24 Hour Car Recovery on the M25 from J22 to J25 with Guaranteed Attendance
Cars, vans and 4x4s recovered on the M25 from The Bell at London Colney to Waltham Cross, day and night. The price is agreed on the phone before we set off, and we guarantee attendance on every job we confirm.
- No separate call-out fee
- Price agreed first
- Guaranteed attendance on confirmed jobs
- 24/7/365
If you cannot reach a place of safety and also cannot get out of your vehicle safely, stay in it with your seat belt and hazard lights on and call 999 first.
Send your details on WhatsApp once you are safe
Get to safety first and do not go back to the vehicle to check anything. Answer only from what you already know. If you cannot reach safety and also cannot get out safely, call 999 instead.
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We provide 24 hour car recovery on the M25 between J22 (The Bell, London Colney) and J25 (Waltham Cross), covering cars, vans and 4x4s. The stretch takes in Bignells Corner at J23, where the A1(M) begins, and the Potters Bar junction at J24. We agree the price by phone before we dispatch, with no separate call-out fee, and a motorway callout on the M25 runs from £250 to £750 depending on location. We guarantee attendance on every job we confirm.
Our attendance guarantee
Once we have confirmed your job with you and agreed the price, we guarantee to attend. We cannot give an arrival time, because it depends on where you are and, where the police or National Highways are managing the scene, on when they allow access. The price is agreed before we set off, with no separate call-out fee. The guarantee does not extend to the Dartford Crossing itself or its approach roads, where only a constable or traffic officer may move a vehicle.
Rated 5.0 from 153 Google reviews (October 2026). CityGrip Recovery, 68 Ruckholt Road, Leyton, London E10 5NP, open 24 hours. About CityGrip Recovery.
The M25 from J22 to J25: an overview
This stretch of the M25 covers roughly 11 miles of the northern side of the orbital, from The Bell interchange at J22 by London Colney to Waltham Cross at J25. Junction numbers rise clockwise, which here means heading east. The western end is in Hertfordshire and takes in Bignells Corner at J23, where the A1(M) begins, and Potters Bar at J24. Shortly after J24 the motorway crosses from Hertfordshire into the London Borough of Enfield, and J25 sits on the Greater London boundary, with the town of Waltham Cross just across it in Broxbourne, Hertfordshire.
As a road it changes character halfway along. J22 to J23 is controlled motorway with the hard shoulder kept, while from J23 the M25 is all lane running, with four running lanes and emergency areas instead of a hard shoulder. It carries a great deal of traffic: Department for Transport counts for 2025 put the average at about 137,000 vehicles a day between J22 and J23 and about 148,000 between J23 and J24, in both directions, with around 19,000 to 21,000 of them HGVs. Four interchanges link it to St Albans, the A1(M) and A1, Potters Bar and the A10.
Broken down on the M25? Get to safety first
If your vehicle breaks down, your safety comes before the car. The Highway Code (rule 277) says to leave the motorway at the next exit or pull into a service area if possible, and National Highways says not to stop in a live lane unless absolutely necessary. If you cannot leave the carriageway at the next exit or pull into a service area, follow the three steps below. A hard shoulder gives less protection than other places of relative safety (rule 275).
Step 1, go left. Move into the left lane. Pull into an emergency area or onto a hard shoulder if you can, and stop as far to the left as possible, leaving space to exit your vehicle, with your wheels turned to the left and your hazard lights on (use sidelights too if it is dark or visibility is poor). If you can, stop just beyond an emergency telephone.
Step 2, get safe. If it is safe and possible, exit the vehicle by the side furthest from traffic and make sure passengers do the same. Wait well away from the vehicle and moving traffic, behind the safety barrier where there is one, aware of unseen hazards such as sudden drops, uneven ground or debris. Do not stand where your vehicle could be forced into you. Do not return to the vehicle, even if it is raining, cold or dark, and do not attempt repairs or put a warning triangle on the carriageway.
