Complaint Review: AAA - Irving Internet

AAA Nightmare

Sunday, September 4, 2011

 
Ive been a member of the American Automobile Association (AAA) for several years and had an occasion to use their services for the first time on September 4, 2011. I was driving down highway 44 in Texas, coming into the town of Agua Dulce, Texas and my tire blew out. I pulled off the road just as I entered the town and parked on the side of the road on Farm Road 70 just off the highway.

No problem.  I simplygot my AAA card out and called AAA for roadside assistance.  Then the horror story and display of absolute incompetence started. I told the man on the phone where I was and offered to give them the exact GPS location where I was. I was told that was not necessary because they were able to pinpoint the location and help would be there within 45 minutes.  The service truck agency would call me within 15 minutes.
 
Now, you have to realize that I was only 30 miles from Corpus Christi, Texas and its a large city. Keep this in mind during my ongoing story.  Remember, it was only 30 miles away. 15 minutes came and went. I called them back and asked why I had not been contacted.  They said the drive would be contacted again.  Well, he finally contacted me and asked exactly where I was so he could find me. I told him my location and he was astonished to find out that I was 693
miles away (an 11 hour drive) and his location was El Paso, TX.  He said he would contact AAA and tell them of
their mistake.
 
I immediately called AAA and talked to some pious woman who in no uncertain terms told me I was in Las Cruces, New Mexico.  I had to tell her at least 5 times Hell No, I was in Texas, on highway 44 (the only highway 44 in Texas) and in Agua Dulce, a town between Alice, Texas and Corpus Christi, Texas.  Well, I finally convinced her that I was in fact, in Texas and she said their locator service still showed that I was in New Mexico and that there was no information on a city in Texas named Agua Dulce.  Of course, anyone with a cell phone or internet connection could simply go to Google Maps and instantly type the name and find it...however, their sophisticated system didnt seem to have
the capability to find the location.  She said she would call back within 15 minutes.

  Well 15 minutes came and went.  I called back and got someone else.  I went through the whole thing about them
saying I was in New Mexico and finally convinced the lady to do another search and see if she could locate me.  She
finally did.  She said that they would contact a service company and have them come out.  I asked her where they were coming out from.  She said from Sarita, Texas.  I was aghast!  She told me several times that they dispatch the nearest service contractor and that was in Sarita, a town 45 miles away and a 1 hour drive.  I told her a major city, Corpus Christi was only 30 miles away and she robotically told me that the ONLY contractor was located in Sarita and they would be there in 30 to 45 minutes.  Mind you, the trip is 1 hour, not 45 minutes.

  Well, after sitting in 100 degree temperatures for over an hour, I finally had it.  I got out, crawled and slivered under my truck, got the spare tire out and replaced the tire myself  (huffing, puffing and sweating like any 64 year old would do in 100+ degree heat) and drove to Alice after fixing it myself.  I called them back and notified them that I was filing a complaint and I would be sure to post this summation of their professional services (and I say that lightly) anywhere on the internet where other unsuspecting fools would be aware of what they are paying for when they join the AAA.
 
The whole event was a classic show of incompetence personified.  From the time I called them to the time I finally was notified that someone was coming to the right location, was over an hour.  Worse yet, they had no contractor within a 45 mile radius of where I was, even though a large city was within 30 miles of me....and only 25 minutes away!