fix the issue, but the point is, I pay AAA to respond to issues such as this and they didn’t. I was in a difficult position on the side of the road which was not conducive to remedy the situation with the equipment I had not to mention ground instability issues as well.
