Yedidim: The Free Israeli Service

Every Dad Should Have Saved in His Phone If you're living in Israel, there's one number worth adding to your phone before you need it: 1230. Yedidim – Roadside Assistance is a nationwide volunteer organisation providing free, non-medical emergency assistance across Israel. Its volunteers help people stranded on the road, locked out of cars and homes, stuck in lifts and in a range of other situations where you need practical help quickly. For parents in particular, it's a service worth knowing about.

What is Yedidim? Yedidim (ידידים – "Friends")

is a volunteer organisation providing what it describes as non-medical first aid on the road and at home. The organisation says it now has more than 65,000 volunteers across Israel, with volunteers responding to calls throughout the country. Its regular service operates 24 hours a day, six days a week, excluding Shabbat and Jewish holidays. And perhaps the most surprising part for anyone unfamiliar with Yedidim: The assistance is free. The organisation is volunteer-run and does not charge for the assistance its volunteers provide.

What can Yedidim help with?

One of the most common reasons to call Yedidim is a problem with your car. Their volunteers can assist with situations including:

• A flat tyre
• A flat battery and jump-starting your car
• Keys locked inside a vehicle
• Running out of fuel, oil or water
• Vehicles stuck and requiring certain types of recovery assistance
• Locked doors
• People trapped in lifts Yedidim volunteers use specialist equipment for some types of call-outs, including opening locked vehicles without damaging them. The organisation also works alongside Israel's emergency services in situations including children accidentally locked inside cars, missing-person searches and other emergencies. For a dad travelling with kids, knowing the number can turn a horrible situation—a flat tyre or dead battery with three impatient children in the back—into something considerably more manageable.

How to contact Yedidim

Call 1230 For non-medical emergency assistance, dial

1230 from any phone in Israel. This is the number Yedidim currently promotes for its nationwide assistance centre. Save it now as: > Yedidim – 1230 You probably won't remember the number when you're standing beside a car that won't start.

Request assistance online Yedidim also operates an online assistance service.

You can submit a request and its call centre will contact you by phone. Request assistance from Yedidim The organisation says its volunteers are available through this system 24/6.

WhatsApp Yedidim also accepts assistance requests through

WhatsApp. Its published WhatsApp number is: 077-202-1230 The organisation confirmed this number in its emergency-readiness information, alongside the main 1230 hotline. This can be particularly useful if your Hebrew isn't great and explaining the problem verbally is difficult.

What information should you provide?

If you're asking for roadside help, make it as easy as possible for the volunteer to find you. Have ready:

• Your exact location — send a WhatsApp location pin if possible.
• Your phone number — make sure you can answer it.
• The problem — for example, flat tyre, dead battery or keys locked inside the car.
• Vehicle details — colour, model and anything else that will help identify you.
• Safety information — tell the operator if you're in a potentially dangerous location, particularly beside a major road. Yedidim's system works by receiving the request, establishing the location and nature of the problem, and alerting nearby volunteers who may be able to respond.

What if a child is locked in the car? Treat situations involving a child locked inside a vehicle seriously. Yedidim specifically trains and equips volunteers for vehicle entry and regularly responds to incidents involving children accidentally locked inside cars. However, Yedidim is not a replacement for Israel's emergency services.

If there is an immediate threat to life or a medical emergency, contact the appropriate emergency service. Yedidim itself describes 1230 as its hotline for non-medical emergencies.

Does Yedidim operate on Shabbat? Its normal assistance service operates

24/6 rather than 24/7 and does not ordinarily operate on Shabbat and Jewish holidays. That's important to remember if you're planning family trips over the weekend. Don't assume 1230 provides the same service at all times.

Can English speakers use Yedidim? Don't be put off from contacting them because your Hebrew is limited.

If communicating by telephone proves difficult, the WhatsApp option can make it easier to explain the problem or send your location. It can also be useful to know a few words:

• I need help – אני צריך עזרה (Ani tzarich ezra)
• My car won't start – הרכב שלי לא מניע (Ha'rechev sheli lo menia)
• Flat tyre – פנצ'ר (puncture)
• Battery – מצבר (matzber)
• I am here – אני כאן (Ani kan) But don't worry about constructing perfect Hebrew while stranded with the kids. Give the operator the essential information and your location.

Can I volunteer? Yes. Yedidim isn't a conventional roadside-assistance company—its nationwide network is built around volunteers responding to people in their local areas.

The organisation actively recruits volunteers and has regional operations covering central Israel, Jerusalem, northern Israel and southern Israel. Find out more about Yedidim and volunteering For Anglo dads looking for a practical way to contribute locally, it could also be an interesting way to meet people and become more involved in the community.

The Anglo Dads takeaway Israel has plenty of things that take a while to figure out after moving here. Yedidim is one of the services you can easily live here for years without knowing about—until somebody mentions it after you've already spent two hours waiting beside a dead car battery. So do one thing after reading this:

Save 1230 in your phone. And while you're there, send this guide to your partner and make sure they save it too.

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Yedidim contact details

• Non-medical assistance: 1230
• WhatsApp: 077-202-1230
• Request Yedidim assistance online
• Yedidim official website Yedidim is an independent organisation. Anglo Dads is not affiliated with Yedidim; this guide is provided as a useful resource for English-speaking families in Israel. Contact details and services can change, so check Yedidim's official website for current information.