AMA membership?

[2020]

Hi

Do any of you guys have an ama membership? Is it worth it?
I’m thinking of picking one up, the premier one with the free 300km tow distance for $170. Haven’t used a tow truck in a while, what’s the average charge for a tow nowadays?

Thanks

[Xtrema]

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Hi

Do any of you guys have an ama membership? Is it worth it?
I’m thinking of picking one up, the premier one with the free 300km tow distance for $170. Haven’t used a tow truck in a while, what’s the average charge for a tow nowadays?

Thanks

To me not worth it other than their insurance is quite competitive last few years I checked so I didn't bother to move out.

My folks still like to get travel medical insurance and tour packages thru them.

To my relatives who some still drive beaters, I'm the designated free tow/booster/auto service, until AMA starts to deny service for cars not owned by members like CAA did in Ontario.

[vengie]

I drive a beater.

Worth it.
Plus quite a few places offer discounts for AMA members.

[killramos]

All I had to add is my wife tried to use ama a few weeks ago for a flat (her mom gave her a card for Christmas) and they told her it for be 4-5 hours to get a truck to her. In the heat, on the side of the road, with a baby.

Needless to say I found someone else to come help her which took about 30 minutes.

So fuck those guys.

[ThePenIsMightier]

Get a Canadian Tire "World Elite" MasterCard. It has no annual fee and includes roadside assistance for free. It's ridiculous.
You can even use it to pay Calgary property taxes.

[killramos]

I should get one of those just to use at Costco lol

[firebane]

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All I had to add is my wife tried to use ama a few weeks ago for a flat (her mom gave her a card for Christmas) and they told her it for be 4-5 hours to get a truck to her. In the heat, on the side of the road, with a baby.

Needless to say I found someone else to come help her which took about 30 minutes.

So fuck those guys.

Yeah it always seems like a good idea until you break down at a time when EVERYONE else does and then you are on a wait list for hours.

Look at what happens during a cold snap when batteries die.. good luck getting AMA to help.

[killramos]

This was 2pm on a Thursday in the summer. If they are overwhelmed then, I couldn’t imagine what a busy time looks like.

[firebane]

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This was 2pm on a Thursday in the summer. If they are overwhelmed then, I couldn’t imagine what a busy time looks like.

https://ama.ab.ca/auto/roadside-assistance

Currently shows almost 3 hours for a tow for Calgary.

[killramos]

The whole thing seems like a bait and switch to me. Sure, free towing. When we feel like getting around to it.

[jabjab]

If you drive any sort of modified or older car that is not under warranty i think its worth it. The piece of mind is great, even with boosts, lock your keys in the car and also discounts on certain things.

[Mitsu3000gt]

AMA is pretty useless for anyone who knows what they're doing IMO. They often take forever to show up (sometimes they tell you 12-48 hours), far longer than one would reasonably be willing to wait, and you still need to pay for a tow from somewhere you may desperately need it (like the middle of a highway) unless you have the premium plans, and even then the wait times are even more ridiculous. My whole family used to have it but every time we 'needed' it there was no point, so we cancelled it. If you have a dead battery or something, a passer by, friend or family member is almost always going to be able to help you long before AMA arrives. Waiting for a boost in the winter can be many hours when everyone else also needs a boost. Another bonus is they bombard you with spam for travel 'deals', etc. For a grandparent or something it's maybe not the worst idea but for the average person it's a waste of money IMO unless you have the desire and the means to somehow take advantage of every little perk.

[vengie]

FWIW the two times I've used the free towing they were there in less than an hour...

[ExtraSlow]

Got half off my lenses at lenscrafters recently. I carry the mega-ultra-super-plus RV membership to cover towing my trailer, which would be a massive bill if it ever hits, but haven't really used it.
Have the triangle card which has roadside assistance too. I swear I hve roadside assistance through something else as well.

[Xtrema]

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FWIW the two times I've used the free towing they were there in less than an hour...

Same here. But my last experience with them is at least 5 years ago.

[killramos]

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Got half off my lenses at lenscrafters recently. I carry the mega-ultra-super-plus RV membership to cover towing my trailer, which would be a massive bill if it ever hits, but haven't really used it.
Have the triangle card which has roadside assistance too. I swear I hve roadside assistance through something else as well.

Presumably new Ford has roadside assistance.

I think my insurance company as covers it

[suntan]

It cost me $800 to tow my trailer from Mt Kidd.

[vengie]

Also, small hack you can do if you don't want to buy an AMA membership right away.

If you break down, go online and sign up, then call AMA for your tow... They MIGHT charge you a small "immediate use fee", but the total cost is likely significantly less than a tow.

[2020]

I think the immediate use fee is $40 bucks and you only get the 5km tow regardless of what package you buy.



Doesn’t the Canadian tire MasterCard roadside assistance only tow the vehicle to the nearest crappy tire scam shop? Looking for a service to tow to my house.

[suntan]

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Doesn’t the Canadian tire MasterCard roadside assistance only tow the vehicle to the nearest crappy tire scam shop?

That's actually worse than leaving it on the road.

AMA will tow to the destination of your choice. Longer costs more though, but in my experience the tow truck drivers are pretty lenient about it.