Day 3 arrived with glorious early morning sunshine and after spending the previous day on site I was looking forward to getting out and about but unfortunately the sunshine didn’t last. By the time I’d taken the dogs out and had breakfast grey clouds had rolled in from all sides and the blue sky had vanished, effectively putting paid to my plans. Okay, I could still go out but grey clouds wouldn’t show the planned location at its best so I had to have a rethink.
Eventually I decided on an alternative but actually going there was a different matter, in fact I couldn’t even get the van off my pitch – it was well and truly stuck there. Somehow, and I don’t know how, I’d got a flat battery – it was as if something had drained it overnight but that was impossible as the key hadn’t been left in the ignition and I had the site electric supply for lights and everything else so there was nothing in the van which could have been left on. So I called the RAC – and that’s when my troubles really began.
Trying to actually speak to a living human being was a nightmare – first the automated reporting system wouldn’t recognise my surname, then it wouldn’t recognise my home postcode, then it wouldn’t even recognise my reg number which it previously had recognised. I was getting more frustrated by the minute so in desperation and on the fourth attempt I rang the sales line, finally speaking to someone who took my details and said someone would come out to me. The guy who eventually arrived started the van no problem, checked everything over and said the battery was low on power so it might be advisable to get a new one or I could end up with the same problem in another day or two.
A battery of the size and power I needed wouldn’t be cheap, in fact it was darned expensive and an unforeseen amount I didn’t really want to pay but I didn’t want to risk being stuck again or having to go through the RAC’s stupid automated system a second time so I agreed to have a new one. The guy didn’t have one on his van though so he rang someone else and arranged for a re-attend the following morning to supply and fit a new one, stressing that it must be no later than 10am as I had said I had plans to go out and didn’t wanting to be waiting around on the camp site.
By the time the RAC guy had gone it was too late to really go anywhere and it was still cloudy anyway so I just drove the seven miles to Tesco in Abergele to get some supplies then stopped off at Asda for another couple of things. On the way back to the camp site I passed the friendly neighbourhood giraffe and noticed he was still wearing his Jubilee crown so of course I had to stop and take a couple of photos – regardless of what he’s wearing he makes me smile every time I see him.
With the cloud continuing through the late afternoon and into the evening I spent the rest of the day on the camp site and went to bed that night with fingers metaphorically crossed that once the RAC had fitted a new battery on the van the following morning I would finally be able to go out somewhere, however more unwanted aggravation was to come.
Holy cow. I canβt stand the automated phone systems. That is very frustrating to say the least- The giraffe is super cute and it does make you smileπ
I really hate automated phone systems – whatever happened to initial voice contact with a proper person?? The giraffe is great isn’t he, and apparently very popular with both locals and visitors π
A flat battery is the last thing you need on holiday, and an unhelpful RAC just compounds the issue. As you know I was looking around at the same time for a new breakdown policy for my car, and online comments about current RAC performance did not give me any confidence.
Now you are home safe, is there any benefit in booking your van in to someone you trust to get the electrics tested just to make sure something weird isn’t happening that caused the battery to drain – last thing you want is for this to occur again.
Already checked Jayne, there’s an auto electrician just round the corner from work so I left it there for a couple of hours and he found absolutely nothing so I guess the old battery was coming to the end of its life and the van not moving for two days didn’t help matters.
Some holidays are like that – I was reminded of a similar car/camping issue some years ago when we were stuck while the car decided to die! The RAC took us to the nearest campsite (to get us off the road) and give us time to get the car fixed – must have been the most expensive one we have ever paid for!
Wondering what your next aggravation is going to be!
Based on your experience and I ‘m in the know as to what happened next I will not be renewing my car breakdown cover with the RAC. I read some of the online reviews too, they’re not good. You’re lucky to have photographed the giraffe wearing his crown because he swapped it for his sun hat a day or two later.
Sorry things not going well, Eunice.
Modern batteries just seem to die, do you remember when you topped a battery up with ‘distilled’ water and trickle charged it back to life.
One of the most stressful things that happened to me last year was trying to contact the AA from an Emergency Refuge Area on a Smart Motorway, which I had luckily reached as my car died. The traffic noise was horrendous making any phone call almost impossible. The automated AA service was not easy to follow, when I eventually got through to a person things improved. (their advice is to download the app, what if you don’t possess a smartphone?)
Has anybody asked the general population if they want these automated services? They are everywhere. I’m sure if some company advertised a person to person service only they would be inundated and at the end of the day their service would be so much better and probably just as efficient. Don’t get me going on supermarket checkouts.
I dread to think what will happen when the RAC return.
Don’t get me started on downloading apps for this, that and the other – I don’t have a smartphone and don’t want one either.
When I left school at 17 I trained as a telephonist with what was then the GPO and went on to have a couple of telephonist/receptionist jobs where initial phone contact and customer service was very important – dealing with customers politely and efficiently was something I took pride in and I loved my work. Now it seems that technology has got to the point where no-one cares any more and personal service has gone out of the window π¦
It’s definitely not going well, and I’m waiting with baited breath to find out what happens next. It’s bad enough for these sort of things to happen when you’re at home but you really don’t need it when you’re on holiday.
