What do I do if I have a car accident or breakdown in Morocco?

First, the numbers to save before you drive: police (in towns) is 19, the Gendarmerie Royale (open roads and rural areas) is 177, and ambulance/SAMU is 15. Your rental company's 24-hour assistance line should be programmed into your phone and written on the agreement in the glovebox. Those four contacts cover almost any roadside problem.

For an accident — even a minor scrape — the critical thing is the constat amiable, the European-style accident report form. Do not move the vehicles or settle informally and drive off, especially if there's any damage or another party. You and the other driver fill in the constat together; if there are injuries or a dispute, the gendarmerie or police must attend and produce a report. Crucially, the rental company and the insurer will refuse a damage claim without that official paperwork, so the document is everything. Photograph the scene, the vehicles, the plates and any damage on your phone.

For a breakdown — a flat, a dead battery, an overheat — pull off the road safely, switch on hazards, and place the warning triangle (it's legally required to be in the car) well behind you. Then phone the rental company's assistance line first; your hire contract almost always includes roadside recovery, and they'll dispatch help or tell you the nearest approved garage. Don't accept a tow from a random passer-by before clearing it with the rental firm, or you may void the cover.

A flat tyre is the most common issue, given the rough secondary roads. Check before you set off that the car actually has a usable spare, a jack and a wheel brace — ask the rental desk to confirm, because a missing spare in the middle of nowhere is miserable. If you're not comfortable changing a wheel, that's another vote for the assistance line.

Mechanics in Morocco, it should be said, are resourceful and cheap, and small-town garages can patch a tyre or sort a problem astonishingly fast and for very little. But the paperwork discipline around accidents is non-negotiable for your insurance. If the thought of managing a roadside incident in French or Arabic worries you, it's one more reason a fair number of our guests prefer a driver — who handles the constat, the gendarmes and the garage entirely on your behalf.