From your call
to the handover.

1. Start with safety

If the vehicle is stranded in immediate danger, contact the emergency services first. For motorway incidents, follow the current Highway Code and any instructions from traffic officers or police. Once you can contact us safely, tell us where the vehicle is and what has happened.

2. Describe the vehicle and access

Give the registration, make and model. Tell us whether it runs, rolls and steers, whether keys are available and whether there is damage. For a van, mention size and load. For an EV or hybrid, give the exact model and any warning messages.

Describe the approach: gates, height barriers, underground levels, narrow driveways and steep ground all matter. A safe map pin or photograph may clarify the location, but you should never enter traffic to obtain one.

3. Agree the destination and quote

Check that the receiving garage or person can accept the vehicle. Provide its address, opening hours and handover contact. AtWheel’s standard recovery call-out is £100; mileage and job extras are quoted separately. The complete job must be agreed before booking.

For planned transport, the quote is individual. An enquiry is not a reservation. We confirm arrangements after reviewing the route, vehicle, dates and loading requirements.

4. Prepare the handover

Have keys and release permission ready. Remove unnecessary possessions and tell us about any loose parts or documents travelling with the vehicle. Discuss condition photographs and the handover record.

Confirm passenger arrangements separately. Keep your contact phone available for practical updates when it is safe. Tell us promptly if access, vehicle condition or the destination changes.

5. Receive the vehicle

A named recipient and suitable unloading space make delivery easier. If the vehicle is a non-runner, the recipient needs to know before it arrives. Check the keys and agreed handover information, and raise any concern promptly with AtWheel.

If you are arranging help for someone else

Begin with the vehicle’s actual location and the contact who is safely able to describe it. A family member calling from home may know the intended route but not where the car stopped. Keep those details separate. If immediate danger exists, the appropriate emergency response takes priority; an online enquiry is not a substitute for dealing with an unsafe road position.

Tell AtWheel who can approve the job and who will meet the driver. A passenger, colleague or seller may be able to provide access without authority to change the destination or agree additional work. One consistent registration, condition description and set of instructions helps prevent confusion. Keep the principal contact available during the agreed collection window, and report any change in the vehicle’s position.

Useful observations do not require a diagnosis

You do not need to name the failed component to explain what has happened. Describe warnings, noises, loss of power or the response when normal starting is attempted. Mention assistance already tried and give the exact model, including electric or hybrid power. Avoid presenting a suspected battery problem as a confirmed diagnosis when the cause has not been assessed.

For transport, starting and loading are different questions. A car may not start but still roll and steer; another may have a locked brake, missing key or damaged suspension. State those facts separately. Do not force controls, inspect underneath a car beside traffic or attempt an unsafe tow to find an answer. Clearly identifying an unknown detail is better than taking a risk or giving a guess as fact.

Making a private collection ready

For a purchase or project car, confirm the seller’s release arrangements before booking. Ask whether the car is physically ready, where the keys are held and who will attend. Complete payment or other sale requirements directly with the seller. Arranging transport does not complete an unfinished purchase or override a garage, auction or storage site’s conditions for releasing a vehicle.

Describe the approach at the collection property and obtain relevant permission for shared or private space. Ask owners to deal safely with unrelated cars that block access where possible. Tell AtWheel about remaining restrictions, including slopes, barriers or unsuitable ground. Do not move a non-runner into the road to prepare it. The operator needs the real layout to assess safe collection.

Agreeing a destination that will actually receive the car

Contact the intended recipient before choosing the final delivery address. A garage needs to know whether the vehicle can drive, roll and steer and whether it is damaged or dismantled. Ask which entrance is used for unloading, when a person will be available and where the car can remain. A repair appointment alone does not settle those receiving arrangements.

At a private home, explain the driveway or parking position and any shared-access restriction. A vehicle that cannot move under its own power needs a suitable place after delivery. Discuss passenger travel, a trailer, storage or loose parts expressly if relevant. Do not assume a quotation for one vehicle to one destination includes every associated item or a second movement later.

From a request to a confirmed movement

For planned transport, the website form collects vehicle, route and contact details for a checked quotation. Submitting it does not produce an automatic price or reserve a transporter. AtWheel needs to review the information, availability and arrangements. If the vehicle is broken down now, telephone contact is the more direct way to discuss the current situation and whether assistance can be arranged.

Before accepting, confirm the complete amount and scope. The standard recovery call-out is £100, with mileage and job extras separately quoted; transport and other services are priced for their requirements. State fixed deadlines separately from preferred dates. A seller’s limited availability is important planning information, but it does not itself confirm a collection time.

What to do when the details change

Tell AtWheel promptly if a keyholder is delayed, the car moves, the destination changes or a new fault affects loading. If an authorised service relocates a road-incident vehicle, provide the new collection site and release contact. Follow any official instructions at the scene. The original quotation and approach may need reviewing when the actual job no longer matches the first description.

At handover, check the agreed destination, keys and accompanying items with the people involved. Raise a concern promptly using the booking reference or vehicle details so it can be traced. Keeping a consistent record of the agreed movement is helpful for a private customer arranging one recovery and for a business coordinating several vehicles.