It could have been worse Jo – I could have been stuck for hours in a queue at Manchester airport with my flight being cancelled and my bags getting lost! At least I was on home turf and the ongoing problems were finally overcome π
Oh no! We changed from RAC to Green Flag a few years ago but thankfully havenβt had to try them out so I canβt recommend or otherwise. Love the cheeky giraffe.
I tried to get an online quote from Green Flag the other day but couldn’t get one – it seems my van might be too old for them to cover it π¦ The giraffe is great and I love to see what he’s wearing next π
Oh heck, I can’t predict good things happening next. But like you say in one of your replies, at least you weren’t stranded at an airport, that would be super stressful. X
Fortunately any further problems were solved – eventually – without me getting stressed. I can get irritated, annoyed, occasionally even angry, but stressed? – never π
What a palaver. Mechanical breakdowns and other vehicle issues certainly can disrupt what you hope will be a nice holiday. I’ve experience that type of thing myself a few times!
Holy cow. I canβt stand the automated phone systems. That is very frustrating to say the least- The giraffe is super cute and it does make you smileπ
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I really hate automated phone systems – whatever happened to initial voice contact with a proper person?? The giraffe is great isn’t he, and apparently very popular with both locals and visitors π
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A flat battery is the last thing you need on holiday, and an unhelpful RAC just compounds the issue. As you know I was looking around at the same time for a new breakdown policy for my car, and online comments about current RAC performance did not give me any confidence.
Now you are home safe, is there any benefit in booking your van in to someone you trust to get the electrics tested just to make sure something weird isn’t happening that caused the battery to drain – last thing you want is for this to occur again.
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Already checked Jayne, there’s an auto electrician just round the corner from work so I left it there for a couple of hours and he found absolutely nothing so I guess the old battery was coming to the end of its life and the van not moving for two days didn’t help matters.
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I had a similar issue with my car battery a while ago. Since having a new one fitted it has been completely fine.
I hope you can get it resolved. X
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The problem was solved Jules – eventually π
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Some holidays are like that – I was reminded of a similar car/camping issue some years ago when we were stuck while the car decided to die! The RAC took us to the nearest campsite (to get us off the road) and give us time to get the car fixed – must have been the most expensive one we have ever paid for!
Wondering what your next aggravation is going to be!
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The story gets better Kate – or worse, depending on which way you look at it π
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Based on your experience and I ‘m in the know as to what happened next I will not be renewing my car breakdown cover with the RAC. I read some of the online reviews too, they’re not good. You’re lucky to have photographed the giraffe wearing his crown because he swapped it for his sun hat a day or two later.
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I photographed the giraffe with his sun hat on a few days later – no doubt he’ll be wearing that for quite a while now π
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Sorry things not going well, Eunice.
Modern batteries just seem to die, do you remember when you topped a battery up with ‘distilled’ water and trickle charged it back to life.
One of the most stressful things that happened to me last year was trying to contact the AA from an Emergency Refuge Area on a Smart Motorway, which I had luckily reached as my car died. The traffic noise was horrendous making any phone call almost impossible. The automated AA service was not easy to follow, when I eventually got through to a person things improved. (their advice is to download the app, what if you don’t possess a smartphone?)
Has anybody asked the general population if they want these automated services? They are everywhere. I’m sure if some company advertised a person to person service only they would be inundated and at the end of the day their service would be so much better and probably just as efficient. Don’t get me going on supermarket checkouts.
I dread to think what will happen when the RAC return.
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Don’t get me started on downloading apps for this, that and the other – I don’t have a smartphone and don’t want one either.
When I left school at 17 I trained as a telephonist with what was then the GPO and went on to have a couple of telephonist/receptionist jobs where initial phone contact and customer service was very important – dealing with customers politely and efficiently was something I took pride in and I loved my work. Now it seems that technology has got to the point where no-one cares any more and personal service has gone out of the window π¦
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It’s definitely not going well, and I’m waiting with baited breath to find out what happens next. It’s bad enough for these sort of things to happen when you’re at home but you really don’t need it when you’re on holiday.
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It could have been worse Jo – I could have been stuck for hours in a queue at Manchester airport with my flight being cancelled and my bags getting lost! At least I was on home turf and the ongoing problems were finally overcome π
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Oh no! We changed from RAC to Green Flag a few years ago but thankfully havenβt had to try them out so I canβt recommend or otherwise. Love the cheeky giraffe.
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I tried to get an online quote from Green Flag the other day but couldn’t get one – it seems my van might be too old for them to cover it π¦ The giraffe is great and I love to see what he’s wearing next π
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Oh heck, I can’t predict good things happening next. But like you say in one of your replies, at least you weren’t stranded at an airport, that would be super stressful. X
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Fortunately any further problems were solved – eventually – without me getting stressed. I can get irritated, annoyed, occasionally even angry, but stressed? – never π
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Life before computers had a lot going for it, like real people answering phones.
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What a palaver. Mechanical breakdowns and other vehicle issues certainly can disrupt what you hope will be a nice holiday. I’ve experience that type of thing myself a few times!
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I’m glad it was nothing more than a flat battery, at least it was fairly easily sorted without the ‘help’ of the RAC.
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