Step 3, get help. Use the free emergency telephone and face the traffic while you speak. If you have not stopped near one, or you cannot get out of the vehicle, call 999 immediately and ask for the police, or press your vehicle's SOS button if it has one and ask for the police. Tell them if you are a vulnerable motorist, such as disabled, older or travelling alone. In an emergency area you must use the emergency telephone and follow the operator's advice before you leave (rule 278), because a lane may need to be closed so you can rejoin.
If you cannot reach a place of relative safety and cannot get out safely, stay in the vehicle with your seat belt and hazard lights on, and call 999 and ask for the police (or press your SOS button if your vehicle has one). Rule 279 gives the same advice if you have a disability that stops you following these steps. If you cannot use an emergency roadside telephone because of a speech or hearing impairment, National Highways takes texts for roadside assistance on 0738 028 3600.
Call us once you are somewhere safe: behind the safety barrier, well away from your vehicle and moving traffic, after you have spoken to National Highways or 999, or in a service area or off the motorway. Tell us your direction of travel (clockwise or anticlockwise), the last junction you passed, and the registration, make and model. Quote a marker post or driver location sign only if you can read it from where you are safely waiting. Do not go back to the vehicle to find details. Do not wait for us in or beside a live lane.
Junction by junction: M25 J22 to J25
J22 The Bell: the A1081 for St Albans and London Colney
J22 is The Bell Interchange, where the A1081 meets the M25. The A1081 is signed for St Albans, and London Colney, a village about 2.5 miles south-east of St Albans centre, lies by the junction. The A1081 follows the line of the old A6 for most of its length, and when the M25 was built it took over the A6 between London Colney and South Mimms. Roads.org.uk lists J22 as full access, with no restricted turns. It is the first junction of this stretch clockwise and sits on the controlled motorway section, where the hard shoulder is kept. The next junction anticlockwise is J21A Bricket Wood.
J23 Bignells Corner: the A1(M), the A1 and South Mimms
J23 is Bignells Corner, also called the South Mimms interchange, and it is junction 1 of the A1(M). The A1(M) runs north from here towards Hatfield. It ends at the M25, so the A1 south towards London is an ordinary road, not a motorway, and the A1081 leaves for Barnet. South Mimms services are entered from the roundabout. The interchange is a three-level stacked roundabout with traffic lights at each entry point, and up to five lanes on the circulatory carriageway.
The name comes from a garden centre, Bignell and Cutbush, which stood close to the junction of the old A6 and A1. All lane running begins here. Tell us J23, your direction on the M25, and which road you were on: the M25, A1(M), A1 or A1081.
J24 Potters Bar: the A111 and A1005
J24 is the Potters Bar interchange, a roundabout where the A111 leads into Potters Bar, a Hertfordshire town in Hertsmere that sits outside Greater London. The A1005 is also signed, running on towards Enfield. Roads.org.uk lists the junction as full access. J24 is inside the all lane running section, so it has four running lanes, emergency areas and no hard shoulder. The M25 crosses into the London Borough of Enfield shortly after the junction clockwise.
J25 Waltham Cross: the A10 and the Great Cambridge Road
J25 is the Waltham Cross interchange with the A10. North, the A10 runs through Cheshunt, Broxbourne and Hoddesdon towards Hertford and Ware. South, the Great Cambridge Road dual carriageway leads to Enfield, Edmonton and the A406 North Circular. It is a four-arm signalised roundabout that National Highways widened, finishing in 2022. In the features paragraph, change "Its 2017 consultation on the J25 rebuild" to "Its 2017 consultation on the J25 improvement scheme"., with extra lanes on the roundabout and a free-flow left turn from the clockwise M25 onto the A10 northbound.
The junction sits on the Greater London boundary: the London Borough of Enfield is to the south, and the town of Waltham Cross is just across the line in Broxbourne, Hertfordshire. A little north of the junction the A10 meets the A121, the road to Waltham Abbey, at a roundabout. The Holmesdale Tunnel lies just beyond J25 clockwise, between J25 and J26.
