A breakdown on a motorway is frightening. Traffic passes inches away at 70 mph, and the hard shoulder is one of the most dangerous places to stand. Get yourself safe first, then call us.
Get safe first
If you’ve stopped in a live lane and can’t get out safely, stay in the vehicle with your seat belt on and hazard lights on, and call 999.
- If you can, leave the motorway at the next exit or pull into a service area.
- If you can’t, move onto the hard shoulder or into an emergency area, as far to the left as possible, with your wheels turned to the left.
- Put your hazard lights on, and sidelights if it’s dark or visibility is poor.
- Get out through the left-hand doors, away from the traffic, and take everyone with you. Leave animals in the vehicle unless it’s unsafe.
- Wait behind the safety barrier, up the bank if there is one, and well back from the traffic.
- Don’t put a warning triangle on a motorway, and never try to repair the vehicle yourself.
Motorways we cover
We recover cars and vans from every junction of the M25 and from the motorways that run into London: the M1, M3, M4, M11, M20, M23, M26 and M40, plus the A1(M), and the A2, A12 and A13 trunk roads. For breakdowns further out, see long-distance recovery.
Telling us where you are
On a motorway, “near junction 10” isn’t enough. When you call, we’ll ask for:
- The motorway and your direction, such as “M25 clockwise” or “M1 northbound”.
- The last junction you passed, or the next one if you saw the sign.
- The nearest driver location sign. These small blue signs appear every 500 metres and show the road, a direction letter and a distance number.
If you’d rather not read numbers off signs, tap our WhatsApp button to send your exact location.
Smart motorways and emergency areas
On smart motorways without a hard shoulder, look for an emergency area: a lay-by with an orange surface and an SOS phone. If you reach one, call us. If you stop in a live lane, call 999 straight away. National Highways can close the lane with a red X and send a traffic officer, and we’ll recover you once the lane is protected.