Does Your Insurer's Roadside Assistance Cover EVs?

Mostly yes for everyday breakdowns, but with a catch: most insurer roadside add-ons barely acknowledge electric vehicles exist. A flat 12V battery, a locked-out car or a shredded tyre gets handled the same as any car. But on the one failure unique to EVs, running out of charge, only Allianz explicitly covers it as of mid-2026. AAMI mentions EV charge only inside an exclusion clause, Budget Direct confirms EVs are eligible but says it can’t deliver charge, and GIO and Apia publish nothing EV-specific at all. This page reports what each insurer actually says, including the silences.

What does each insurer actually say about EVs?

We checked the roadside product pages and published terms of five major insurers. Here’s the honest summary, current as of mid-2026.

AAMI Roadside Assist is an optional extra on AAMI comprehensive car insurance, priced at under $86 a year as of mid-2026, with unlimited callouts and a generous 100 km tow to an accredited repairer. The only EV mention we could find sits in the terms and conditions, as an exclusion: breakdowns caused by failing to take reasonable care, such as intentionally running out of fuel or electric vehicle charge, aren’t covered. Read charitably, that implies EVs are otherwise serviced normally; it also means a genuinely flat battery from a miscalculated trip could be argued either way. Details: AAMI Roadside Assist.

Allianz Roadside Assistance is the standout for explicitness. Both its Basic (from $99 a year, 50 km towing) and Platinum (from $139, 100 km towing plus a replacement vehicle) plans list “electric vehicle out of charge” as an included service, with towing arranged to the nearest charging station. There’s a 48-hour waiting period after purchase ($100 fee if you need help inside it). Details: Allianz roadside assistance.

GIO Roadside Assist costs under $95 a year as an add-on to comprehensive cover, with unlimited callouts and a 20 km free tow (extended toward 100 km if no accredited repairer is closer). Its published material doesn’t mention electric vehicles at all. That’s not a refusal to attend an EV, but it leaves the out-of-charge question unanswered in writing.

Budget Direct Roadside Assistance is a standalone $89.95-a-year membership covering six services, with towing capped at $150 per claim, which Budget Direct equates to roughly 15 to 20 km in metro areas. To its credit, its FAQ addresses EVs directly: roadside assistance is available for EVs, but it cannot deliver fuel or charge to them. Out of charge means a tow, and on a $150 cap, possibly a short one.

Apia Roadside Assist is an optional extra with Apia comprehensive insurance, towing up to 20 km in capital cities or 50 km in regional areas. Like GIO, its published pages contain no EV-specific terms.

Why the silence matters

When an insurer’s documents say nothing about EVs, three practical questions go unanswered. Will an out-of-charge callout be treated as a breakdown or as driver fault? Will the tow go to a charging station or only to a repairer? And does the contractor who turns up have a flatbed, which most EV manufacturers require to avoid damaging the motors during transport? None of these are deal-breakers for a city car that lives near chargers. All of them matter at 7pm on a regional highway. If you’re relying on an insurer add-on for an EV, it’s worth one phone call before you buy: ask specifically how they handle a flat traction battery, and where they’ll tow it.

Insurer add-on or motoring club?

Price favours the insurers: $86 to $139 a year against club plans that run from about $80 into the $300s. Substance mostly favours the clubs: published EV policies, EV-trained patrols, longer towing on upper tiers, mobile charging in some cities, and tow-to-charger language you can hold them to. Our best roadside assistance for EV owners guide ranks both camps side by side, and the complete guide to EV roadside assistance in Australia explains what EV breakdowns actually involve so you can judge how much cover you really need.

A fair rule of thumb as of mid-2026: if your EV stays metropolitan and you already hold comprehensive insurance with AAMI, GIO or Apia, the add-on is cheap and adequate. If you want the out-of-charge scenario covered in black and white, Allianz is the only insurer that writes it down, and a motoring club remains the stronger answer for anyone who drives where the chargers thin out. Verify current pricing and terms with each insurer; these figures move often.