An eight month pregnant mum says she was left stranded for hours by the AA on the hottest day of the year - some 300 miles away from where her car originally broke down.
Laura Jenkins, 38, was returning home from holiday when her engine failed in the extreme heat.
She immediately dialled the AA rescue teams, but was horrifyingly left to wait several hours for assistance.
Laura - who is 35 weeks pregnant - recalls sweltering in the heat along with her husband and nine-year-old daughter as they waited for their vehicle breakdown cover car to arrive.
Recollecting the day, she says she was trying to make her way back home to Newcastle upon Tyne from Pendine, West Wales before their Kia car broke down shortly into the six-hour journey.
The family then called the AA at 2.30pm, but say a recovery lorry did not arrive until 9.30pm.
The mum-of-one also adds that they were forced to spend an extra night in Wales, before a hire car could be sorted to take them home.
Laura and husband Justin described the whole situation as a 'nightmare' due to her stage and the extreme heat.
Explaining how upset she was being left in this scenario, she said: "I am a high risk pregnancy, and can go into labour early, I have been starting to struggle with my blood pressure and I can feel my body changing."
The family also had to cut their holiday short so their nine-year-old daughter, Dacey-Faith, could attend a school ceremony at Newcastle United FC.
She said: "She was so excited, and we wanted to come back a day earlier so she could have a good night's rest, but now she's just missed out and is absolutely gutted,
"We have had to try and keep her positive, getting her to read books and keep her entertained but she's distraught."
Laura said the family "bought loads of lollies" as they waited for the AA to arrive, adding that they hope the, "AA will reimburse us for the hotel and breakfast.
"We just needed to get some sleep, and we were told the AA would ring us but they haven't, and again I have had to chase."
However, the ordeal did not end there.
Upon returning to Newcastle, Laura ended up having to be admitted to the Royal Victoria Infirmary, because of the impact of the heat.
Her husband Justin, 48, continued saying: "It's just been an absolute nightmare, with cars constantly cancelled, AA blaming the car rental company and them saying it is the AA's fault.
"The recovery drivers have been amazing, but the process has been horrendous, just absolutely shocking. The boys have done everything they can."
The AA spoken to Mrs Jenkins, and found a resolution that she is happy with.
In a statement, the British motoring association said: “We are sorry for the delays in Mrs Jenkins recovery and issues with onward travel which fell short of the standards we expect. We have been in contact with Mrs Jenkins to apologise and have ensured we have covered any costs incurred due to their overnight stay, plus a gesture of goodwill for the inconvenience caused.
“We deal with over 9 million breakdowns every year and do our best to reach our members as quickly as possible. This breakdown occurred on one of our busiest days due to the heatwave and the associated challenges that came with it. Our apologies once again got to Mrs Jenkins and her family.”
