Good Sam

[Benny K]

I have the Good Sam roadside assistance but never used it yet....the one thing that I don`t like about it is that it`ll cover all cars and trucks that my wife and I own but only one rv trailer....I have two , so if I alternate, I have to call Good Sam and change my registered trailer every time I take the other one out....that part doesn`t make sense to me, especially if I`m the only driver at home.....Benny

[Lisa F]

Now back to your scheduled topic.

Since I already have AAA my membership cost for Good Sams probably isn't worth what I paid for, but we'll see. The one thing it did was increase the number emails I get. I hope I have shut off most of them.

I have a hotmail account that I use for everything except for friends/family.. that way all the spam goes there and my personal email gets none

[Loren G. Hedahl]

The towing insurance companies are obviously in business to make a profit. So in order to make a profit they must provide less in benefits than they take in. It's just that simple.

In all the hundreds of thousands of miles, I needed a tow only once. The fuel gage on the diesel Blazer was intermittent and I foolishly ran the tank dry. Cost me approx $100 to be towed to a service station a couple of miles off I-5 near Seattle. Took me all night on a charger to get the fuel system re-primed and the engine started.

Of all our friends that have towing insurance I know only one who actually gets his money's worth. He would do better to keep his vehicles in better shape. The cost of missed work, appointments, delays in his business, family schedules, etc., seems to me in far excess of the amount he saves with towing insurance.

But I like him very much and find people who think different than I and have other opinions interesting. They add a dimension to my life's experience that has many more plusses than minuses. I'm sure I would be an old stick in the mud if I limited my friends and acquaintences to those who tend to think exactly like I do.

[Des Nolan]

Hi, our 87 cents worth.

That was our average "discount" on a tank of gas for the car. Good Sam is geared towards the bulgemobile.

However, the 10% off for a campground paid the membership in about 10 nights.

And, Good Sam RV Owners Club --- and Good Sam Emergency Road Service, are two separate companies.

Planning on staying closer to home this year, we dropped the former but kept the latter, which we perceive to be the best available value for RV road insurance.

[Gina D.]

It's not just towing. They get your keys out if you are a dope like me and occasionally lock then in, they bring you gas if you run out, and they get YOU to safe haven if needed (Not just your car)

Maps.. I can get online too. Have aircard, will travel!

[Joe MacDonald]

Good sam's ERS is a separate entity to Good sam in general.
I wanted it because of the fact that they cover all family vehicles. I didn't see the clause about only one rv, and if so it will disappoint me.
However it still is only 79.00US compared to the approximately same coverage at CAA of 259.00CAD, with one major exception being that they will tow your trailer if your tug breaks dow, CAA doesn't. CAA also gives you a hard time with motorcycles sometimes.

[Kathy & Doug Roach]

Our complaint after joining Good Sam was that our mailbox was suddenly overloaded. I don't mean email, I mean snail mail. We finally decided that it wasn't worth it for us as we didn't stay enough nights at Good Sam Parks. I might join again if they would agree NOT to give my address to everyone on the planet.

Kathy

[jdtrotter]

Our complaint after joining Good Sam was that our mailbox was suddenly overloaded. I don't mean email, I mean snail mail. We finally decided that it wasn't worth it for us as we didn't stay enough nights at Good Sam Parks. I might join again if they would agree NOT to give my address to everyone on the planet.

Kathy

My problem with the Good Sam Club is that we did not rejoin in February, and we still receive lots of mail from them. We have written them several times, and called them and requested that they PLEASE quit sending us their advertisements. We are closing a private mail box, and it will cost us to have mail forwarded. We also requested that if they did not quit, they at least update our address. None of this has happened and it has been two months now.

So, the snail mail just keeps coming!

Diane

[Frederick L. Simson]

Our complaint after joining Good Sam was that our mailbox was suddenly overloaded. I don't mean email, I mean snail mail. We finally decided that it wasn't worth it for us as we didn't stay enough nights at Good Sam Parks. I might join again if they would agree NOT to give my address to everyone on the planet.

Kathy

For me, every shopping trip to Camping World generates a snail-mail pitch to join Good Sam. I shudder at opening the flood gates if I actually responded to one of these come-ons.

[Benny K]

Hi Joe, just give the Sam ERS a call about the RV`s ......Benny

[BAMA & Pachyderm Posse]

(Our complaint after joining Good Sam was that our mailbox was suddenly overloaded. I don't mean email, I mean snail mail. We finally decided that it wasn't worth it for us as we didn't stay enough nights at Good Sam Parks. I might join again if they would agree NOT to give my address to everyone on the planet.
Kathy) ok its just the kid in me but when i get unwanted snail mail there is allmost allways a postage payed invelop with it .i (without a return address ) send it to them with someone els add or maybe a expired pizz cupon , use your whatever. yes i know i have nothen better to do and i will go to my room maybe teehee!!!!!!!!!
[ATTACH][/ATTACH]

[jdtrotter]

ok its just the kid in me but when i get unwanted snail mail there is allmost allways a postage payed invelop with it .i (without a return address ) send it to them with someone els add or maybe a expired pizz cupon , use your whatever. yes i know i have nothen better to do and i will go to my room maybe teehee!!!!!!!!!

