Breakdown Assistance for Electric Cars

More and more electric vehicles on our roads

"The future is electric"

It's no secret to anyone: our mobility and our vehicle fleet are diversifying and constantly changing. New regulations, the emergence of low-emission zones, the push to opt for a sustainable energy source in order to reduce your ecological footprint, the (long-announced) end of fossil energy resources… these are all societal changes that have generated and encouraged the rise of electric cars.
Moreover, computer technology is increasingly taking over our modern means of transport, eventually to take full control of the vehicle and its driving.

Even though the electric car is undergoing major change and will see many more improvements in the coming years, the number of users choosing hybrid or 100% electric vehicles keeps growing. In some countries (such as the Scandinavian countries), these vehicles are gradually overtaking sales of traditional vehicles (combustion engines).

These changes have an impact not only on consumers, but also on legislators, the managers of our cities and road infrastructure, manufacturers and, of course, assistance or breakdown companies, which now face new challenges.

Redion's breakdown operators

Since it was founded, Redion has kept a very close eye on the evolution of the vehicle fleet and mobility. As a result, most of Redion's breakdown operators (including all those likely to work on electric vehicles) have undertaken, and continue to regularly undertake, specific training focused on how an electric motor works and its particularities. They're equipped with the right tools to respond quickly and must be familiar with the safety rules in force.

Often, working on a vehicle that has a high-voltage part can only be done under clearly defined conditions and in safe locations (such as a professional garage), particularly if the breakdown is due to a malfunction in the electrical components.
In some extreme cases, such as a car fire caused by the batteries, the fire brigade will need to step in to permanently rule out any risk of the fire starting again.

What types of breakdowns do electric vehicles have?

Electrical faults

It makes sense that electric vehicles are more exposed to breakdowns caused by how they work: battery failure or weakness, a problem with the power socket, a faulty charger, a cable problem… These problems can also appear following an accident.
An electrical problem (even a minor one) can cause other components to lock up, such as the on-board computer, requiring the vehicle to be towed.

"Traditional" breakdowns

Besides electrical faults, it's clear that more traditional breakdowns will continue to affect these vehicles, such as problems with tyres or brakes… and with the many electronic components. Not to mention the whole range of other "non-technical" problems that can leave the vehicle and its occupants stranded.

Towing

Towing electric vehicles often requires special equipment and resources. For example, an electric vehicle can't be placed on a tow dolly (i.e. hitched behind a tow truck with the rear wheels turning on the ground), since the rotation of the wheels generates electricity, with a risk of overload. Professional breakdown operators must therefore have the right breakdown and towing equipment, such as a flatbed tow truck.
The cost of such a callout can quickly run into several hundred euros. Thanks to technical assistance cover, these costs are covered by your assistance provider.

A dead battery

If the vehicle is stranded due to a weak or dead battery, the breakdown operator's job will be to take the vehicle to a charging point where the insured person can recharge it.

Charging points in Belgium and abroad

Belgium has an increasing number of places where you can charge an electric vehicle. You'll find a list on several websites, including https://map.openchargemap.io, https://chargemap.com or https://plugsurfing.com.
These sites also list charging point locations abroad.
Warning: sometimes you need a membership card for that network to be able to use their charging points. Find out in advance, especially if you're driving abroad.

Breakdown assistance abroad: for electric vehicles too

Are you travelling abroad with your electric vehicle? If you've taken out vehicle technical assistance with Redion, and if your vehicle is covered in Europe (see the list of covered countries in your contract's General Terms and Conditions), technical assistance is therefore guaranteed there.

The same service everywhere?

Some countries are more "forward-thinking" than others and therefore have a more developed electric vehicle fleet on their domestic market. In these countries, the number of technicians and breakdown operators with all the required equipment will logically be higher. So there are no problems in our neighbouring countries.
However, the growing sales of electric vehicles in less "mature" markets can only help increase the resources available to assist a growing number of electric vehicle drivers.

Have a breakdown? Use the Redion app!

Have a car breakdown? Use the Redion app: it lets you send an assistance request and follow the progress of the intervention in real time.

See the article "The mobile app for a technical or medical problem" on this topic.

Also read: The lifespan of car and electric bike batteries.