Terms

Terms of service

The brokered-service framework, the published-rate rule, liability boundaries, and the operator-panel arrangement.

Editorial summary

Terms of service

Last reviewed: 17 May 2026
Reviewer: cheap car tow editorial team
Reading time: ~6 minutes

cheap car tow is a booking and price-publication service. The recovery itself is performed by an independent PAS 43 compliant operator dispatched at the published rate. See terms for the operator-panel arrangement.

Terms

Terms of service

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Who is the contract with

When you book a recovery through cheap car tow you enter a contract with Cheap Car Tow Ltd for the booking and price-publication service. We are a broker: we take the booking, match the operator and publish the rate. The recovery itself is performed by an independent PAS 43 compliant operator dispatched at the published rate.

The operator has a separate contractual relationship with us under the published panel agreement. The operator's own terms apply to their on-the-ground service insofar as those terms do not conflict with the published-rate framework.

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The published-rate framework

The price band shown on the page is the price band that applies. The dispatched operator agrees to attend at the published rate as a condition of being on the panel. Variations are quoted at the published per-mile or per-hour rate before they apply.

Bands are indicative; the final figure is confirmed at booking. Caveats are listed in the pricing page and printed on the recovery sheet.

by the numbers

Cancellation and changes

You can cancel a booking free of charge before the operator has departed. After departure a partial charge applies (the cancellation rate listed in the pricing page). After the operator has arrived and the lift has started the full band applies.

Changes (destination, vehicle class, additional passengers) are accommodated where possible. Where a change increases the band the dispatcher reads the new figure and you confirm before the change is applied.

the moment

Operator-panel arrangement

Operators are admitted to the panel under a published agreement (PAS 43 compliance, LOLER and PUWER thorough examination, motor trade insurance, public liability of no less than £5 million, acceptance of the published rate framework). See the partners page.

We are not the operator at the scene. The operator is an independent business. The operator is responsible for the at-scene execution and for the in-transit care of the vehicle.

in the press

Liability and limits

Our liability is limited to the fees we have charged for the booking and price-publication service, except for liability that cannot be excluded by law (death or personal injury caused by negligence; consumer rights under the Consumer Rights Act 2015).

The operator's liability for at-scene damage is covered by their motor trade and goods-in-transit insurance and is claimed against the operator's policy. The recovery sheet records pre-existing damage at lift.

Nothing in these terms excludes liability for fraudulent misrepresentation or for any liability that cannot lawfully be excluded.

Key takeaway · 06

Customer obligations

Provide accurate booking information (vehicle class, registration, location, destination, access notes). Do not misrepresent the keeper or owner status of the vehicle. Be present at the scene or arrange for a representative to be present at handover.

Do not direct the operator to do anything outside the published procedure or unlawful. Pay the published band on completion or accept the insurer-instructed flow where the insurer is paying.

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Force majeure

Neither side is liable for delays or failure caused by circumstances beyond reasonable control (severe weather, road closures, civil emergency, pandemic restrictions). Where a force majeure event prevents the recovery, the booking is rescheduled at no additional charge or cancelled with a refund of any pre-paid amount.

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Intellectual property and content licensing

The text, images and structured data published on cheapcartow.co.uk are released under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-ND 4.0) licence. You may share the content with attribution to cheap car tow and a link back to the source page. You may not modify the substance of the content (typographic and format adaptations are permitted; substantive edits to the prose are not).

The brand name "cheap car tow", the logo, and the visual identity (including the magazine card design tokens) are NOT covered by the CC BY-ND licence. They are reserved as trademarks of Cheap Car Tow Ltd. Use of the brand name in a way that implies endorsement, partnership or operator-panel membership requires written agreement.

The pricing table, the operator panel agreement template, and the dispatcher workflow are also reserved. These are operational documents that we publish summaries of but do not licence for re-use.

For reuse permissions outside the CC BY-ND licence (commercial republishing, derivative versions, translated versions) email hello@cheapcartow.co.uk with the subject "content licence". The editorial team responds inside ten business days.

by the numbers

What counts as a material breach

A material breach is a breach that goes to the root of the contract. Examples on the customer side: misrepresenting the keeper or owner status of a vehicle for an unauthorised recovery; misrepresenting vehicle class to obtain a lower band; failing to pay the published rate after a recovery has completed; verbal or physical abuse of the dispatched operator at the scene.