Hard shoulder and smart motorway status on J22 to J25
The National Highways smart motorways map (reference CRE25_0085, information last updated 21 January 2025) lists the M25 from J16 to J23 as controlled motorway. On this stretch that covers J22 and the length between J22 and J23, where the hard shoulder is kept for emergency use and variable mandatory speed limits apply. The same map lists J23 to J27 as all lane running, which takes in J23, J24 and J25 and the lengths between them. The map shows no dynamic hard shoulder anywhere on the M25.
National Highways describes the J23 to J27 section as converted from a conventional three-lane motorway to four running lanes with variable mandatory speed limits. J23 to J25 opened in that form in April 2014 and J25 to J27 in November 2014. Emergency areas take the place of the hard shoulder, and National Highways' South East retrofit programme lists 15 new emergency areas on J23 to J27 and says that work is complete. Layouts, speed limits and roadworks change, and the map is a snapshot from January 2025, so follow the signs and signals on the day.
Motorway services on J22 to J25
There is one motorway service area on this stretch: South Mimms, run by Welcome Break, at Bignells Corner, South Mimms, Potters Bar EN6 3QQ. It is not on the M25 carriageway. You leave at J23 and reach it from the signal-controlled Bignells Corner roundabout, following the service area signs. Welcome Break lists it as open 24 hours. HGVs use a separate HGV-only Truckstop rather than the main building.
J22, J24 and J25 have no services. The other service areas on the M25 all lie outside this stretch: Clacket Lane between J5 and J6, Cobham between J9 and J10, and Thurrock, which is reached from J30 or J31 at the Dartford end. motorwayservices.uk lists four on the whole of the M25.
What makes J22 to J25 different as a stretch of road
Two pieces of M25 history belong to this stretch. The J23 to J24 length was the first part of the motorway to open, in September 1975, and on 29 October 1986 Margaret Thatcher officially opened the finished M25 at a ceremony held between J22 and J23, by London Colney and South Mimms. Bignells Corner is also a leftover from a bigger plan: roads.org.uk says the original Ringways plans would have made the roundabout a seven-way junction, with another motorway called Ringway 3 as the extra arm.
The J23 to J27 conversion replaced a three-lane motorway with four running lanes. National Highways found that weekday traffic on that length grew by an average of 22 per cent from 2012 to 2019. Its 2017 consultation on the J25 rebuild reported up to 6,300 vehicles an hour at peak through the roundabout, and said traffic leaving the westbound M25 could queue back as far as the Holmesdale Tunnel. Department for Transport counts for 2025 put about 158,000 vehicles a day on the length between J24 and J25, almost 22,000 of them HGVs.
How our M25 car recovery works on this stretch
We are based in Leyton, East London, and take calls 24 hours a day on 07960 200253, by phone or WhatsApp. We recover cars, vans and 4x4s on the M25 between J22 and J25, and we can supply and fit a replacement tyre, deal with locking wheel nuts and seized wheels, or arrange recovery. Get to safety first, then call us (if you are in a live lane, call 999 first). We are rated 5.0 from 153 Google reviews.
When you ring, tell us the junction you last passed, your direction (clockwise or anticlockwise), the vehicle and what is wrong. We agree the price on the phone before we dispatch, with no separate call-out fee, and a motorway callout on the M25 runs from £250 to £750 depending on location. We guarantee attendance on every job we confirm, and where the police or National Highways are managing the scene we attend as soon as they allow access.
Had a non-fault accident? Your recovery is free.
If another driver was at fault, we arrange your recovery free of charge through our sister claims service, CityGrip Claims. Start a claim there to see how your accident is handled.
M25 J22 to J25 car recovery FAQs
Do you cover the M25 between J22 and J25?
Yes. We cover the whole of the M25, so J22 The Bell at London Colney, J23 Bignells Corner at South Mimms, J24 Potters Bar and J25 Waltham Cross are all covered. The only place our guarantee does not extend is the Dartford Crossing and its approach roads, which lie outside this stretch. We recover cars, vans and 4x4s, 24 hours a day, and we are based in Leyton, East London.
What does guaranteed attendance mean on this stretch of the M25?
We guarantee attendance on every job we confirm between J22 and J25. Where the police or National Highways are managing the scene, we attend as soon as they allow access. The only part of the M25 where the guarantee does not apply is the Dartford Crossing and its approach roads, and those lie outside this stretch.
