What happens when you break down in a remote area with no phone service?

While a breakdown may seem catastrophic at the time, it’s often a simple issue for a roadside assistance provider to resolve. Most breakdowns happen within 10km of a service provider, and over 4 in 5 calls for assistance are answered in under 20 seconds – so most people get back on the road quickly.

But occasionally breakdowns happen in very difficult circumstances – in remote parts of Australia, without phone coverage or nearby help. Even when faced with these challenging situations, our roadside assistance teams do whatever it takes to assist a stranded customer. Recently, our team got to demonstrate exactly how far we go to help.

Recently a customer broke down in a very isolated area inside a South Australian national park, around 500 kilometres north of Adelaide. His exact location was uncertain, the vehicle was a large motorhome, and there was no phone coverage in the area. While the driver had managed to move the vehicle to a car park, he found himself stranded in the middle of nowhere. Simply calling for help was not an option.

Luckily, the customer was able to reach someone using a HF radio, who in turn called us. By working with the HF Radio operator in relay, Digicall Assist used GPS to identify the vehicle’s location and its problem. The truck had a burst pipe; diesel was leaking from the underside of the vehicle. Due to the remote location, the nature of the issue, the time of breakdown and the size of the motorhome – over 8 metres – specialised services were required, not just a local mechanic.

Once the vehicle type and issue had been established, our team quickly liaised with the customer, the manufacture of the vehicle and local mechanics to organise a tow to a location, where the pipe could be replaced. The situation was resolved and at the end of the day, we had a safe and happy customer.

Rest assured that no matter how challenging your breakdown situation, Digicall Assist always does what it takes to get you safely back on the road.