Our Heritage

The Norwegian car workshop organization, AVL (Automobilverkstedenes Landsforbund), perceived a threat from Falken and established Viking Redningstjeneste AS on June 7th, 1956. The company was the outcome of a long-term project to create a dedicated roadside assistance provider. The idea was conceived in 1935 but put on hold due to the fact that there were only 60,000 vehicles in Norway at the time.

Despite initial struggles to find the right business model and facing strong competition, Viking successfully established its unique position as the preferred partner to the automotive industry. By offering the highest service levels, it started turning a profit in 1962. Since then, the bond between Viking and the automotive industry has been extremely tight, and Viking expanded into Sweden.

Viking's mission has always been to provide customers with the highest standard of service, and to focus on technical innovation to meet evolving customer needs. In 1981, Viking signed its first contract with an insurance company, Norges Brannkasse, and quickly became an important partner to the insurance industry.

After 50 years of existence, the car industry handed over Viking to private equity investors. With the support of its new owners, Viking successfully re-entered the Swedish market in 2010 and began operations in Denmark in March 2015, followed by Finland in 2017. In July 2017, Viking established a state of the art call center in Spain, with an operational office in Torrevieja, Alicante.

Today, Viking has offices in Oslo, Stockholm, Copenhagen, Finland, and Spain. It serves customers through an extensive network of fully-owned stations and suppliers in Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and Finland. In all countries, Viking operates in the same manner and uses the same Information System, offering a real Nordic solution to its clients.