BMFA London Area Club looking for UK members

[Vincent Raia]

Are you interested in joining the BMFA alongside your LMA membership without paying costly club fees?
We are the Flightline Model Aviation Club, based in South East London, and have been established about ten years, we do not have a designated flying field, only local parks, so we only charge a minimum £5.00 for administration fees, then you can belong to the BMFA no matter where you live, use your designated club or other flying site, especially if t's BMFA affiliated, then you have the benefit of belonging to the BMFA, and the backing of a BMFA area, with all the voting rights, without incurring the cost of club fees, especially if you are a slope soarer or electric flyer, or just a show flyer, and don't need a proper flying field, or a Scottish flyer who would prefer to be in the BMFA rather than the SAA, as we do have a few Scottish members.

If this is something that your interested in, or might benefit from,then please contact us through this advert, thanks.

[Dave Parry]

Hi Vince, sorry mate but I wouldn't join the BMFA if you paid it for me. I have no reason to be a part of them with a great association like ours. Ooh and did our subs go up again this year, that would be another 'NO' In fact they have never gone up for years. Do I need to go on, no I don't, so I won't.

[Dave Berry 2911]

Hi Dave,
My club is affiliated to the BMFA and a condition of that affiliation is that ALL club members are also in the BMFA.
Therefore if I wish to avail myself of my club's flying site (and I do!) I must be a BMFA member.
I suspect that this situation applies to many LMA members ,who are therefore paying for two lots of insurance.
I seem to remember that discussions about insurance between LMA and BMFA were initiated some time ago, but I assume nothing came out of them.
Dave B.

[Vincent Raia]

Hi Dave, (P) can't ague with what you have said, perfect if you are an LMA member but as Dave Berry has stated, it's a problem for certain LMA SAA members to belong to their local club without being a BMFA member, and a sad fact that the two major organisations are split like this, although some clubs do allow LMA membership/insurance to belong but the majority insist on BMFA insurance as they are a BMFA affiliated club.

That's why my club is making the offer to LMA SAA members, they can become a BMFA member without paying the sometimes very expensive club fees, and therefor they can take part in any BMFA event that stipulates BMFA insurance only, and yes, you can do your own but by doing it through us, you get to be associated and backed by a BMFA Area.

As stated, it's not for everyone but the offer stands for people who feel it will meet their particular needs, thanks.

[Alan Cantwell 1131]

It wasnt that nothing came of it, lma members were given the chance to puruse using lma/ bmfa insurance agreements at an agm a couple of years ago, the members decided that it was the sake of £10, the insurance fee, so it was voted out, Very very short sighted,

I wonder, in a claim, one has to pay the excess, to be legal, both insurances would have joint litigation on the claim,i wonder if both would charge the full excess? For to be legal, both insurances would have to be notified of an incident, on a joint claim, but it is illegal to make 2 claims, of coarse

[Dave Parry]

Hi Dave, that is your chose to be a part of that club and judging by your response you are happy with it. I on the other hand have a water plane club virtually at my doorstep who like most insist on you being a BMFA member if you want to join. How convenient would that be for me, but no, I refused, my LMA insurance is more than good enough, and I refuse to pay two insurances for the same thing. I am not going into politics over this. Let’s just say I am making a stand for the injustice of this stupid ruling.

Alan is right the members at the LMA AGM a few years ago did throw the proposal out much to the surprise of the committee, some of whom had work dam hard to get it to that stage with the BMFA. Another good reason why you should all attend the AGM’s because you risk having decisions made for you by a minority, which in this case they did, and not for the better I may add.

Vince, if people want to pay two insurances just to fly at the odd BMFA event then that is up to them. I for one wouldn’t. It is the fact that you are advertising for people to join the BMFA on the LMA’s website that I find unbelievable, we have our own membership and like all Associations we want people to join us. We wouldn’t dream of asking people to join the LMA on the BMFA website, in fact we wouldn’t be allowed to and yet here you are doing just that.

