Greater London · open 24/7
In London a dead battery can strike in a basement car park under a block of flats, on a terraced street where the car has not moved since last weekend, or halfway round the North Circular. We cover London from our Reading base, day and night, and bring a professional jump pack to wherever the car is.
We do not have an office in London and we will not pretend otherwise. Our technicians set out from Reading, so west London, reached along the M4 and the A4, is the closest part of the capital to us, while north, east and south-east London are a longer drive. That is why every London call starts the same way: we check where our nearest technician is and how the motorways are moving, then tell you honestly how long we expect to be before anyone sets off.
London is hard on car batteries in its own way. Many people here use the Tube or the bus during the week and only drive at weekends, so cars sit still for days and never get a long run to recharge. When they are used, it is often in slow, stop-start traffic on roads like the A40 Westway or the South Circular, with the headlights, heater and wipers all drawing power. A battery that copes in the summer can suddenly give up on the first cold morning of autumn.
Where cars let people down
If you live near a Tube or Overground station, the car may stay parked outside the house from Sunday to Saturday. Alarms, trackers and keyless entry systems keep drawing a small current the whole time, and an older battery can be flat by the time you need it. A jump start gets you going, and a quick test tells you whether the battery is worth keeping.
Plenty of newer apartment blocks, offices and hotels have parking below ground, often behind a gate or a height barrier. Phone signal can be weak down there, so call us from street level if you can. Tell us about any barrier, intercom or access code, and the technician can carry the jump pack to your car if the van cannot get in.
Leaving a car for a week or two while you travel is one of the classic ways to come back to a battery with nothing left. Whether the car is at a car park near the airport or on your own drive in Hounslow or Ealing, tell us exactly where it is and we will plan the visit around any access rules.
The A406 and A205 are slow for much of the day. On cars with stop-start, every halt switches the engine off and the battery has to restart it again and again, which is hard on a battery that is already tired. If your car refuses to restart in a queue, get somewhere safe first and then call us.
With the ULEZ now covering all London boroughs, many drivers have moved to newer petrol, hybrid and electric cars. Hybrids and EVs still rely on a small 12-volt battery to power up their systems, and when it is flat the car simply will not switch on. We follow the jump points and procedure in your handbook.
Services
Our technicians bring a dedicated jump pack, so we never need to squeeze a second car alongside yours in a crowded London street or a narrow parking bay. Once the engine is running, we check the battery and charging voltage before we leave.
More about jump start serviceIf the test shows the battery cannot hold a charge, we tell you what your car needs, including whether it has stop-start or needs the new battery registering. If the right battery is on the van we can fit it there and then; if not, we say so plainly.
More about car battery replacementSome problems are not the battery at all. If a restart does not fix it, we can help arrange recovery to a garage you choose in London, back to your home address, or to another place that suits you.
More about breakdown recoveryDescribe what happens when you press the start button or turn the key, and mention any warning lights or noises. We will give you an honest opinion on whether a technician can sort it at the roadside or whether a garage is the better option.
More about roadside assistanceTell us where you are, the vehicle and what happens when you try to start it.
We confirm the price and give you a realistic arrival estimate before anyone sets off.
The technician connects a professional jump pack to the correct points and starts the engine.
We test the battery and charging voltage and tell you whether it needs replacing.
Coverage
We cover London from our Reading base. In west London that includes Ealing, Hounslow, Hammersmith and Fulham, Kensington and Chelsea, and Richmond; in central London, Westminster and the West End; to the north-west, Brent and Harrow; and to the north, Barnet, Enfield, Camden and Islington.
Further east we cover Hackney, Tower Hamlets, Newham, Waltham Forest and Redbridge, and south of the river Southwark, Lambeth, Wandsworth, Merton, Sutton, Lewisham, Greenwich, Bexley and Bromley. Croydon and the CR postcodes have their own page with local detail. Wherever you are, give us your postcode, borough or nearest station when you call, and we will confirm straight away how we can help.
No surprises
The price depends on where you are, the time of day and your vehicle. We tell you the price on the phone and confirm it before any work starts.
London is a big place and traffic changes by the hour, so we will not quote a time we cannot keep. When you call, we look at where our nearest technician is, the route from Reading and how busy the M4, the M25 and central London roads are. You get an honest arrival estimate and the price before anyone sets off, so you can decide whether waiting for us is right for you.
Call Now +44 7480 800352Common questions
Answers for drivers who need help in and around London.
Still unsure? Call and we will talk you through it.
Call Now · +44 7480 800352Somewhere else? Find a 24/7 jump start near you.
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Flat battery or a car that will not start? Call FastBreakdown for a 24/7 mobile jump start, battery replacement or recovery.
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+44 7480 800352We confirm the price and give you an arrival estimate before anyone sets off.
