Do I Get AAA?

[JustinW]

I won a one-year Better World membership last year thru the National Bike Challenge. Have not had to use it in any way, but I do look at the monthly emails that they send that do indeed convey a sense that the company is progressively focused and at least talks a good talk.

[Steve]

Am I the only person not outraged at the fact that the American Automobile Association does not support cycling?

[baiskeli]

@thucydides 86940 wrote:

Does anyone here have experience with Better World?

We have it. Haven’t needed it much, but when we did have a call (car wouldn’t start) they sent someone quick who did the job well.

[mstone]

@Steve 86948 wrote:

Am I the only person not outraged at the fact that the American Automobile Association does not support cycling?

It’s possible to not advocate for something without advocating against it. AAA Mid-Atlantic does much to drive the “war on cars” meme, and they don’t have to. (Other AAA chapters manage to advocate for motorists and amicably coexist with cyclists.)

[dasgeh]

@mstone 86964 wrote:

It’s possible to not advocate for something without advocating against it. AAA Mid-Atlantic does much to drive the “war on cars” meme, and they don’t have to. (Other AAA chapters manage to advocate for motorists and amicably coexist with cyclists.)

It is also in motorists’ interest to get as many people on bikes as want to be, because often, those on a bike are not in a car, reducing demands on the roads (which then need less maintenance, allow cars to drive with less delay, etc, etc).

[Steve]

@mstone 86964 wrote:

It’s possible to not advocate for something without advocating against it. AAA Mid-Atlantic does much to drive the “war on cars” meme, and they don’t have to. (Other AAA chapters manage to advocate for motorists and amicably coexist with cyclists.)

Perhaps. But you can only advocate “for” and not “against” to a certain extent. At some point, you are fighting over the same resources (money, space, etc.), and like it or not, that does mean you’re advocating “against.”

I’m not saying that AAA is good, or even that they don’t go too far, but they consider fighting for their resources as their job. I’m not sure I totally fault them for that.

[Steve]

@dasgeh 86965 wrote:

It is also in motorists’ interest to get as many people on bikes as want to be, because often, those on a bike are not in a car, reducing demands on the roads (which then need less maintenance, allow cars to drive with less delay, etc, etc).

I get this in theory, but most people don’t feel this way, and AAA is supposed to represent the desires of its members. Most of its members would rather resources be used on driving than cycling, plain and simple. You can blame AAA for that, but I blame its members. If its members wanted something different, they would leave. While some people here avoid AAA, most people don’t.

[Steve]

Just so I’m clear on this, I do not like AAA. I think they are aggressive and dismissive, etc, and generally bad for the things I like. That being said, I think they are doing the job that MOST of their members want them to do, and so I understand it. They are an association as basically lobbying group for people who want to drive places. Perhaps their tactics are overly agressive, but that’s lobbying.

What makes me more mad than AAA being the way that are is that LAB isn’t more assertive.

[mstone]

@Steve 86972 wrote:

Just so I’m clear on this, I do not like AAA. I think they are aggressive and dismissive, etc, and generally bad for the things I like. That being said, I think they are doing the job that MOST of their members want them to do, and so I understand it. They are an association as basically lobbying group for people who want to drive places. Perhaps their tactics are overly agressive, but that’s lobbying.

Actually, I think that’s completely wrong. I think most people are members because they want breakdown insurance, and aren’t really aware of the lobbying done by AAA. I think AAA misrepresents people who think they have a business relationship with AAA (as basically an insurance company) as people who have given AAA a mandate for a political lobby.

And if they want to lobby against everything but cars, fine–but then they should be honest about it. Instead, they claim to support safety and sustainability, but just can’t think of any specific safety and sustainability efforts they actually support. I think they do things this way exactly because they don’t really have a mandate for that agenda.

[cyclingfool]

I think in many ways AAA is like AARP. Most, or at least lots of, people join for the benefits, in this case towing end emergency services, travel deals, discounts, but they do not necessarily understand the lobbying and political advocacy work that they are funding by being a member. That’s not to say that members of AAA wouldn’t support the lobbying efforts if they were more aware of them, but at least some would probably disapprove.

[jonathankrall]

@Steve 86970 wrote:

AAA is supposed to represent the desires of its members.

I disagree. AAA is supposed to show up at the table with at least some degree of expertise and some willingness to educate their members away from self-harming stupidity.

For example, I joined AARP when I became eligible entirely because they strongly support Complete Streets policies. Skimming through the piles of lit they send me (I wish they would dial it back a little), they back this up with articles promoting active lifestyles and reduced auto-dependency. All this is despite the fact that the over-50 crowd is very weak in its support for bicycling. For example, a June 2013 WaPo telephone poll in the DC area showed that every demographic that they allowed the data to be broken into (they had a fun on-line tool for this) showed well over 50 percent support for bike lanes except for the oldest residents. When broken down by age, the oldest bracket showed only 50 percent support for bike lanes.

My point is that, if the AARP reflected the views of its members instead of bringing their own expertise to the table, I’d drop them faster than I dropped the AAA.

[jrenaut]

Nice AAA customer service story – I decided to ditch them two years ago, but figured I’d let my membership run out and then sign up with Better World Club. But I was on an automatic renewal, and I guess I forgot to turn it off, and so I paid for another year.

This year, I had gotten a brand new creidt card number because of the Target data breach, so I didn’t bother doing anything with AAA – I figured they’d send me a letter when the card didn’t go through and I’d tell them to fire John Townsend and F off.

Turns out the charge still goes through even though the number is different. My bank told me it was Visa’s policy and Visa told them they were crazy. AAA told me that, because I didn’t catch it for more than 30 days, they won’t refund my money. So now I have to contest the charge with my credit card company, which will at the very least be annoying.

So, you can say this is my fault, because it is, and that it’s my credit card company’s fault, because it is, but AAA could have easily fixed it and chose not to.

[KLizotte]

@mstone 86978 wrote:

Actually, I think that’s completely wrong. I think most people are members because they want breakdown insurance, and aren’t really aware of the lobbying done by AAA. I think AAA misrepresents people who think they have a business relationship with AAA (as basically an insurance company) as people who have given AAA a mandate for a political lobby.

I agree with this statement. I’ve been a member for years and had no idea that AAA lobbied for x, y, and z until the past year or so. I’m only a member for the insurance and discounts; an informal poll of my co-workers shows the same results. I’ve only called them a few times over the past decade and discovered that it takes hours for a tow truck or repair man to show up though I’m unclear whether this is normal given the alternatives out there. I’m very strongly inclined to buy insurance from Better World once my AAA insurance expires esp since I’ll probably have more reason to call if my bike breaks down than my car.

[DismalScientist]

Why would anyone buy breakdown insurance anyways? It seems too minor an expense to insure against.

[KLizotte]

@DismalScientist 87001 wrote:

Why would anyone buy breakdown insurance anyways? It seems too minor an expense to insure against.

I get enough back in discount savings that the membership pays for itself and they have helped me a couple of times when my battery died. And if you break down at a weird hour who are you going to call? (I’m single so don’t have the benefit of a significant other to rely upon).

[Author]

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