Membership fee debate - Thank You.

tom · Post by **tom** » Fri Dec 02, 2005 6:45 pm

I'm delighted to find that the membership understand the need to formally constitute the club we all have made and the support and encouragement of your good selves is both touching and gratefully received. My firm's CEO is to speak on our behalf to the Finance Director who is going to help me to start a limited company to enable this to be done. I need a chat with Jon as it is only proper to involve him fully but I'll post details as soon as they become available. Membership will, I promise not cost more than £5!

Philip Chidlow · Post by **Philip Chidlow** » Fri Dec 02, 2005 6:52 pm

Excellent. If you need my input, as I've said before, on the graphics/marketing front, please ask.

BXpanding!

cavmad · Post by **cavmad** » Fri Dec 02, 2005 8:27 pm

I`ll happily be the first to cough up. Perhaps a Paypal link (like the car stickers) to enable payment?

Stewart (oily!) · Post by **Stewart (oily!)** » Fri Dec 02, 2005 10:57 pm

Paypal, fine £5 no problem, someday we will straddle the World

Stewart

Vanny · Post by **Vanny** » Sat Dec 03, 2005 2:13 am

i'd even go as far as to pay twice, however i thought to be publically limited that the 'corporation' had to be making well in excess of £70,000 per annum total profit?

Perhaps given our nature it would be better to be guilded? I dont think it enables tax exempt status, but i doubt we would have to be making in exces of £70,000 per year!

The debate still stands, does the club need to go the route of CCC? Can we not contribute as a group of individuals and friends? I'd hate to see everything fall apart because of too much red tape!

Anyhoo's get that ebay link up while we still have the coppers, Xmas is soooooo close now

M · Post by M » Sat Dec 03, 2005 8:04 am

Or alternativly we could avoid the issue of Liability etc by just keping it as it is? Or perhaps that is too simple?

DavidRutherford · Post by **DavidRutherford** » Sat Dec 03, 2005 8:57 am

Vanny wrote:i'd even go as far as to pay twice, however i thought to be publically limited that the 'corporation' had to be making well in excess of £70,000 per annum total profit?

£70'000 p/a turnover is the cut off for VAT registration. To be public limited (PLC) is a whole other kettle of fish, and you have to be turning over an awful lot to make it worthwile.

For an SME, (which this would be) it would probably be either a sole trader operation, or a private limited company (2+ directors)

tom · Post by **tom** » Sat Dec 03, 2005 9:26 am

The idea is to be a private limited company in order to protect the people who bring you this forum. Currently we are at risk if any of you get hurt at any event we organise, irrespective of the disclaimer statement. It didn't stop the five organisers of the Land Rover club from losing their houses and being forced into bankruptcy when one of their members was killed some years ago. We are now too big an organisation to allow this situation to continue.

cavmad · Post by **cavmad** » Sat Dec 03, 2005 9:55 am

Good point Tom and the last thing we`d want to happen to anyone.

DavidRutherford · Post by **DavidRutherford** » Sat Dec 03, 2005 10:13 am

Personally I find it a great shame that people can't be responsible for their own actions. Obviously I know nothing about the circumstances of the Land-Rover incident, but it does strike me that the moment anything bad happens, somebody has to be blamed. Which means that people have to protect themselves.

A big thank you to the USA, the country that gave us the compensation culture.

Running the BXclub as a limited company would give a level of financial protection to the organisers, and I'd be happy to pay £5 p/a for that. After all, there are many other car clubs that have a higher membership fee than that, and have nowhere near the level of expertise of this one. I can think of a number of kit car clubs I've joined over the years, only to realise that it was a complete waste of money.

sleepy0905 · Post by **sleepy0905** » Sat Dec 03, 2005 10:38 am

I have no problem with the £5 fee but there would have to be other payment options as well as paypal because people like me dont have credit cards or bank accounts with DD facilities or cheque books.

Jaba · Post by **Jaba** » Sat Dec 03, 2005 11:56 am

I am very happy with things the way they are. I am not a signed up member of the compensation culture, it is one of many undesirable developments in our society in the last 25 years.

Lets have a survey prepared by those who want this change or even a vote on the issue. Preceded by a proper discussion of all the pros and cons involved. Presented in a neutral manner.

Just some ideas, not objections.

sleepy0905 · Post by **sleepy0905** » Sat Dec 03, 2005 12:07 pm

People are going to ask one thing " What do i get for my £5 membership"
so we need to sort out what is offered for the membership what do they get in my membership pack.

Philip Chidlow · Post by **Philip Chidlow** » Sat Dec 03, 2005 12:40 pm

I am not a fan of the compensation culture either, yet I think we can't place too much trust in everybody's good will and faith (despite the fact this club seems brimming with it!). No burying of heads in the sand, IMO.

What we need to do is at least recognise the time and energy expended by the club's founding members by creating, as I've said before, a framework upon which the club can grow. It will enable newcomers to understand and use the advantages offered by the club. I personally think £5 seems a bit cheap. But there you go.

I agree with Jaba in the respect of a vote. After all, the club will be a democratic organisation, should it be decided to formalise it.

In response to what Sleepy0905 says, I would have thought a simple letter/leaflet of introduction, a window sticker and a membership card would do the trick. It would be sensible to use the website as the main focus of the club. I believe that the CCC suffers from having to produce the Citroenian (although when I was a member, I enjoyed receiving it) as it consumes a vast proportion of the club's revenue. I think a 'library' (in downloadable PDF format I suggest) could be built up in the member's section, for printing out for those who either have irregular access to a computer, or want something to follow in the workshop etc...

As part of the development of the club I suggest a fresh look at the website. The forum memberlist for instance could form the basis of the register, as opposed to creating a seperate register? All we need is a place to complete car particulars...

So, how about a poll, then?

ken newbold · Post by **ken newbold** » Sat Dec 03, 2005 12:43 pm

I don't think it's a case of what we want, but, what has to be.

Having been involved with other societies that have had to become limited companies in order to protect trustees and the like, its a step that I'm sure will have to come, sooner or later.