By Michael Phelan
Published: Thursday, September 8, 2022
Embarrassing confession: the number one reason I’ve called RAA Road Service for help over the years is because I’ve locked my keys in the car.
There was that time after the 1994 SANFL Grand Final at Footy Park, and when I took my nephews Christmas shopping at Tea Tree Plaza. Oh, and I can’t forget that time when I was a part-time delivery driver to pay my way through uni.
Who needs heated seats when a hungry customer’s family-sized deep pan meat lovers pizza and garlic bread can keep your passenger seat warm.
Taking a wild guess, I would have said that locking keys in the car would range high on the callout list for RAA Road Service, alongside a flat battery or flat tyres.
But let’s take the guesswork out of it. We’ve crunched the numbers to reveal RAA’s top 10 roadside assistance callouts for 2021–22.
| Rank | Problem | Callouts |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Car won't start | 58,492 |
| 2 | Flat battery | 53,389 |
| 3 | New battery needed | 48,356 |
| 4 | Engine troubles | 40,409 |
| 5 | Tyres and wheels | 38,825 |
| 6 | Locked out of car | 18,321 |
| 7 | Electrical | 14,282 |
| 8 | Cooling system | 12,954 |
| 9 | Transmission | 7,844 |
| 10 | Fuel | 6,649 |
Interestingly, the top 10 callouts for last financial year were exactly the same as the previous one – they even ranked in the same order.
Reigning champ ‘car won’t start’ topped the list but numbers dropped significantly, from a whopping 67,565 callouts in 2020-21 to 58,492.
Runner-up ‘flat battery’ was up by 9.4% to 53,380 callouts last financial year compared to 48,349 in 2020–21.
Total callouts 2021-22
The number of times RAA members needed roadside assistance
Taking out bronze yet again, 48,356 callouts were for RAA members needing a new battery, up 8.1% from 44,222 the previous financial year.
Engine trouble (40,049 callouts) and issues with tyres (38,825 callouts) rounded out the top five, while locking the keys in the car came in sixth with 18,321 callouts.
And I can assure you none of those came from me.