You’re on the motorway surrounded in traffic when suddenly your car breaks down – what do you do? For many people their first instinct is to get out of the car, leaving it up to luck, and the skills of other drivers, to ensure a fast moving vehicle doesn’t lose control and hit them.

AA Roadservice National Manager John Healy says Members put themselves at risk at least 10 to 15 times a day by getting out of their vehicles in a high traffic area to meet an AA Roadservice Officer.

“We understand Members want to be polite, but the problem with motorway breakdowns is that there’s a lot that can go wrong. It’s often safer for everyone if you stay in your vehicle or wherever you’ve been asked to stand so we can safely remove any risk you’re facing as quickly as possible,” says Mr Healy. 

“When you call through to the AA our service response centre will ask you a few questions to assess your level of risk and give you the best advice for your situation.”

The AA has attended almost 4000 breakdowns on a busy motorway or highway so far this year. It’s so common it’s even put together a Breakdown Safety Guide with several tips on how to stay safe in a potentially unsafe situation.

“One of our AA Roadservice Officers saw a distracted driver veer out of their lane and crash into his parked Roadservice vehicle. Thankfully no one was hurt, but it goes to show that breaking down on a motorway is a high risk incident and we’re making a number of changes to ensure we keep everyone safe at the roadside,” says Mr Healy. 

The biggest risk is breaking down in the middle of a lane. Approximately 20% of breakdowns on Auckland’s roads from January to June this year have ended up blocking or partially blocking a lane.

“If you breakdown and end up blocking traffic on a motorway or any other busy road or intersection, stay in your vehicle and keep your seatbelt on. Turn your hazard lights on and call the police,” says Mr Healy.  

But the reminder to be safe isn’t just for drivers and their passengers – it’s also for those driving alongside them, says AA’s congestion expert Barney Irvine.

“We’ve seen numerous incidents like breakdowns cause long delays, even when they’re clear of traffic. Motorists slow down to take a look not realising that it has a ripple effect, particularly at peak times, slowing everyone down,” he says.

“While it’s easy to say ‘don’t look’, it’s a human response, but one that too often results in traffic backing up. It’s costing us all a lot in terms of wasted time and money.”  

He says real time traffic monitoring like AA Roadwatch are always worth checking before heading out.

“It doesn’t take long, but a quick look to see what’s happening with traffic in real time can help you avoid major delays,” he says.

To download a copy of the AA Breakdown Safety Guide click here.