Stuck? Urgent.ly To The Rescue

on June 17, 2015 at 10:00 am

Roadside assistance goes on-demand with this app-based service for iOS and Android devices.

What is Urgent.ly? Well to put it simply, Urgent.ly is like Uber for tow trucks. A better explanation is that it’s a pay-on-demand app for roadside assistance services. Once you install the app on your phone and, when the need arises, request assistance with just a few taps. Prices are estimated up front and, thanks to Urgent.ly accepting mobile payments, users can pay through the app using a credit card number.

There is an up to 10-mile tow, for example, is a $99 flat fee, but drivers can input a destination address to get a more accurate quote. Other services offered include vehicle lockout service, dead battery jump, fuel service and flat tire fix, all estimated starting at a flat $75 charge each.

The tow truck driver who receives the request will also be running the Urgent.ly app on his or her phone — again, much like an Uber or Lyft driver would — and will receive instructions, the location of the vehicle in distress and payment via the app.

Users can see how many responders are in the area in the app and, once a responder accepts their request, watch their tow truck make its way on the live-updating map.

Urgent.ly co-founder and CEO Chris Spanos estimates that the average driver needs roadside service about once every two and a half years and that most call less often than that. Doing the math, three years of AAA works out to about $164 to $312 depending on the level of membership that the driver chooses. A driver who only gets one 7-mile tow or one flat tire technically pays up to $312 for that flat. An Urgently user who also only makes one call during that period only pays for that one call and is saving up to $237, plus he has accessibility to 24 hour towing services.

The Urgent.ly app is free to download from the Apple App Store and Google Play Store with in-app purchases for each roadside assistance dispatch. The app was just recently chosen to be added to the AT&T Drive platform for connected cars.