Austria is the most expensive country in Europe to have a vehicle breakdown.

In a survey of European garages by Green Flag Motoring Assistance, Austria was found to have the highest call-out charges for assisting stranded motorists at an average cost of €110 (£74). This was closely followed by Ireland and Germany at €100 (£67), then Italy at €95 (£64). Spain was the cheapest at €55 (£37).

The distance the initial call-out charge covered also varied greatly from country to country, from within a 25-kilometre radius of garages in the Netherlands to only six kilometres away from garages in Germany. Once outside the garage's initial call out radius, European operators could charge motorists anything from €0.67(45p) per kilometre in Spain to €2 (£1.34) per kilometre in Ireland.

Hourly charges for labour also varies. Prices start from around €30.5 (£20) per hour in Spain, while German garages will charge around €81(£54) for an hours' work.

The most common location for Green Flag customers to breakdown on mainland Europe is France. Motorists breaking down in France without cover would face a call out charge of up to 87 Euros (£58.29) plus nearly £1 (€1.48) per kilometre. So if a motorist broke down in St Tropez and lived in Manchester it could cost £1,462 (€2,183) to get the car back home.