El Nino says: Winter is coming and it’s going to be an unpredictable season.

It’s that time of year when temperatures drop, and in an El Nino year that means they are likely to drop well into the single digits for some areas, warm up in other areas, and be a wet, snowy few months for many.¹ In short, we need to be ready for every type of winter weather.

Freezing temperatures often cause mechanical and battery issues, as well as tire issues for vehicles old and new. Snowy conditions and icy roads can create dangerous road conditions and increased risk for accidents. In addition, the holiday season has some of the busiest travel days of the year. The result is an increased demand for roadside assistance and longer service times. 

While these events are usually unexpected and frustrating for your customers, we have been preparing all year, and are ready to provide safe, reliable, best-in-class roadside service no matter the conditions, 24/7/365, in every zip code with a road.

Cold Weather Driving by the Numbers

With the Farmer’s Almanac predicting above-normal snowfall and colder-than-normal temperatures this year, ensuring efficient support for drivers is something we take very seriously.² Even during mild winters, our data and experience tell us that colder months ranging from October through March see different challenges than the warmer season of April-September. Weather science, advances in AI, and 100+ TB of data fueling our machine learning, we are equipped to predict volume demands and make adjustments in real-time.

With the strength of our independent network of Service Providers, a PROVEN operations STRATEGY, and decades of experience, we are poised to meet the volume demands of this winter.

Our network of Service Providers is stronger and more agile than ever. With decades of experience and data from millions of events per year, we are experts in predicting roadside demand, and the agility and strength of our network are key in meeting these volume demands. This year we’ve implemented significant enhancements, including:

• Completed migration of all Service Providers to the Swoop platform for a seamless experience
• Implemented VIN decoding as part of the Service Provider selection logic in Swoop to automatically identify key vehicle attributes like brand and drivetrain using VIN data
• Enhanced tools for Services Providers, such as 24/7 chat, to better self-serve and reduce waiting times, resulting in faster job completion
• Improved service delivery quality metrics to further build our data repository and refine our selection algorithms
• Bolstered our Service Provider recruiting to further strengthen our network and capacity 
• Enhancements to our customer mobile web to support customers with digital options post intake

Our Swoop platform monitors 100% of events and proactively triggers activities and tasks, such as communication to the customer and Service Provider or an alert to the agent, to ensure customer expectations are met. Our Service Provider selection algorithm in Swoop considers factors such as equipment type and hours of operation, ensuring drivers get the right provider the first time – even in severe weather conditions – and with ongoing technology enhancements the algorithm continues getting even smarter.

We also manage our network from the top down – starting with a national view and then diving deeper into regions, states, and specific metros – covering 100% of zip codes 24/7/365 and maintaining high standards of customer service delivery. In addition to monitoring performance and capacity, we keep a close eye on weather events (everything from far-reaching polar vortexes to isolated storms) and will shift Provider coverage to bring more support into heavily impacted areas as needed – all while ensuring capacity is not negatively impacted elsewhere. We prioritize emergency situations and will schedule future service for drivers of vehicles that are in a safe location. 

As importantly, we provide real-time transparency on every event for all stakeholders, including your customers, our agents, our clients, and our Service Providers. We proactively communicate with our Service Providers and provide tips and guidance, including any special equipment needs and requirements for impacted areas. We stay in close communication with our Service Providers to maintain the latest information on service response times and road conditions. 

Our contact centers are ready to implement emergency protocols, from prioritizing those most in need to alerting customers of wait times, ensuring the best possible customer experience. 

We provide a wide range of intake options for drivers, enabling them to request assistance via the channel of their choice. With digital intake, drivers can request roadside assistance quickly and easily, reducing the total customer experience time by as much as 16% compared to a phone call. Post-intake digital options have been expanded to include one-touch call and chat support, and automated driver chat – with 80% of chats being resolved through the digital bot. For more complex roadside events, we have specially trained agents available to assist, ensuring even the most difficult jobs won’t leave you out in the cold. We have the right mix of agents to provide the most stability, agility, and efficiency to adjust staffing as needed.

We are always prepared and ready - even when drivers are not.

As winter approaches and temperatures drop, we know demand for roadside assistance will increase and our ability to be agile is critical. Our unique combination of technology, scale, and experience ensures we provide drivers with reliable, high-quality roadside services and a superior customer experience no matter the day, time, or temperature – making drivers jolly, happy souls while keeping them safe.

No one likes being left out in the cold: Help prepare drivers for winter with a Roadside Assistance program reminder!

Now is a great time to get communication out to all of your customers reminding them about their Roadside Assistance program and how to request assistance. A quick reminder like the one below can help get them out of the cold and back on the road quickly should they experience a roadside event:

“With the winter driving season approaching, check that you have your roadside assistance program handy.”

Sources: 

¹ https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/weather/2023/10/19/noaa-winter-forecast-cold-temperatures/71214343007/ 

² https://www.farmersalmanac.com/extended-forecast