Motorway Recovery on the M23 and M25
Recovery for a breakdown or accident on the M23 or M25, once safe access has been confirmed. Call 999 first if you cannot get out safely or anyone is in immediate danger.
Right now
Go left, get safe, get help
Go left
Move to the left as far as you can. An emergency area, a lay-by or the hard shoulder if there is one. Hazards on, wheels turned away from the traffic.
Get safe
If you can, get out on the side away from the traffic and go behind the barrier. High-vis on if you have one. Do not go back to the car, even in the rain.
Get help
Call 999 for the police if you cannot get out safely, are in a live lane or anyone is in immediate danger. Use the emergency phone from a place of relative safety and follow its instructions before arranging recovery.
If you cannot get out of the vehicle safely, do not try. Keep your seatbelt on, keep the hazards on, and ring 999.
Hard shoulders and emergency areas
Some motorway sections use all lanes for running traffic. Do not assume there is a hard shoulder; follow the signs and signals on the road you are using.
Emergency areas are for emergencies. They provide a stopping place away from the running lane and a telephone to request help. Do not walk along or cross a live carriageway to reach one.
On the Gatwick spur, give the road, direction and nearest marker or junction. Do not assume that a hard shoulder or safe exit route is available.
The M25 around here
Junction 7 is where the M23 joins. Junction 8 is Reigate Hill, junction 6 is Godstone. The section from junction 5 to junction 7 was the first all-lane-running scheme on the network, so the same rules apply.
What National Highways does, and what it does not
Police and National Highways manage incidents and decide what traffic protection is needed. Follow their instructions; a phone call alone does not mean a lane is protected.
If police or National Highways are managing the incident, follow their instructions and check whether they have already arranged recovery. Your insurer may also have arrangements in place. Once the scene is safe and you are free to choose a recovery firm, call us with the vehicle’s location, condition and intended destination.
National Highways also tells recovery operators they are never expected to work in a live lane. We need suitable traffic protection and a safe working position before loading.
We will not ask you to stand in a live lane, walk along a carriageway, or push a vehicle on a motorway. If that is what a job would need, it waits for the road to be made safe.
No promises about time
Plenty of recovery sites put an arrival time in big letters. On a motorway that is close to meaningless, because the road decides, not the truck.
So there is no number on this page. What you get instead is a straight answer on the phone about where the truck is. You get another one if that changes.
Before leaving an emergency area
Use its emergency telephone and follow the operator’s instructions before rejoining. A lane may need to be closed. Never leave an emergency area without speaking to National Highways first.
Safety sources checked 12 September 2026: Highway Code rules 275–279 and National Highways.
Once you are moving again
The vehicle comes off at the next junction and goes wherever you need it. Home, a garage, a dealer, or a body shop after a knock.
The towns either side of these roads all have their own pages: Gatwick, Crawley, Redhill and Reigate.
This page is the recovery service. The safety steps are worth reading before you need them: what to do when you break down on the M23 or M25.
How a price is worked out
Where you are, where the vehicle is going, and what it takes to load it. We agree the job and price before setting off. Any additional work is explained and agreed with you first.
Questions
Motorway questions
What number do I ring on a motorway?
Should I stay in the car?
What is an emergency area?
Can you tow a car on the motorway?
How long will I be waiting on the motorway?
Will you come out to a live lane?
Safe, and need the vehicle moved?
Tell us the road, the direction and the nearest junction or marker post. You get the price before we set off.