industry automotive services founded 1901 introduction of uniformed patrols 1978 incorporation as r.a.c. motoring services ltd. founder henry jervis mulliner headquarters walsall west midlands united kingdom area served united kingdom republic of ireland key people rob templeman chairman chris woodhouse ceo services roadside assistance general insurance revenue 501 million 2015 1 operating income 95 million 2011 2 owner cvc capital partners 50 % gic private limited 50 % number of employees 3 700 2011 average 2 subsidiaries rac motoring services limited rac financial services limited rac insurance limited website www.rac.co.uk rac limited is a british automotive services company headquartered in walsall west midlands . its principal services are roadside assistance and general insurance and its subsidiaries include rac motoring services ltd rac financial services ltd and rac insurance limited . rac was founded as the associate section of the royal automobile club at the turn of the 20th century and was incorporated as r.a.c. motoring services ltd. in 1978 . it was sold by the members of the royal automobile club to lex service plc in 1999 which subsequently renamed itself rac plc. in 2005 rac plc was acquired by aviva and delisted . aviva then sold the rac to the carlyle group in june 2011 . although carlyle had originally planned a stock market flotation for the rac 3 in september 2014 carlyle agreed to sell almost half its stake to singapore s sovereign wealth fund gic private limited . 4 in december 2015 carlyle agreed to sell its remaining stake to cvc capital partners in a transaction valuing the rac at 1.4 billion . 5 the rac s main competitors are the aa and green flag . contents 1 history 2 services 2.1 roadside assistance 2.2 other 3 team rac 4 see also 5 references 6 external links history edit the rac tower in bradley stoke bristol 1961 rac austin mini van see also royal automobile club the royal automobile club was formed in 1897 by frederick richard simms which set up an associate section to assist members with roadside assistance and to provide motoring services . the club incorporated the associate section as r.a.c. motoring services ltd. in 1978 . in 1987 the organisation introduced an advanced computer aided rescue system . 6 in 1991 it established the rac foundation as its research arm . the rac foundation was later turned into a charity and received a legacy from royal automobile club members when r.a.c. motoring services ltd. was later sold . 6 british school of motoring bsm was purchased by r.a.c. motoring services ltd. in 1998 . 7 in september 1999 r.a.c. motoring services was itself purchased by lex service plc from members of the royal automobile club and lex service renamed themselves rac plc in 2002 . in 2000 rac purchased i cad from intergraph to provide advanced graphical command and control capabilities . 8 and in 2004 the national customer service awards recognized the system with the best use of technology in customer service award . 9 in march 2005 aviva plc acquired rac plc for around 1.1 billion . 10 aviva then went on to raise around 500m from selling some parts of the business 10 such as rac auto windscreens in 2008 and bsm to a german company in january 2009 . 11 12 bsm has since been sold to acromas holdings which owns the automobile association . aviva plc ceased providing loans under the rac brand name in january 2008 and dissolved its partnership with the co operative bank plc. aviva sold the rac to carlyle group in june 2011 . 13 services edit roadside assistance edit an rac roadside assistance van the rac has around 2 000 patrols that attend 2.8 million breakdowns each year this includes overseas breakdowns with rac europe . the rac covers 8 million roadside assistance customers with 2.2 million individual members and 4.5 million corporate customers . their breakdown assistance centres operate 24 7 and deal with approximately 4 millions calls a year . they have introduced for trial two hybrid vehicles to cut fuel consumption and carbon emissions . 14 in 2009 a jd power survey ranked the rac highest in satisfying roadside assistance customers for the fourth consecutive year . 15 rac europe is breakdown cover for uk customers that travel to europe . rac europe covers 47 european countries and provides english speaking incident managers available 24 hours a day to assist . the office is based near lyon in villeurbanne france . other edit rac vehicle checks and examinations conduct vehicle checks that show if a car has been stolen written off has outstanding finance or previous plates is at risk of being sold illegally and that its number plate and chassis number correspond . rac vehicle checks are conducted by experian while rac examinations inspectors make physical checks on the car to make sure it is mechanically and structurally sound . the rac also provides travel and traffic services including online route planners in car navigation and help with travel documents . 16 team rac edit colin turkington driving for team rac bmw at snetterton main article west surrey racing in 2006 rac teamed up with wsr west surrey racing to form team rac and to race in the british touring car championship btcc with two mg zs cars and from 2007 onwards two and sometimes three bmw e90 320si cars . the racing cars were liveried in rac s corporate orange and have achieved a number of wins including winning the btcc independent drivers championship with colin turkington in 2007 2008 and 2009 . turkington was also able to clinch the outright win in the 2009 btcc drivers championship for team rac . for 2010 rac have reduced their level of sponsorship with the team . see also edit the aa green flag vehicle recovery references edit 2016 corporate citizenship report pdf . the carlyle group . retrieved 5 october 2016 . a b annual report & accounts 2011 . rac limited . retrieved 15 october 2012 . fitzgerald thomas 2014 09 26 . rac float skids off the road as gic buys stake . retrieved 2016 09 21 . chassany anne sylvaine 2014 09 25 . singapore s gic poised to buy large rac stake . financial times . issn 0307 1766 . retrieved 2016 09 21 . f1 shareholder cvc motors to 2bn rac deal . retrieved 2016 09 21 . a b history . rac foundation . history of the british school of motoring bsm . british school of motoring . retrieved 2010 02 26 . rac motoring services signs 4 million pounds sterling contract with intergraph public safety . the auto channel . rac wins national best use of technology in customer service award with intergraph i cad command and control system . business wire . a b aviva sells rac for 1bn . the telegraph . london . 2011 06 23 . retrieved 2012 08 28 . aviva sell bsm to german firm . the mirror . ebrahimi helia 2011 04 27 . aviva drives towards rac sale . the telegraph . london . retrieved 2012 08 28 . wachman richard ; kollewe julia 2011 06 23 . rac sold to american private equity firm carlyle for 1bn . the guardian . london . about us . rac plc. jd power survey pdf . jd power . retrieved 2012 08 28 . rac products and services . rac plc. archived from the original on october 10 2007 . external links edit the rac breakdown cover by rac european breakdown cover by rac vehicle inspections by rac vehicle check by rac v t e driving in the united kingdom main topics approved driving instructor british land speed record driving examiner united kingdom the highway code driving licence in the united kingdom list of uk driving licence endorsements road signs in the united kingdom road speed limit enforcement in the united kingdom road speed limits in the united kingdom united kingdom traffic laws traffic signs regulations and general directions acts locomotives on highways act 1896 motor car act 1903 road traffic act 1934 organisations disabled motoring uk driver and vehicle agency driver and vehicle licensing agency driver and vehicle standards agency driving standards agency institute of advanced motorists motor insurers bureau 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consultancies current caparo vehicle technologies cosworth cummins uk gkn gkn driveline johnson matthey lotus engineering mira perkins engines pilkington quaife ricardo tata steel europe tickford tomkins trl unipart wipac wmg zytek former dunlop rubber ferodo gardner hardy spicer henry meadows laycock engineering lucas industries lucasvarity white and poppe government and regulatory bodies department for transport driver and vehicle licensing agency driving standards agency vehicle certification agency vehicle and operator services agency related topics automobile designers automobile magazines am magazine autocar auto trader auto express car classic & sports car evo fast car motor sport octane top gear what car institute of advanced motorists iam motorcycle manufacturers royal society for the prevention of accidents rospa society of motor manufacturers and traders top gear category retrieved from https en.wikipedia.org w index.php title rac limited & oldid 742711219 categories 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