Groupe Renault has signed up the RAC to provide a comprehensive customer service centre solution to all its brands in the UK.

L-R: RAC business roadside managing director Phil Ryan with Groupe Renault head of customer support Mark Thomason

The contract has been awarded following a competitive tender and covers both retail and fleet segments.

The deal, which initially runs for three years with an option to extend for a further two, will see the RAC support around one million customers of Renault, Dacia and Alpine, handling everything from servicing and repair needs with dealers, to managing vehicle downtime and the mobility needs of drivers. The RAC will also manage ad-hoc requests such as providing vehicle-specific technical information and booking test drives.

The service will be carefully tailored forb specialist fleets using vehicles from one or more of the Groupe Renault brands, ensuring that contract SLAs are met.

Customer contact solutions will be provided digitally, including via online web chat and social media, as well as through a traditional call centre.

RAC business roadside managing director Phil Ryan said: “While the demands and needs of customers differ significantly, our team recognises that every interaction – whether over the phone, online or in person – is an opportunity to build trust and loyalty and demonstrate to each customer just how committed to great service each brand really is. This matches the RAC’s approach to putting customers at the heart of everything we do.”

The contract will also expand to cover further opportunities with each Groupe Renault brand, in particular with the arrival of eCall (emergency) and in the future bCall (breakdown) services, which allow customers and even vehicles themselves to request assistance at the push of a button.

The deal builds on RAC’s existing provision of breakdown assistance to Groupe Renault brands, which has been in place since 2014.

Renault UK customer experience director Jean-Philippe Roubes said: “We are confident that our customers will benefit from not just the RAC’s strong automotive knowledge but also their unique ability to link roadside assistance services with overall customer services. The contact centre expertise, innovation, and flexibility of the RAC will help us to achieve our ambition to deliver industry leading customer services across all the Groupe Renault UK brands.”