Examples on our side: dispatching a non-PAS-43-compliant operator without disclosing it; charging more than the published band without a documented variation; failing to issue a recovery sheet at handover; failing to acknowledge a complaint inside the published timeline.

The consequences of a material breach are set out in the breach paragraph: the non-breaching party may terminate the contract by written notice; the breaching party is liable for the direct and reasonably foreseeable losses caused by the breach; statutory rights are unaffected.

Minor breaches (a late recovery within the published window, a typo on the recovery sheet, a missed callback by the dispatcher) are not material; they are handled through the complaints procedure rather than contract termination.

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Governing law variations across the UK

cheap car tow operates UK-wide but UK law is not uniform. The contract is governed by the law of the jurisdiction where the recovery was performed.

England and Wales: the Consumer Rights Act 2015, Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977, Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, Road Traffic Act 1988, Refuse Disposal (Amenity) Act 1978, PoFA 2012 Schedule 4.
Scotland: the same UK-wide statutes (Consumer Rights Act, Road Traffic Act) apply, plus the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 sections 99 to 103 for abandoned-vehicle removal. The Scottish courts have exclusive jurisdiction for Scottish bookings.
Northern Ireland: the same UK-wide statutes apply, plus the Pollution Control and Local Government (Northern Ireland) Order 1978 for abandoned-vehicle removal. Northern Ireland courts have exclusive jurisdiction for Northern Ireland bookings.

Where a recovery crosses a jurisdiction boundary (a tow from England into Scotland, for example) the contract is governed by the law of the jurisdiction where the recovery scene was located. The framework operates uniformly across the UK at the level of the published band, the dispatch procedure and the operator panel standard.

in the press

Disputes and governing law

The complaints policy is the first route for any dispute. Where the complaints procedure does not resolve the matter, the escalation routes listed there apply.

Governing law: England and Wales for English bookings; Scotland for Scottish bookings; Northern Ireland for Northern Ireland bookings. The Consumer Rights Act 2015 applies UK-wide.

The courts of the relevant jurisdiction have exclusive jurisdiction for any unresolved dispute, subject to your statutory rights as a consumer.

Key takeaway · 12

Review and change history

First published 2026-05-17. The terms of service is reviewed every 12 months or sooner if the cited primary source changes. Material changes (new lawful basis, new escalation route, new scope) are added below with a date and a one-line reason. Editorial corrections (typo, broken link) are not logged here; the live page is the source of truth.

If anything in this terms of service reads as inaccurate, out of date, or unclear, email the editorial team at hello@cheapcartow.co.uk with the page URL and a description of the issue. The editorial team replies inside three business days; a material correction is published with a dated note in this section. External escalation routes (ICO, Trading Standards, Financial Ombudsman Service) apply where the relevant complaint is in scope for the regulator.

Primary sources cited on this page

Common questions

Frequently asked questions

Who is the contract with?

When you book a recovery you enter a brokered-service contract with Cheap Car Tow Ltd for the booking and price-publication service. The recovery itself is performed by an independent PAS 43 compliant operator dispatched at the published rate.

What if the operator does not arrive in the quoted window?

Tell the dispatcher; we switch to the next-nearest available operator at no additional charge. Where the delay is material the booking can be cancelled with a refund of any pre-paid amount.

Can I cancel a booking?

Yes, free of charge before the operator has departed. After the operator has departed a partial charge applies, listed in the pricing table.

What if my vehicle is damaged during the recovery?

The operator's motor trade and goods-in-transit insurance covers in-transit damage. The recovery sheet records pre-existing damage at lift; new damage is claimed against the operator's policy.

What law governs the contract?

The law of England and Wales for English bookings; Scots law for Scottish bookings; Northern Ireland law for Northern Ireland bookings. The Consumer Rights Act 2015 applies UK-wide.

Is there a minimum spend?

No. The booking is for the service quoted; there is no minimum spend.

Need a recovery?

Published price, PAS 43 compliant operator, 24/7 dispatch.

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