cheap car tow
Service

Motorway and trunk road recovery in the UK

Motorway recoveries are dispatched under the National Highways recovery framework (sometimes called the National Highways recovery framework or NRS), the National Highways framework that pays operators on statutory rates. We do not set those rates; this page explains how the published tariff applies to your case.

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£175+
From, car
24/7
Dispatch hours
UK-wide
Coverage
PAS 43
Operator standard
Indicative price

Motorway recovery

Bands per vehicle class. Final figure confirmed at booking.

  • Passenger carFrom £175
  • VanFrom £220
  • Electric vehicleFrom £220
  • See full price matrix
    • Book on the app

    cheap car tow is a booking and price-publication service. The recovery itself is performed by an independent PAS 43 compliant operator dispatched at the published rate. See terms for the operator-panel arrangement.

    Flatbed recovery truck loading a car at the roadside, daylight
    Flatbed recovery truck loading a car at the roadside, daylight

    Motorway recovery indicative price by vehicle class

    Valid from 2026-05-17. Bands cover urban-hours dispatch within the cited radius.

    Vehicle classIndicative bandNote
    Car£175 - £360Up to 3,500 kg gross vehicle weight
    Van£220 - £4603,500 kg to 7,500 kg gross vehicle weight
    Motorbike or scooter£150 - £320Up to 600 kg with rider equipment
    Electric vehicle£220 - £460Up to 3,500 kg with battery pack
    Motorhome£340 - £720Up to 7,500 kg with habitation load
    HGV£480 - £1450Over 7,500 kg gross vehicle weight
    Motorway recovery

    Motorway recovery explained

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    What motorway recovery covers

    Motorway recoveries are dispatched under the National Highways recovery framework (sometimes called the National Highways recovery framework or NRS), the National Highways framework that pays operators on statutory rates. We do not set those rates; this page explains how the published tariff applies to your case.

    The service is dispatched on a published flat-rate framework: every customer sees the same indicative band before the operator is dispatched, regardless of postcode. The procedure follows the working-at-roadside specification set out in PAS 43, which is the recovery management standard administered by the British Standards Institution.

    Operators on the cheap car tow panel hold LOLER 1998 and PUWER 1998 thorough examination certificates for lifting equipment; these are required by the Health and Safety Executive for any equipment used to lift loads.

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    How the price band is set

    Pricing is taken from a single table that lives in the pricing page. Change the figure there and it propagates to every page that references this service.

    Indicative bands for the most-requested vehicle classes on Motorway recovery: passenger car From £175, van From £220, electric vehicle From £220. Final quote is confirmed at booking by the dispatched operator.

    What the band covers and what it does not: the published figure includes attendance, the operator's working time at the scene, and the lift or load onto the recovery vehicle. It does not include any third-party charges such as a council pound release fee, a private compound storage fee where the vehicle is dropped after hours, or motorway statutory fees set under the National Highways recovery framework.

    There is no diagnosis fee if the operator decides on the roadside that a tow is the safer option rather than a roadside fix. There is no after-hours surcharge unless explicitly published in the pricing table; the surcharge slots are listed as zero so a future change has to be added to the table before it can be charged.

    by the numbers

    PAS 43 working procedure at the scene

    On arrival the operator runs a brief risk assessment: position of the vehicle, line of sight for approaching traffic, surface (kerb, verge, carriageway, off-road), and the safe approach for the recovery vehicle itself. Hi-vis garments are worn to the specification in PAS 43; beacon cover is on for the full working period.

    The operator confirms vehicle identification against the V5C registration document or, where the keeper has only digital records, against the DVLA vehicle account screenshot. Photo ID is requested where the keeper is not present at the scene; this is consistent with how the DVLA expects keeper verification to be handled.

    The recovery sheet is the document the driver receives by email after handover. It records the time of dispatch, time on scene, the lift technique used, the strap points, photographs taken at lift, and any pre-existing damage noted at the scene. Where the driver is not present at the scene (for example a recovery from a workplace car park), a member of the agreed receiving party countersigns instead.

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    Vehicle classes this service supports

    Compatible vehicle classes for Motorway recovery: Car, Van, Motorbike or scooter, Electric vehicle, Motorhome, HGV. Each class has different recovery equipment requirements, which is why the band varies.

    • Car: Up to 3,500 kg gross vehicle weight. Light vehicle category, spec-lift or tilt-bed flatbed. Indicative band From £175.
    • Van: 3,500 kg to 7,500 kg gross vehicle weight. Light commercial vehicle, heavy-duty flatbed or underlift. Indicative band From £220.
    • Motorbike or scooter: Up to 600 kg with rider equipment. Tilt-bed flatbed with wheel chock and ratchet anchors, or covered trailer. Indicative band From £150.
    • Electric vehicle: Up to 3,500 kg with battery pack. Flatbed only with high-voltage isolation procedure, lithium fire awareness. Indicative band From £220.
    • Motorhome: Up to 7,500 kg with habitation load. Heavy-duty flatbed or full underlift, extended-bed truck for A-class. Indicative band From £340.
    • HGV: Over 7,500 kg gross vehicle weight. Heavy underlift, rotator crane for rollover, dolly system. Indicative band From £480.

    See the vehicles index for a full breakdown of equipment, weight bands and the per-class notes that affect how the operator approaches the lift.

    Key takeaway · 06

    What happens before the operator arrives

    Move the vehicle to the safest position you can reach. If you are on a motorway, follow Highway Code rules 274 to 287: get out of the vehicle on the passenger side, get behind the safety barrier, dial 999. Do not attempt to make repairs on a live carriageway.

