Car Jump Start Service for a Flat Battery
Snap arranges a jump start for a car with a flat battery, on your drive, in the street or in a car park. Tell us where the car is and what it does when you turn the key. We contact independent operators covering the area and send you one quote for an operator to come out to the car. A jump start may restart a car with a discharged battery.
No membership needed. If the car turns out to need moving, a recovery can be quoted too.
Asking for a quote does not book the job.
Send a request 24/7; requests are handled round the clock. Or call 078 3333 9309, Monday to Friday, 9am to 6pm.
- For a car at home, at work or in a car park
- Tell us the make and model up front
- No membership needed
If you've stopped somewhere dangerous, or anyone is hurt or at risk, call 999 first. Snap is not an emergency service. On a motorway, get out on the side away from the traffic if it's safe and wait behind the barrier. If you can't get out safely, stay in the car with your seatbelt and hazard lights on, and call 999.
Is a jump start the right job?
Ask for a jump start when the car shows signs of a flat battery as you turn the key or press the start button:
- Quick clicking, or a single click, and the engine doesn't turn.
- A slow, dragging crank that gets weaker with each try.
- Dim or flickering dashboard lights, or no lights at all.
Try once or twice, then stop, so you don't drain what's left.
If the engine cranks at normal speed but won't fire, the battery may not be the problem, and a jump start may not help. The car won't start guide walks through the sounds, and breakdown assistance quotes the right job from what you describe.
Access details for a jump start
The operator needs to park close to the car and reach the battery or the jump-start points under the bonnet. Tell us:
- Where the car is parked: a driveway, the street, a work car park, or a multi-storey or underground level.
- Room around the car: whether a vehicle can pull up alongside or in front, and whether the bonnet can be opened fully.
- A height bar or barrier: the car park's name, the level or zone, and the height shown at the entrance.
- Keys and timing: that you have the keys and will be with the car.
- The car: automatic, electric, hybrid or start-stop.
Electric and hybrid cars have a 12V battery that powers the systems that switch the car on, and it can go flat even with charge in the main battery. Your handbook explains how to deal with a flat 12V battery on your model, and where the jump-start points are on any car that has them. A flat main battery on an electric car isn't a jump start job.
How your jump start quote is agreed
- Send your request. Where the car is, what happens when you turn the key, and the access details above.
- Snap assesses the job. We contact suitable operators covering the area and get their prices and availability.
- You get one quote. It shows the total for the job, with Snap's booking fee and the operator's charge set out separately.
- You decide. Asking for a quote does not book the job, and nothing goes ahead until you accept. If you'd like us to look again, say so.
- The operator is assigned. Once you've accepted and paid the booking fee, you get the operator's details and an estimated arrival time by SMS or WhatsApp. Arrival times are estimates, not guarantees.
Your quote depends on the pickup and drop-off, the car's condition, access and operator availability. You see the total for your job before you accept. As an indicative range, a jump start where an operator comes out to the car is typically £50 to £100, including our booking fee. If the car isn't as described, for example it's on a level the operator can't reach, the price may change or the job may not go ahead. More detail is in the guide to recovery costs.
Request a jump start quoteIf the jump start doesn't work
A jump start helps when the battery will still take a charge and the car has no other fault. If the jump start doesn't get the car going, the operator may charge for the attempt, and a tow is quoted as a separate job.
If the car needs moving, you can ask for a recovery to your chosen garage or home. As an indicative range, a local tow up to 10 miles is typically £50 to £150. If you already know it isn't the battery, or a jump start has been tried and hasn't worked, ask for a recovery quote from the start. See towing and recovery for what to tell us.
Request a recovery quoteWhen the car does start
A car that starts after a jump start hasn't proved that the battery or the charging system is sound. A battery provider may be able to test or replace the battery at the car, or a garage can check the battery and the charging system. Snap's part is the jump start, or an arranged recovery if the car needs moving.
Common flat battery situations
At home in the morning
The car was fine yesterday and now it clicks on the drive. Tell us whether there's room to park alongside or in front of it, and whether it's on the street or a private drive.
Back to a car left standing
A car that hasn't moved for weeks, or one left at an airport long-stay car park, can lose enough charge not to start. Note the car park's name, the zone or level, and the height on the barrier sign before you send your request. The flat battery guide explains what else can drain a battery.
The battery light came on while driving
A red battery warning light while the engine is running can point to a charging problem, which a jump start won't fix. Stop when it's safe and check your handbook. The car won't start guide helps you work out the next step, and a recovery to a garage may be the job to ask for.
Paying and cancelling
You pay Snap's booking fee by bank transfer after you accept, using the details on your tracking page, and you get a receipt for it. You pay the operator's charge to the operator when the job is done. We don't take card payments on this website and we never ask for your card details. Cancel within 15 minutes of confirming, or before an operator is assigned, and the booking fee is refunded in full. More on paying and cancelling.
Who does the work
An independent recovery operator carries out the jump start, and your contract for the work itself is with the operator. When operators join, they confirm their licensing and insurance, and we check their motor and public liability insurance and cover for your car while they have it. That check happens when they join rather than job by job, so ask to see their insurance details and ID when they arrive. More on how operators are checked.
Jump start questions
How much does a jump start cost?
As an indicative range, a jump start where an operator comes out to the car is typically £50 to £100. Your quote depends on where the car is, access, the car itself and operator availability.
Can you jump start a car if it's completely dead?
A jump start may restart a car whose battery is discharged but will still take a charge. A battery that has failed may not start the car or hold the charge. If it doesn't get the car going, the operator may charge for the attempt, and a tow is quoted as a separate job.
Can a car in a multi-storey or underground car park be jump started?
Yes, if the operator can reach it. Send the car park's name, the level, the height shown at the entrance and whether a vehicle can pull up alongside or in front of the car.
What if I get the car started before the operator arrives?
Call 078 3333 9309 or reply to your booking message straight away. What's refunded depends on how far the job has progressed, and the cancelling section of how it works sets out each stage.
What if it's the key or the immobiliser, not the battery?
A jump start won't help a key, fob or immobiliser fault. If the car needs moving, say the keys aren't working in your request and ask for a recovery quote to your chosen garage.
Related help
- The car won't start guide, to work out what the sound means.
- The flat battery guide, on a drained battery and a charging fault.
- The guide to car recovery costs.
- Breakdown assistance, when you're not sure what the car needs.
- Towing and recovery, when the car needs moving.
- Car recovery by area.
Request a quote for your jump start
Tell us where the car is, what it does when you turn the key, and how an operator can reach it.
Request a jump start quoteAsking for a quote does not book the job.
Send a request 24/7; requests are handled round the clock. Or call 078 3333 9309, Monday to Friday, 9am to 6pm.