Green Flag

The Homebrew Forum

Help Support The Homebrew Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

Chippy_Tea

Landlord.
Staff member
Administrator
Moderator
Joined
Mar 17, 2013
Messages
53,706
Reaction score
20,756
Location
Ulverston Cumbria.
Not their finest hour and not a place i would want to be abandoned over night.



1602782980351.png



1602782996670.png




1602782803028.png



A WOMAN has spoken of her terror after she was left ‘abandoned’ at the top of a Lake District mountain pass in poor weather as night closed in.

Clare Ward, who has a holiday home at Grange-over-Sands, has criticised breakdown company Green Flag, which she feels let her down, and warned: “You can have the best cover - it means nothing.”

Her husband, Jason, eventually drove for four hours from their Leicestershire home to pick her up.
A spokesman for Green Flag said the organisation had ‘fallen short of the standards we set ourselves’ and ‘wholeheartedly’ apologised.

Mrs Ward, 51, said she was approaching the top of the pass from Eskdale, where she had spent the day walking her dogs, when her front and rear tyres unexpectedly burst and deflated. She does not know what caused this.

She said she called up Green Flag and was eventually told that the company would try and book a taxi to go and pick her up but that, after numerous phone calls were made in an effort to get an answer from her breakdown provider, she was informed no vehicles were prepared to travel to her location.


“They said if you want help you’ll have to get the police to get you off, you’ll have to get mountain rescue to get you off,” said Mrs Ward, a nurse from Thornton.

“I couldn’t believe it, I was absolutely frightened to death.

“You imagine being up there, a woman on your own, too frightened to open the windows, and the wind was howling.”

Her husband eventually took matters into his own hands and drove 200 miles from the couple’s home to pick her up.

Mrs Ward said the police did not come because her husband was on his way.

Upon arriving, he rolled her Skoda Yeti back to the car park of the Woolpack Inn, while she in turn drove his car down.

After further wrangling with Green Flag the following day, Mrs Ward said a removal company eventually deposited her car at a garage in Grange.

She described being shaken by the incident and felt it would knock her confidence when driving.

“I am a strong woman, and the whole experience was so frightening,” she said.

“Green Flag let me down, at every single angle.

“I am definitely going to change my policy. I will never, ever trust them again.”

A Green Flag spokesman said: “It is our purpose to be there when our members need us and to keep them moving. Unfortunately on this occasion we have been unable to respond in the way we normally would.”

He said: “Our customer relations team is in contact with Mrs Ward to see how we can rectify this situation for her.”
 
The photo's obviously don't reflect reality since her husband is quoted as "pushing her Skoda back into the woolpack pub carpark"

Press sensationalism 🙄
 
I've stayed the night in the Woolpack last year, I wouldn't like to be up hardknot pass at nightashock1
 
The photo's obviously don't reflect reality since her husband is quoted as "pushing her Skoda back into the woolpack pub carpark"

Press sensationalism 🙄

I posted the 2 pics of the pass for those that don't know the place its not somewhere i would want to get stuck or drive up after a 4 hour journey. ;)
 
I posted the 2 pics of the pass for those that don't know the place its not somewhere i would want to get stuck or drive up after a 4 hour journey. ;)


Your a sensationalist then 😛😁

I wouldn't fancy being stuck anywhere especially at night and worse for a woman.

I got stuck at the side of a dual carriageway in the afternoon for
4 - 5 hours once, on a lambretta,
Luckily it was daylight and sunny (although too warm and no shade) it wasn't much fun.
The free breakdown that came with the insurance made excuses and i got picked up by a mate in a van in the end.
I suppose they all get it wrong sometimes.
Green flag use a lot of contractors but I've been with them many years and they've always been good 👍
Certainly better than the AA in my experience.
 
Been up there many times on the old v twin believe me you would not like to break down up there at night, me and my mate helped a couple who got their bmw stuck they were terrified, they parked on a wet verge and being rear wheel drive it was going no were
 
I think it is worth pointing out that this is Hardknott Pass which with a gradient of one in three is the joint steepest road in the country but this woman ignores the signs at the bottom bearing severe warnings and attempts to navigate it in a car built for ordinary roads. No wonder two tyres burst by undoubtedly being caught on sharp rocks! Sorry no sympathy except that we all make mistakes and maybe she should admit that!
 
attempts to navigate it in a car built for ordinary roads.
It's just a flippin' road. Tarmac not a dirt road. Sure it's steep and sure it's got hairpins but I can't actually think of a modern car that couldn't do it. Bottom gear will get you up anything.
Not that I'd like to break down at the top of it, but it's not the end of the world.
 
It's just a flippin' road. Tarmac not a dirt road. Sure it's steep and sure it's got hairpins but I can't actually think of a modern car that couldn't do it. Bottom gear will get you up anything.
Not that I'd like to break down at the top of it, but it's not the end of the world.
A road she clearly was unable to navigate.
 
I think it is worth pointing out that this is Hardknott Pass which with a gradient of one in three is the joint steepest road in the country

As has been said it's just a road, a steep one yes but it's no big deal driving a ordinary car over it, I did it in a ford Cortina years ago with no problem so a modern car shouldn't struggle, as for your point about her driving skills or lack of there aren't many passing places and there are a lot of unforgiving rocks hidden in the grass at the side of the road she is not the first and won't be the last to get punctures up there, she paid for breakdown cover and they failed to do what she is paying them to do she is not in the wrong here they are.
 
Ok it's been some time since I've been there and my memory of the signs may not be accurate but it would be interesting to know what they say?
 
We drove over it due to missing a turning and my sat nav re routed and over we went, and massively glad I did, the views were breathtaking.
 
... she was informed no vehicles were prepared to travel to her location.
... this is the part of this new story that worries me most ... I'm sure we've all found ourselves driving along remote roads in bad weather, at some time(s) or other, hoping and a praying that we don't breakdown, and reassuring ourselves (and possibly others, as necessary) that we have "nationwide" breakdown cover ... but it's sobering and worrying to think that, as far as they're concerned, "nationwide" might exclude anywhere they don't fancy going in those conditions :confused.:

Cheers, PhilB
 
... this is the part of this new story that worries me most ... I'm sure we've all found ourselves driving along remote roads in bad weather, at some time(s) or other, hoping and a praying that we don't breakdown, and reassuring ourselves (and possibly others, as necessary) that we have "nationwide" breakdown cover ... but it's sobering and worrying to think that, as far as they're concerned, "nationwide" might exclude anywhere they don't fancy going in those conditions :confused.:
Cheers, PhilB

Spot on Phil saying "if you want help you’ll have to get the police to get you off, you’ll have to get mountain rescue to get you off" was ridiculous and i would be taking legal advice if i was them.


She said she called up Green Flag and was eventually told that the company would try and book a taxi to go and pick her up but that, after numerous phone calls were made in an effort to get an answer from her breakdown provider, she was informed no vehicles were prepared to travel to her location.

“They said if you want help you’ll have to get the police to get you off, you’ll have to get mountain rescue to get you off, ” said Mrs Ward, a nurse from Thornton.

“I couldn’t believe it, I was absolutely frightened to death.
 

Latest posts

Back
Top