How we can help in Solihull
Vehicle recovery in Solihull
Four M42 junctions matter here. Junction 4 is the A34 for Shirley. Junction 5 is the A41 into Solihull, and the nearest exit for Solihull Hospital on Lode Lane. Junction 6 is the A45 for Birmingham Airport and the NEC. Junction 5a opened in December 2024, with a new dual carriageway, the A4545, into the airport and Birmingham Business Park. North of Junction 6, Junction 7 meets the M6.
From Junction 3a to 7, the M42 was the country's first stretch where the hard shoulder opens as a running lane at busy times, and it still works that way. When the signs show a speed limit over the hard shoulder, it is live traffic. Keep going to an emergency area or leave at the next exit, and if the car stops in a running lane, stay belted in with hazards on and call 999.
The NEC has 16,500 parking spaces spread around the site, with shuttle buses to the halls, next to the airport and Birmingham International station. On a show day, the car park letter or number on your ticket is the only thing a driver can find you by. At the airport, the Air-Rail Link runs between the terminal and the station, and the drop-off zone is charged, so arrange to meet the truck in a car park rather than the kerb.
In the town centre, Touchwood has two ticketless car parks, the Touchwood car park and the John Lewis car park, both under cover. Solihull Hospital, run by University Hospitals Birmingham, has its main visitor car park at the north entrance on Lode Lane.
Solihull is outside Birmingham's Clean Air Zone. A recovered car can go to a garage here, home, or to a dealer further away, priced before dispatch.
Roads & areas we cover around Solihull
Why Solihull drivers choose BlueLine
Recovering something other than a car
Different vehicles need different trucks and different handling. These explain how each one is done.
Solihull recovery & roadside FAQs
My car won't start in an NEC car park after a show. Can you find me?
Yes, if you tell us the car park name or number from your ticket or the signs, and the row or zone if it's marked. The site has 16,500 spaces, so 'the NEC' alone won't get a driver to you. Give us the make, model and colour too. A flat battery can usually be fixed with a jump start where the car is.
Is the hard shoulder on the M42 near Solihull safe to stop on?
Only when it's closed to traffic. Between Junctions 3a and 7 it's opened as a lane at busy times, shown by a speed limit over it on the gantries. If it's open, keep going to an emergency area or the next exit. If you've stopped in a running lane, stay belted in with hazards on and call 999.
Can you collect my car from Birmingham Airport while I'm away?
Yes. Tell us which airport car park it's in and the row or zone, and send the registration. If the battery has simply gone flat while you were away, a jump start or new battery in the bay is often enough. Don't arrange to meet a truck in the charged drop-off zone.
My car is in the Touchwood car park and the battery is dead.
Tell us whether it's the Touchwood car park or the John Lewis one, the level and the nearest lift or zone. A jump start in the bay is the usual answer, since a flatbed won't fit inside a covered car park.
Can you take my car from Solihull to a main dealer?
Yes. Give us the dealer's address and the quote covers the whole journey, agreed before we dispatch.