Woman ‘stranded on motorway’ after roadside assistance ‘refused to help’

A woman has claimed she was left “stranded” at the side of a motorway in freezing conditions – after roadside assistance refused to help.

Sophie Clayton, 26, was driving to work on the M60 at 4.45am on January 19.

She was forced to call RAC, of ​​which she is a member, when she pulled over with a flat tire.

It was dark, minus zero, and traffic was whizzing by as she spoke to an operator.

Sophie, who works at Trafford Park, told Metro.co.uk: “I felt extremely vulnerable and unsafe.

“I explained to the operator that I didn’t know if it was a pothole or debris on the road that caused the flat tire. The operator immediately replied that they will not attend as they do not repair tires or help.

“The driver could definitely have sensed that I was scared but kept repeating herself and could only advise me to call my insurance company or a private towing company as there was nothing else she could do to help.”

Sophie says she then called the police for help as RAC would not come to her aid.

She is now considering alternative employment as she is nervous about her daily commute to work from Blackburn to Trafford Park.

The 26-year-old says her confidence while driving has been “severely damaged”.

An RAC spokesman told Metro.co.uk: “As Sophie was on a live lane on a motorway, our call center agent should have repeated the safety advice all members hear when calling our breakdown phone number – to call 999.

“We are very sorry that this did not happen and have already discussed this with the team member.

“While we deal with thousands of tire-related breakdowns every week, including breakdowns caused by potholes, Sophie told us she drove on debris in the road, which is considered a road traffic accident and not a breakdown.

“We apologize to Sophie for the mistake made by our call agent and agree to a gesture of goodwill with her.”

While Sophie understands the effort being made, she has nonetheless shared her story to raise awareness of the “horrible” treatment she felt she was facing.

Waiting for help at the side of the M60 and hearing the news that help isn’t coming still weighs on her.

The 26-year-old added: “I’m not entirely happy with RAC’s comments as they give me no hope that they will support their paying customers in the future.”

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