"Dealer says 3 weeks. AA takes 45 mins."

"I totally rely on my car, so when one December morning last year it wouldn’t start, I was at a bit of a loss.

"Anyway, as it’s a rather expensive sports car, I was sure that my local dealer would sort it out. So I was more than surprised when they said that they couldn’t even look at it until the end of January. 

"When I phoned the next-closest dealer, in Reading, they weren’t much help either. However, they did say that if I called the AA and got them to tow the car to them then they would be obliged to look at it.

"Well, by now I was at my wits end, so I called the AA not expecting much joy from them either. How wrong I was. They said they would be with me in 45 minutes and that they would have a look at the car to assess the best action.

"True to their word, the AA arrived on time and the patrol said that a new coil was needed and it was a five-minute job. Great! But he didn’t have the part with him. Urgh! But he could get one and be back within half an hour. Which he did and in next to no time is was on my way."

Mrs Dempsey, AA member