Mobility News | February – March 2020

A brief history of the RAC
One of the benefits of having a Motability Scheme car is that full breakdown
assistance and cover, provided by RAC Motability Assist, is included in the
lease at no additional cost.
The RAC support our
customers every day, but did
you know that they have been
helping motorists for over 100
years? Read this article to find
out more on the history of the
RAC.
Ever since its foundation
in 1897, the RAC has been
consistently at the forefront of
developing motoring services –
right through to the present day
where they boast some market
leading innovations to assist all
our customers at the roadside.
The Royal Automobile Club
(RAC) was initially formed by a
group of pioneering motorists,
who embraced the new
freedoms brought about by the
development of the combustion
engine, and in its very earliest
days was responsible for
organising the first motor races.
As motoring among the
population grew, so did the
services the RAC could offer
its members and it wasn’t long
before mobile uniformed patrols
were introduced in 1901 and
roadside emergency telephone
boxes in 1912.
The mobile mechanics on
their Norton motorbikes were
a familiar sight in the early part
of the 20th century. But in the
years after the second world
war, as motor manufacturing
increased and road networks
improved, the patrol van was
introduced which could carry
more tools and parts, to fix a
wider range of problems.
Moving with the changing
times and responding to
customer need has always
been at the forefront of how the
RAC has operated, which has
been reflected in some of their
more recent innovations.
At the turn of the millennium,
as the RAC marked its
centennial anniversary, they
moved away from the RAFstyle
blue uniforms and relaunched
the patrol fleet in the
distinctive orange that is known
throughout the country today.
At about the same time the
RAC designed, developed and
launched a retractable rapid
deployment trailer, a towing
facility which is stored in the
back of all its patrol vans. And
earlier this year the towing
facility was further extended to
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