Vehicles and transport · RV-437 · Record
Roadside Breakdown Record
Free printable roadside breakdown record — where you stopped, who you called, when they came, what was found and what it cost. PDF and browser versions.
One page. The A4 and US Letter files are laid out identically, so neither is shrunk to fit.
Print it and write on it
Fillable PDF type and save
Or no download needed
Fill it in onlineThe fillable versions have real form fields — open them in any PDF reader, type into them and save. Printing help.
Fill it in online
The same sheet, on screen. Tick, type, add or remove rows, then print it or download the completed version as a PDF. Everything stays in your browser — your entries are kept in this browser's own storage on this device, nothing is uploaded, and there is no account.
Who this is for
What to do first and what to write down, on one page. The list covers the roadside itself; the tables record who was called and when they arrived, what the technician found and where the vehicle went afterwards.
Drivers who want the useful details written at the time rather than remembered a week later, anyone claiming a callout back from cover or an employer, and households keeping one sheet per vehicle in the glovebox.
What this helps you track
- Where the vehicle stopped, and how that was described to the recovery operator
- Who was called, at what time, and when they actually arrived
- What the fault appeared to be and what was found
- What was done at the roadside and where the vehicle was taken
- What was paid, and what is still to be claimed or followed up
How to use it
- Keep a copy in the glovebox. When you stop, work down the roadside list before writing anything else.
- Fill in the vehicle, the driver, the date, the odometer and the location as precisely as you can — a marker post, a junction number or a road name.
- Log each call as you make it: who you rang, the reference they gave, when they said they would come and when they came.
- Write what happened against the printed rows: the symptoms, the warning lights, what was found, what was done and where the vehicle went.
- Note anything paid on the spot and keep the receipt with the sheet; a claim is far easier with a dated record.
- File the finished sheet with the vehicle's service history — a recurring fault shows up across several of them.
Formats
- Printable PDF (A4 and US Letter)
- Fillable PDF with form fields
- Fill in online, saved in your browser
The printable is laid out inside a box that fits both A4 and US Letter, so the two files are identical and neither one is scaled. The fillable PDF has real form fields. The online version keeps what you enter in your own browser and builds the completed PDF on your device.
How to print
Download the A4 or US Letter file to match the paper in your printer, open it in a PDF reader and print at 100% — not "fit to page", which shrinks the writing space. Both files leave a 14 mm margin, which clears the unprintable edge on home printers. To print the online version with your entries in it, use the Print this sheet button, which prints only the sheet and none of the page around it. More on printing.
Questions
Why write it down at all?
Because a callout usually ends in a claim, a garage conversation or both, and the details that matter — the time, the reference, the fault code read out to you — are the ones nobody remembers afterwards.
What if I have no cover?
The sheet works the same. The call log takes whoever you rang, including a local recovery firm or a family member, and the cost column takes whatever you paid.
Where do repairs go?
On the vehicle maintenance log or the service history sheet. This page covers the breakdown itself and where the vehicle was taken; the repair that follows belongs with the vehicle's ordinary history.
Should I record a fault code?
If one is read out to you, yes — write it in the notes exactly as given. It means little at the roadside and a great deal to the garage that sees the vehicle next.
Related resources
Vehicle Accident and Claim Record
What was gathered at the scene, and what was not.
Vehicle Document and Renewal Register
Which documents the vehicle has, who issued them and the reference to quote.
Also in the library
Printable sheets, workbooks and tools on the same subject.
Vehicle Information Sheet
Fill in once the details you are asked for by a garage, an insurer, a parts counter or a hire firm and can never find.
Emergency Contact Sheet
Put the numbers somebody needs in one place, so a house-sitter, a babysitter, a visiting relative or a tenant is not searching for them at the worst moment.
