SERVICES SHOWCASE: ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE ABROAD

OPTEVEN STEERS CUSTOMERS IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION WHEN TRAVELLING ABROAD

Did you know that Opteven delivers European breakdown cover for many well-known UK roadside assistance partners? In fact, last year, more than 20,000 British customers received roadside assistance from Opteven while travelling in Europe.

With over 100 English speaking incident managers available 24/7, Opteven delivers efficient and convenient services to help our partners’ customers get back on the road as quickly as possible.

When driving in another country, it can be stressful adapting to a new environment and road rules, and if something goes wrong, it can feel incredibly daunting to try to figure out the next steps. Opteven works to support those who need it, finding a solution that is suitable and adapted to the customer’s requirements.

Roadside assistance is Opteven’s heritage, having been established as RAC France back in 1985. We offer coverage in a large number of European countries, covering cars to commercial vehicles, motor homes and motorbikes. With this longstanding and well-established roadside assistance network, we help our UK corporate partners’ customers with all their roadside assistance services, including onward travel arrangements across Europe.

Unlike in the UK, where on-the-spot repairs are commonplace, in Europe a breakdown will likely require relocation of the vehicle to a repair garage. Opteven’s main goal is to repair a customer’s vehicle as locally and as quickly as possible so that the customer can continue with their travel arrangements. However, where repatriation to the UK is required, Opteven will work to organise the homeward travel for both the customer and his or her vehicle.

Our multi-lingual team

All of Opteven’s customer service incident managers based at Opteven’s headquarters in Lyon are required to speak English so that they can easily converse with British customers. However, as our incident managers come from all corners of Europe (and further afield), they can also liaise with the relevant breakdown companies, garages, hotels or repatriation services required in the customer’s country of travel. We’re proud to say that 90% of incident calls are answered by our team within 15 seconds and 90% of assistance patrols arrive within 45 minutes of the first call being made.

Seasonal peaks

Every year, we hire a large number of additional incident managers to work during peak seasonal periods to ensure that all customers continue to receive the same level of quality service and speed of response. This year we have also had to consider and cater for the potential influx of British customers travelling to Paris for the Olympics and Paralympics.

Furthermore, with traffic and hire vehicle restrictions in place around Paris, and limited available accommodation, should a breakdown occur – easily finding alternative travel and hotels can also prove a challenge. As such, our incident teams will have options outside of the city to cope with the likely demand.

“Working at Opteven this summer, and more specifically in the team that manages English customers, has been a very rewarding experience on several levels. First, the language and multi-cultural aspect, because every day I speak English with my clients, but also French with my colleagues and Spanish with our correspondents in Spain (I am from Mexico). Our team is made up of people from all over the world, which also means we can adapt completely to our customers. Finally, we are here every day to help our customers and ensure that an unfortunate breakdown does not spoil their holiday and that they can continue their journey as quickly as possible. That’s another aspect of the job that’s very rewarding.” – Opteven Seasonal Agent

“We are really proud of our Roadside Assistance Team,” commented Patrick Baradon, UK Team Manager, Opteven Customer Relations Centre, Lyon. “We draw upon our vast expertise and high-quality service to keep UK customers mobile. Especially this year with a number of big sporting events bringing more British customers to the continent than ever, our aim is to get them safely back on the road as quickly as possible.”

To find out more about providing roadside assistance or warranty products to your customers, contact our Corporate Partnerships team.