What should I tell you when I ring from the M25 between J22 and J25?
Tell us the junction you last passed, such as J23 Bignells Corner, and your direction, clockwise or anticlockwise. Then give us the make, model and registration of the vehicle, what has happened (a tyre, locked wheel nuts, a fault) and a number we can call back on. The junction and direction let us place the job on the right carriageway.
Which way is clockwise on this stretch of the M25?
Junction numbers rise as you travel clockwise, and on this stretch clockwise means eastbound: from J22 The Bell to J23 Bignells Corner, J24 Potters Bar and then J25 Waltham Cross. Anticlockwise is westbound here, with the numbers falling. If you are unsure, tell us the last junction you passed and the next one named on the signs.
How is the price set for a recovery between J22 and J25?
The price is agreed with you on the phone before we dispatch, and there is no separate call-out fee. A motorway callout on the M25 runs from £250 to £750 depending on location. Because it is agreed first, you know the cost before the job starts.
Is the M25 between J22 and J25 a smart motorway?
In part. National Highways' January 2025 map lists J16 to J23 as controlled motorway, so J22 and the road up to J23 keep a hard shoulder. It lists J23 to J27 as all lane running, so J23, J24 and J25 have no hard shoulder, only emergency areas. Layouts and roadworks change, so follow the signs and signals on the day.
Are there motorway services between J22 and J25?
One: South Mimms services, run by Welcome Break, at J23. It is not on the M25 carriageway; you leave at J23 and reach it from the Bignells Corner roundabout, following the signs. There are none at J22, J24 or J25. The other M25 service areas all lie outside this stretch.
Which junction do I use for London Colney and St Albans?
J22, The Bell, is the junction for London Colney, and the A1081 is signed there for St Albans (J21A Bricket Wood, just before it, is also signed for St Albans via the A405)., London Colney lies by the junction, and roads.org.uk lists J22 as full access. The A1081 follows the line of the old A6. J22 is the first junction of this stretch clockwise, and J21A Bricket Wood comes immediately before it.
What is J23 Bignells Corner, and does the A1(M) continue south?
J23 is Bignells Corner, which is also junction 1 of the A1(M). The A1(M) runs north from here towards Hatfield and ends at the M25, so south of the junction the A1 carries on as an ordinary road towards London. The A1081 leaves for Barnet. It is a three-level stacked roundabout with traffic lights at each entry point.
Where does J24 Potters Bar lead, and is it in London?
J24 is a roundabout interchange with the A111 into Potters Bar, a Hertfordshire town outside Greater London, and the A1005 is also signed, running on towards Enfield. The M25 crosses into the London Borough of Enfield shortly after J24 clockwise, so J24 is in Hertfordshire while J25 sits on the edge of Greater London.
Is J25 Waltham Cross in London or Hertfordshire, and where do its roads go?
J25 sits on the boundary between the London Borough of Enfield to the south and Broxbourne, in Hertfordshire, to the north; the town of Waltham Cross is in Broxbourne. The A10 runs north through Cheshunt, Broxbourne and Hoddesdon towards Hertford and Ware, and south along the Great Cambridge Road to Enfield, Edmonton and the A406 North Circular. The junction is a four-arm signalised roundabout.
Can you help with a tyre or locking wheel nut problem on this stretch?
Yes. We can supply and fit a replacement tyre, deal with locking wheel nuts and seized wheels, or arrange recovery. Tell us which problem you have, the junction and your direction when you ring, and we confirm the job and agree the price before we dispatch. We recover cars, vans and 4x4s.
Where the road details come from
Road details on this page were checked against these sources in October 2026.
Updated 19 October 2026. Written and maintained by CityGrip Recovery, Leyton. Open 24 hours. Once you are somewhere safe, call 07960 200253 for car recovery on the M25.
Broken down on the M25 between J22 and J25? Get to safety first, then call us.
Call 07960 200253, tell us your direction (clockwise or anticlockwise) and the last junction you passed, and we agree the price before anyone sets off.