LOVE that idea.

Diane

[Dan Quinn]

all i did was in my prefferences on good sam was check the box no email and to this day i dont get any been a member now for 4 years..

[jdtrotter]

all i did was in my prefferences on good sam was check the box no email and to this day i dont get any been a member now for 4 years..

We did the same thing which worked until our membership expired---then the mail explosion started---can't say no enough times! So I guess as long as you stay a member, no problem.

Diane

[Renee K.]

Perhaps when I posted about GS was before this site went down so will do once again. I am a GS life member and so only pay for ERS each year. Some times it is a cut rate if paid a few months early. In any case it is well worth it not to have to worry about any of the vehicles that I own no matter where they may be, like out in the boondocks of OR. I have never had to register any vehicle with them so far. I do know that when the towing co. turns the key in a big tow vehicle, the cost is immediately more than the ERS! They continue charges for both mileage and time including towing the RV and taking me, friend, and pet to safety. (One dinner out for 3-4 costs more than ERS!)
Just yesterday, I saw a large motor home that had turned into a not very steep drive and hung up on the rear bumper. That is one horror I would never want to experience, but certainly not with out being able to call and get the best towing service in the county!
I have never had a bad experience with any towing co. that ERS sent out. In one month I had to call twice for towing two different vans to the mechanic shop over a year ago. This year I have had a van at a garage for several months for repairs and if it isn't ready in the next week or so, I will call to have it towed to another repair shop. If I need a lawyer to help with this problem, GS will help there also.
As far as junk mail, from whatever, I remove my name etc, from the items and deposit in trash at PO along with boxholders or turn it back unaccepted to post office.
Renee

[Benita]

I'm going to cancel my Good Sam ERS because it has proved useless. On two occasions I've called. The first time my cell phone went dead while I was on hold for over 20 minutes waiting for a person to answer. The second time they promised dispatch to the closest service location per their map. That was 35 miles from where I wanted to be towed to, my home. I also got a stern warning that if I was towed home I would have to wait a minimum of 24-48 hours to be towed to another service location, also not of my choice.

My sense is that for those of you on the west coast, midwest and maybe Canada GS ERS may be a good deal. I don't think that is true in the SE.

The second ERS dispatch call took 10 minutes to pickup instead of 20+. On my second ERS call. while I was holding for GS to confirm my location, I was able to put in a call to AAA, give them my credit card number, activate service and get a tow truck dispatched. I don't know if the GS tow ever arrived. It took them so long to answer when I called to tell them I'd made other arrangements I gave up and went home with the AAA tow who arrived before they ever came to the phone.

[Darwin Maring]

That is the difference between them and AAA+RV (Triple A) .

AAA+RV Will tow you up to 100 Miles to the destination of your choice, not to the nearest location of their choice like the others.

YES, AAA+RV costs more to be a member however I think you found out why the extra $$ is justified.

I've used them once in the past 15 years and they hauled a VW Camper 94 miles to my home, not to a location of their choice. Hauled it on a roll back truck, 0 dollars.

[Benita]

The primary reason I went with Good Sam was because of the trailer. AAA RV will not tow your trailer anywhere. Its possible to get a good natured driver who will accomodate, but for the rule is AAA tows the tow vehicle and the trailer is left to the side of the road.

In both instances that I called GS ERS, I was close to home and not towing. In both instances the ERS protection proved worthless. What this means to me is that AAA is the best source of coverage for my tow vehicle. For the Fiber Stream I've got YOYO (You're On Your Own) protection.

[Nita F.]

In April 2005 we drove to Charleston, SC to pick up our first Scamp 5th wheel. The truck had started running hot so we had the radiator worked on before heading back with the camper. About 10 p.m. we broke down in a remote section of I-20. Thankfully we had regular AAA and good cell phone service. Within 15 minutes we had a guy who lived nearby with us. He determined the water pump locked up. We weren't about to leave the camper on the side of the interstate, so he called for a big rig wrecker. It arrived within another 20 minutes and that guy hauled the truck with the camper attached into Conyers, Georgia's Pep Boyz where we spent our first night in the parking lot. He charged us a reasonable fee to haul both the truck and camper. Best money we every spent! After getting thoroughly taken by Pep Boyz the next morning, we limped back to Louisiana.

We now have Good Sams ERS but haven't had to use it. If that time comes and we aren't satisfied with the service, we will go back to AAA.

Nita

[Brian B-P]

...AAA RV will not tow your trailer anywhere. Its possible to get a good natured driver who will accomodate, but for the rule is AAA tows the tow vehicle and the trailer is left to the side of the road....

As we discussed before, in The Burro and the bad tranny, this should [b]not be true. The whole point of the RV option is to cover motorhomes and trailers which would not be towed under the standard coverage. The problem seems to be with the local service in Georgia, not honouring the AAA service agreement.