24 Hour Road Assistance Myth In Uganda

When hiring a car for self-driving in Uganda, there are several promises that car rental agencies make to their customers. Those who have never been to Uganda easily buy into ideas that, at the moment, are far from reality. Among these many things that usually come up is the promise of offering 24/7 road assistance. When you hear this promise, it is very attractive, but it is very rare for clients to ask for the details on how it is executed.

Currently, Uganda runs a day economy. In the city centers, businesses close between 21:00 and 23:00. Places that are far from the major city centers usually close as early as 19:00hrs. When a company promises you a 24 hour road assistance, they are indirectly claiming to have workshops and spare parts in every town of Uganda. You cannot expect a car to break down at 3:00am and have it fixed at that time. Chances are high you will wait until 7:00am or 8:00am.

The car rental agencies do not have workshops in different towns. But they have mechanics in most of the major towns. Those mechanics do not work on a 24 hour basis. Unless you do some follow up questions, you will easily fall for this promise until you get a mechanical issue in the middle of the night and there is no one to help you.

The Possibility of 24 hour Road assistance

The car rental agency’s possibility lies in the situation where the agency has to deliver to you another car. In such a situation, there is a possibility of this policy applying but again, it will depend on how far you are from the city center. Not many car rental agencies have branches around the country. Since the car will be coming from Kampala on most of the occasions, you could have to wait for three to six hours to get a replacement vehicle.

What To Expect From Road Side Assistance

There are two things to expect from road assistance; fixing the car on the road side in case of a minor mechanical issue and car replacement in case of a major mechanical issue. Most of the road side repairs will require you to get spare parts. It is very hard to get spare parts during the night. Sometimes the spare parts have to come all the way from Kampala making a quick roadside repair impossible in some instances.

One of the trouble that comes with road side assistance is doing repairs without the consent of the car rental agency. In most of the cases the road side mechanics will inflate the prices to more than four times. To avoid landing in trouble with the car rental agency, it is recommended never to do any repairs exceeding fifty thousand Uganda shillings without the consent of the car rental agency. 50,000 Ugx is bearable even if you are scammed.

There are incidences where you cannot reach the car rental agency by any means. At the start of the trip, you can ask the car rental agency to give a range of how much to spend on certain repairs in case you cannot reach them. For instance tire repairs range between Ugx 5000 and Ugx 10,000. It would be wise to get an idea of the different repairs you can do by yourself in case they arise.

In conclusion, there is no car rental agency in Uganda that offers a 24 hour road assistance service. If you are considering booking an agency because that have promised 24 hour road assistance, then you have already fallen for someone trick. Book an agency that has a driving time limit because chances are very high that they will deliver all the services they promise you with in the specified time.