Membership

[sgray]

My renewal is coming up and so I thought I'd ask..

What won't I be able to do if I'm not a member? Obviously I can use the web forum. Could I have attended the National as a non-member, presumably there were members of the public there who aren't members?

I realise that I wouldn't get Minor Matters, but I already get the LCV mag which is a bit more relevant to my pickup anyway and I can always buy back issues of the magazine if I want.
I don't buy regalia - but again if I want a MMOC hoodie I guess I'd be able to buy one. Are MOTs and other events closed to non-members?

What about branch meetings - are non-members turned away from branch meetings (Bill?) and what about those branches that charge their own membership fees?

Also - is the renewal automatic or do I get a letter requesting a cheque? My wife is also a member and is keen to get a moggie of her own, but I can't see what benefit there is in having two memberships.

Sorry if this sounds a little mercenary, I want to preserve the cars as much as the next owner, but perhaps MMOC is not the most effective method. Can anyone enlighten me?

Simon

[PSL184]

I have been debabting the same point myself Simon and the ONLY thing I wouldn't get automatically is the club mag. My insurance is not discounted due to club membership, I can attend rally's and branch meetings, I can buy regalia (from branch meetings or the National at leatst, not sure about online), I can use the web forum and most importantly I can still drive my Minor
You renewal form should come through with the Minor Matters nearest to your renewal date and currently we are the same as you and your wife, ie we have joint membership to which you pay a bit extra for a second card....
I'm sure someone will say that some suppliers offer discounts for club membership, but I have never had it despite asking each time I order parts, I am told its not available on "low margin items" - It seems that's all I buy

[charlie_morris_minor]

certainly when i was active in a branch, officially, people had to members of the national club.. but we never checked membership cards...

[carlosramalho]

I just renewed my mmoc member today!!

[chickenjohn]

In some south east England branches, I believe (allegedly) that it is not compulsory for branch members to be national members (hope I'm not getting any branch in trouble with the national club committee by posting this- hence I won't mention any particular branches!!! ).

Of course, most members are also national club members but there are possibly some who are local club members only.

The main reason for me being a National club member though, is that the club contributes to the FBHVC which lobbies our case against the evil bureacratic EU anti classic car legislation and is possibly the only force between our cars and the crusher.

[Kevin]

certainly when i was active in a branch, officially, people had to members of the national club.. but we never checked membership cards...

I think its for insurance purposes if you are a current member you are covered on the clubs liability insurance if there is a mishap at a meeting. And John is right its not compulsory unless its in the branch constitution.

[ASL642]

You do have to be a member of the MMOC if you offer your services as Secretary, Treasurer, Vice Chairman or Chairman of your local Branch

[chickenjohn]

True, and to be a member of the Hop rally committee, I also have to be a national club member, which I am. But ordinary branch members can just be local members and not national.

[ASL642]

Agreed, quite a few members of the Birmingham Branch are not MMOC members - they come to meetings and help run the rally each year, but have no interest in the National Club. They have the last laugh each year when we have to vote for the Club officers at the AGM

[MarkyB]

Good grief, are things that tough in Buckinghamshire?
I'd say it's a bargain for Minor Matter alone.

[sgray]

Good grief, are things that tough in Buckinghamshire?
I'd say it's a bargain for Minor Matter alone.

Not, not that tough thankfully. Maybe I'm just really tight but if, for example, my branch got all of my membership fee rather than the approx £3 they do get, that would be useful funds. As for Minor Matters I realise it's well regarded, but I wouldn't really miss it that much. I get the LCV magazine too of course (which is excellent by the way).

I'm not a committee member at my branch, though I do run the website and help out with bits of advertising and stuff. My branch doesn't charge subs. I haven't ever spoken to anyone from the National committee though I do know the branch liason (and his dog ) - so I'm just wondering whether my efforts and subs would be better donated to the branch.

[A-Series Spares]

The biggest benefit i see to contributing to the club and keeping the membership numbers up is that it keeps the club alive. And having these car clubs means that weve got some clout for when the government decide to try and 'ban' old cars, which you know they will keep trying to do.

Thats maybe just my view, i dont take much advantage of the benefits of being a member but i like knowing i am one.

[chickenjohn]

The biggest benefit i see to contributing to the club and keeping the membership numbers up is that it keeps the club alive. And having these car clubs means that weve got some clout for when the government decide to try and 'ban' old cars, which you know they will keep trying to do.

Thats maybe just my view, i dont take much advantage of the benefits of being a member but i like knowing i am one.

Absolutely! It is not so much the UK government and our club, but the non-elected EU bureacrats that would like to crush all out classics. The club contributes to the FBHVC which lobbies the EU on our behalf and does it's best to minimise the damage that new legislation can cause. We have had a number of problems already!

[mike.perry]

Being a MMOC member is as much about what you can do for the club as what the club can do for you. Aside from the political arguments you get out what you put in and it is not about the purely financial terms. And I recognise the work that you do for the branch website.

One man and his dog[frame][/frame]

[Fingolfin]

I would have no direct benefit, legislatively, from being a member -- as I'm in the States and hence EU directives don't affect me (though I, as a politics fanatic, follow it all) -- but I still want to be. When I get the money I'm going to be. It's not just Minor Matters, either...

All the people on this messageboard are so friendly, and the Club brought them together, didn't it? The Club began the forum. I've made numerous friends here, even in my own country -- and one in my hometown -- and without MMOC I wouldn't've. (Eventually I would have joined MoMi Registry here in North America, but that's irrelevant.)

The Club works to attract new Minor fans -- without an active community of followers already in place, it'd be much harder for a young person to remain dedicated to the cars. And eventually it's wither to nothing.

The existence of an MMOC even benefits non-members and non-Minor-fans. Think of all the people who stop by your car at the supermarket parking lot and marvel at it. If Minors disappeared, because of a lack of active support from a Club, they'd never have that little tidbit of '50s-ness to brighten their day. And Minors have much better mileage than many modern cars, so they don't add to pollution as severely.

Maybe it's just my dedication to the Minor, but I think every classic car ought to have a community to keep the car around -- particularly the Minor.