How we can help in Exeter
Vehicle recovery in Exeter
Three junctions wrap round the east and south of the city. Junction 29 takes the A30 east to Honiton and Exeter Airport. Junction 30 serves the A379 and A376 for Exmouth, Sidmouth and Dawlish, and has Exeter services beside it, along with Sandy Park, the Exeter Chiefs ground, which holds 15,600. Junction 31, just past the bridge that carries the M5 over the Exe, is where the motorway finishes: the A30 heads west for Okehampton, Bodmin and Truro, and the A38 continues towards Plymouth and Torquay. The M5 around Exeter is not a smart motorway. If you stop, use the hard shoulder, get out on the left and wait behind the barrier.
Before the M5 reached the city in 1977, all the holiday traffic squeezed over the bridges at Countess Wear. The Countess Wear roundabout, where the old Exeter bypass meets Topsham Road, is still a busy junction, and the Exe Bridges area near the centre carries a lot of the city's traffic.
Marsh Barton, south of the centre, is Exeter's largest trading estate, covering more than a square mile with over 500 businesses, including one of Europe's largest motoring centres. That means many recovered cars end up there, and plenty of work vans start their day there. It has had its own railway station since July 2023.
The Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital's main site is at Wonford. In the centre, Princesshay and the Guildhall shopping centres draw shoppers, and Exeter St Davids is the main station. On Chiefs match days, the roads around Junction 30 fill up well before kick-off.
A recovered vehicle can go to a Marsh Barton dealer, a local garage, or all the way home up the M5, priced in full before dispatch.
Roads & areas we cover around Exeter
Why Exeter drivers choose BlueLine
Recovering something other than a car
Different vehicles need different trucks and different handling. These explain how each one is done.
Exeter recovery & roadside FAQs
We've broken down on holiday near Exeter. Can you take the car all the way home?
Yes. Tell us where you are, how many people are travelling and the home address. The price for the whole journey is agreed before the truck is booked. If everyone can't travel in the truck, we'll tell you straight away so you can plan.
I've stopped just before the end of the M5 at Junction 31. What do you need to know?
Which way you were heading, whether you'd taken the A30 or A38 split, and the number on the nearest blue driver location sign if you can see it. Wait behind the barrier. If you can't get clear of a live lane, stay in your seat with the belt on and ring 999 straight away.
Can you deliver my car to a garage on Marsh Barton?
Yes. Give us the business name or the unit address. It's a big estate, so the exact address saves the driver hunting for it.
Can you jump start my car at the RD&E?
Usually, yes. Tell us which car park at Wonford and roughly where you are, plus the make and model and whether it's a hybrid. If the battery is finished, we can arrange a replacement fitted where the car is.
How is the price worked out for a long run home?
On the pickup point, the vehicle and whether it rolls and steers, and the destination. You get one figure before we book the truck, and that's the figure you pay.