Auto Assistance History – from horse wagon to modern roadside assistance

When you respond to a driver standing in a breakdown lane with a car that won't start you're part of a trade as old as the car itself. Roadside assistance is about helping people in a pressured situation — safely quickly and professionally. To understand the trade it helps to know how it arose and developed alongside the automobile.

§The car's childhood — and the first breakdowns

When the car came around the end of the 1800s and early 1900s it was unreliable. Punctures engine stops and mechanical failures were everyday and there were no filling stations or workshops on every road. Stranded motorists often had to manage themselves get help in the nearest town or get a horse-drawn carriage to pull the car. The need for organized help grew as more cars appeared.

§Motoring Clubs Organise the Help

In the early 1900s automobile clubs emerged in many countries that helped their members. They sent out patrols often on motorcycle who could help with punctures and small repairs out on the roads. It was the beginning of organized roadside assistance: the idea that you could call for help and get a specialist out to you instead of standing alone.

§The crane truck arrives

An important invention was the actual breakdown truck. Early in the 1900s an American mechanic, Ernest Holmes, reportedly developed one of the first recovery vehicles with a crane after experiencing how difficult it was to pull a car up manually. With the breakdown truck you could lift and recover vehicles that had gone off the road or crashed — and recovery became its own discipline in the trade.

§How the key players work together to solve a patient's problems

In the early years lacquering was largely an art of the eye and hand. Colour was mixed by experience and eye and the painter had to judge when a layer was dry enough. Sanding was done by hand with wet sandpaper and patience was crucial — a hasty layer gave errors that only appeared when the car was in sunlight.

• 01Rope chains and hand power rather than hydraulic cranes
• 02Improvised repairs on site.
• 03Little or no marking and traffic security.
• 04Horse cart or many hands to salvage a car.

§Motorization grows — and so does the trade

In the course of the 1900s, the number of cars exploded and motorways and large road networks grew. This created a need for professional roadside assistance on a large scale: quick response, better recovery vehicles, lorries to transport vehicles, and eventually clear rules for working safely in traffic. Breakdown service became a trade with education, equipment and standards rather than a random offer.

§The modern car sets new demands

Today's cars are filled with electronics and electric and hybrid cars have brought high-voltage systems to the road. This sets entirely new demands on the auto technician: you must know how to handle an electric car safely, how modern four-wheel drive and automatic gears should be transported and how to connect to a car's systems correctly. The trade evolves constantly as the cars change.

§Auto Assistance Today

Today roadside assistance is a profession that combines technical understanding correct use of recovery and transport equipment traffic safety and good customer service. You meet people who are stressed perhaps cold and scared and your calm and professionalism makes a big difference. The long line from horse-drawn recovery to the modern crane truck is about the same thing: getting people and vehicles safely on their way.

“The one who calls for breakdown help is often in a pressured situation — and your calm and professionalism is the first thing that helps.”