    If you are on an A-road or in an urban area, switch on hazards, place a warning triangle behind the vehicle where it is safe to do so (do not use one on a motorway), and stand clear of traffic.

    When you call the booking line, the dispatcher asks: your location (postcode is enough), the vehicle class and registration mark, the destination address, and any access constraints such as a low-clearance car park, a one-way street, or a Clean Air Zone that affects the operator's vehicle. The indicative band is quoted before the operator is dispatched so the price is agreed before the wheels move.

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    What happens after the recovery

    On handover the operator hands over the recovery sheet and emails a copy. The recovery sheet is the document your insurer asks for if you are claiming the cost back, and it is the document the receiving garage uses to log the vehicle in.

    Where the vehicle has been recovered to the operator's compound rather than a garage, the keeper collects within the published storage window. Storage fees are set out in the pricing page and are charged separately from the recovery band.

    For an insurance-instructed recovery the insurer is invoiced directly. For a driver-paid recovery the driver receives a VAT invoice they can claim back from the insurer where the policy covers it; consumer rights on vehicle recovery are summarised by Citizens Advice.

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    Common myths about UK vehicle recovery

    Myth: A recovery operator can take your car from a public road without your permission. Reality: Police have a statutory removal power under section 165A of the Road Traffic Act 1988. A recovery operator alone does not have that power; they act on a police instruction or a council instruction.

    Myth: Motorway recovery is priced by the operator. Reality: Motorway recovery is dispatched and priced under the National Highways recovery framework run by National Highways and police-instructed dispatchers; the rate is statutory.

    Myth: If you scrap a car you get cash on the day. Reality: The Scrap Metal Dealers Act 2013 prohibits cash payments by scrap-metal dealers; payment is by bank transfer or cheque.

    Myth: You do not need to tell DVLA when a vehicle is scrapped. Reality: The Certificate of Destruction issued by the Authorised Treatment Facility goes to DVLA so the vehicle is removed from your record; see gov.uk guidance.

    by the numbers

    Why we publish the price band on the page

    The vehicle recovery market has a long-standing transparency problem. Headline rates start at "from £X" and grow with mileage, time of day, vehicle class, off-road loading, fuel surcharges and storage fees that are not stated up front. cheap car tow exists to put a stop to bait pricing.

    Our published rate covers the work in the band; the variables that move it are listed in the pricing page so you can see what changes and by how much. If a future change adds a surcharge slot to the table we publish it before it is charged, not after.

    We are a booking and price-publication service. The recovery itself is performed by an independent PAS 43 compliant operator who has agreed to attend on the published rate. The operator-panel arrangement is set out in the terms of service.

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    How cheap car tow differs from a breakdown subscription

    A breakdown subscription (AA, RAC, Green Flag, Start Rescue and similar) is an annual product paid upfront against the chance of needing a recovery. cheap car tow is the opposite: nothing upfront, pay per use at the published rate. The two are complementary; if you already hold a subscription, use it first for in-scope work and use us when the subscription does not cover the scenario.

    Common gaps in subscriptions where a per-use booking helps: a relative needs a tow but is not the named subscriber; the recovery destination is outside the subscription radius; the vehicle is at home (some policies exclude home start); the vehicle is towing a trailer or caravan and the policy excludes the combination.

    On our model every published band applies regardless of who the driver is, where they are, or whether the vehicle is towing a trailer. The price is the price.

    in the press

    Primary sources we cite on motorway recovery

    Sources we cite on this page sit in the gov.uk, legislation.gov.uk, bsigroup.com, hse.gov.uk, nationalhighways.co.uk and citizensadvice.org.uk domains. Every claim of fact on this page is anchored to one of these allowlist domains so a reader can audit the recovery procedure end-to-end.

    We do not cite review or rating sites. We do not publish star ratings on our pages because we have not yet wired a verified review feed, and inventing one would breach our binding rule against fake social proof.

    Primary sources cited on this page

    Related services

    Common questions

    Frequently asked questions

    Is motorway recovery the same as a private tow?

    No. A motorway recovery is dispatched by the regional traffic officer or police control room and is paid on the statutory NRS rate. A private tow off a motorway slip-road is a different service and is priced on the local or regional band.

    Why is motorway recovery more expensive than a local tow?

    The NRS tariff reflects mandatory equipment, traffic management and the time the operator spends on lane closure. The rate is set by National Highways and the police-instructed dispatchers, not by us.

    Can I refuse the police-instructed operator and call my own?

    Not on a live motorway. The carriageway has to be cleared as quickly as possible for safety and traffic flow, which is why the police dispatcher uses the contracted operator. The vehicle is taken to a holding compound; from there you can move it on at any rate.

    What if I broke down in a smart motorway live lane?

    Stop as far left as possible, exit on the passenger side, get behind the safety barrier and dial 999. National Highways closes the lane via radar-detection and dispatches the nearest NRS operator to recover the vehicle.

    How do I get my car back from the motorway compound?

    The compound issues a release note once the NRS fee and any storage fee is paid. The compound address and contact number are written on the police receipt left in the windscreen.

    Can I get the cost back from my insurer?

    Where the recovery was caused by an insured incident the cost is typically recoverable from the policy. The compound paid invoice and the police-incident reference number are the two documents the insurer asks for.

    What does the NRS cover for HGVs?

    Heavy vehicle motorway recovery is dispatched under the same NRS framework with specific heavy-vehicle equipment rates. The operator panel for HGV motorway work is a subset of the wider PAS 43 panel.

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    Published price, PAS 43 compliant operator, 24/7 dispatch.

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