Good morning ladies and gentlemen, members of the media, and representatives from our partner companies as well as colleagues in the industry.
The Automobile Association has been operating in South Africa for almost ninety years – always priding ourselves on our customer service, loyal to the values of honesty and integrity. Today that is not enough; and for us to build the AA of the future, we need to prioritise our partnerships with people who share our vision and our values, and our commitment to putting the customer first.
To do this it is important to take a step back and reflect on the current state of the towing industry in South Africa.
The towing industry has, over the past number of years, developed an unfortunate reputation for being non-inclusive, resistant to transformation, and lacking customer focus.
This has been an issue for the AA for a long time, as these values are essential to the core of our brand. Assisting our Members and Customers in their time of need is our number one priority, and doing this in the context of these values is critical.
The reputation of the towing sector has gradually deteriorated to such an extent that we can no longer continue without raising our voices. And, unfortunately, the lack of regulation over the towing industry, as well as the industry’s slow pace of transformation, has led to fragmentation in the sector which results in the industry lacking sustainability going forward.
If we as an industry wish to empower road users and add value to their lives, then, in the absence of regulation, we believe it has become necessary to publicly pledge our commitment to the values we believe are important, and in so doing make ourselves, and our partners and all industry players, accountable to each other, and to the public that we serve. We also want to take this as an opportunity to push for rapid and meaningful transformation in the motoring and financial sectors.
To this end, and to realise meaningful change in the sector we are actively facilitating the entry of previously excluded participants into the network. Through training, and making our skills and technical platforms available to others, we hope to expand the sector to include those who were previously denied entry – or opportunity for access and success.
But, transformation can only truly happen if there are basic principles agreed to by all participants, and which all role-players abide by.
We believe that the strength of any industry is generated through free and fair competition based on providing the best services to customers, who will ultimately reward good honest service, building up the most customer-focused providers and pruning those who put petty profit and ego before customer interest.
The AA, as an industry player we will no longer sit on the side lines and complain, we will take clear and confident actions to bring about change. This is why we are presenting this Service Charter today in order to address these issues that are of concern to our customers and members.
You will see from the Charter that we have identified four areas of focus. These are:
- Always Being Available to our Members and Customers,
- Ensuring, our Members and Customer’s Satisfaction is our Priority,
- Being Accountable to our Members and Customers, and,
- Valuing our Partners, Suppliers, Customers Members and industry participants.
Because of the nature of the industry, and it being unregulated, a pledge such as this is, we believe an indication from players in the industry that things can be done to make a difference in the sector in the interests of road users – consumers – and industry participants. We are doing this because we believe that the industry must hold itself accountable.
Through making this Service Charter a foundation of how we operate, we look forward to providing road users with incident free, reliable, and trustworthy service.
AA to transform SA towing industry https://t.co/AZRcW7OIlR #Vehicle Recovery #Towing @AASouthAfrica pic.twitter.com/hqHRq9hSdR
— Arrive Alive (@_ArriveAlive) June 13, 2018