The LMA provide enough shows and fly-ins around the country to be able to go somewhere nearly every weekend throughout the flying season, enough said.

[Alan Cantwell 1131]

I think Daves a closet BMFA member

[Bob Thompson1894]

Hmm....my own club is BMFA affiliated, so I have to be a member. I CHOOSE to be an LMA member as well, so I can go to the various shows, flyins etc laid on by the LMA. As far as clubs go, there are many advantages to being BMFA aff. If the LMA went down those routes (instant insurance for new members, protection for committees, member to member insurance, and now club house and equipment insurance), maybe I could persuade the club to convert to LMA.... as for the post on here, I think Vince is trying to perform a service to the Scots lads, maybe its a good thing?

[Vincent Raia]

Hi Dave P. I'm sorry if I gave the wrong impression here, no way was I trying to entice LMA members away from the LMA, they have their LMA insurance for a good reason, and I wasn't intending taking the urine, it was merely to offer any LMA member to belong to the BMFA as well as their LMA membership if they needed both affiliations to allow them to fly at all the venues they wanted, without problems of insurance, especially if they wanted to belong to the BMFA and not pay a clubs full fee.

I apologise if I have caused any offence, I was just offering a service.

[Rob Buckley]

Vince, no offence caused don't worry, this is all about playing with toy aeroplanes for fun after all! Everyone is free to join whatever association they want.

Bob, the LMA can (and does) offer all those, but it's a deliberate decision not to compete with the BMFA for the affiliated club market.

[Bob Thompson1894]

Really? I would have though a lot of clubs would be interested in that.

[Dave Parry]

Well Bob, as you can see big is not necessary always better.

[Bob Thompson1894]

Is that going to be the LMA motto? lol

[Peter Siggins]

Vince started something here ,but there are a lot of LMA members who also belong to the BMFA ,probably for different reasons.
Some time ago at the Catton club we made it a condition of membership to be a member of the LMA and sort of became affiliated to the LMA ,which made us sort of unique.There were no extra benefits as such, but I suppose gave the Catton group a sort of status.Many members at the time were also BMFA members.
However in our new group we have affiliated to the BMFA by choice.This has proved of great benefit to us as we had to apply for planning permission which Andy Symons of the BMFA gave us a lot of help on how to proceed.This is where their expertise comes to the fore.
So as a long time LMA member it has to be said that both organisations have their benefits,and £20 per year is a no brainer for the extra benefits offered.

Just my two pennorth - Pete Siggins

[Bob Thompson1894]

yes, the price is hardly worth arguing about. Mind you, a bit of advice would be nice here, in the case of an incident, which insurance would be the one to contact? Or do we have to contact both?

[Rob Buckley]

If you have two insurance policies in place covering the same thing (as with being both a BMFA & LMA member) you should tell both insurers.

[Vincent Raia]

Thanks to all for their interesting comments and views, if nothing else, it has generated a bit of discussion on the forum! The only reason I am not a member of the LMA nowadays, is that I do not fly big models but still enjoy reading and seeing what others get up to, and the lovely models that are being built and flown, keep up the good work guys.
Regards,
Vince.

[Dave Parry]

Is that going to be the LMA motto? lol

Hmmmm, that didn't quite translate the way it was meant, Oh well, never mined

[Alan Cantwell 1131]

yes, the price is hardly worth arguing about. Mind you, a bit of advice would be nice here, in the case of an incident, which insurance would be the one to contact? Or do we have to contact both?

wonder, in a claim, one has to pay the excess, to be legal, both insurances would have joint litigation on the claim,i wonder if both would charge the full excess? For to be legal, both insurances would have to be notified of an incident, on a joint claim, but it is illegal to make 2 claims, of coarse

Did you read this Bob?

[Bob Thompson1894]

I did. I just wonder as to the truth of it. Maybe Andy Symons or Dave on here could elucidate for us? Nobody wants to have to make a claim, but it would be nice to have a definitive answer as to what to do. I know the BMFA tells you how to claim, but nobody mentions the 'double insurance' problem.