BREAKDOWN recovery companies are responding to fleet demands for a faster service but more than half of patrols are still failing to meet the half-hour benchmark, according to a JD Power survey published on Wednesday.

The 1999 UK Roadside Assistance Study quotes the AA as the best overall breakdown company followed by the RAC, Green Flag and Mondial. The AA topped each of the three categories - speed of response, service provided by the patrol and service provided by operator/dispatcher.

While more than 40% of 3,685 survey respondents who called a breakdown service said it took 30 minutes or less for a patrol to reach them, most responses are failing to meet the industry standard, although exact times for each company were not given. Meeting the 30-minute deadline is becoming vital after the Association of Chief Police Officers' recent warning that fleet drivers could be charged for being removed from motorways by a private contractor if their breakdown organisation took more than half an hour.