As we're heading over to Europe soon, I decided to start getting stuff prepared. First things first, I phoned the insurance company - Norwich Union. I'm insured fully comp with them, so figured I'd have something for Europe anyway, and it'd just be a matter of letting them know. I was sort of right - I only had third party cover for Europe, though. To change this to fully comp would cost me a further £26.

Next up is arranging European breakdown cover. Now, most places seem to charge an absolute fortune for this. Indeed, Norwich Union wanted a further £75 for it. The AA and RAC both quoted relatively high prices (higher than £75), with Green Flag coming in at a reasonable £61.

Top prize goes to a company called EuroRescue who do their top of the line European coverage for £50. But is it all about how cheap it is?

Some googling around suggests that it used to be a case of you get what you pay for, and it's worth reading the small print. If your car breaks down and you need to get it back across the water to Blighty, then some policies won't be able to help you. This can be a relatively costly experience, especially if there's a car full of you (four or five people) to get back as well. Some policies also have limitations on things like "You only get one hour of roadside mechanic time, after that you're stuffed" as well. I was slightly skeptical of the service that Eurorescue could offer for the price, but googling seems to suggest that it's good for what it is.

I'm also just about to go and get some new boots put on the car. My tyre fitter of choice (Nant Conwy tyres) is charging me the princely sum of £235 for a pair - whereas ATS Euromaster wanted £295 for them, and Kwik Fit a mere £312.

It pays to shop around.