J_R
Posts: 4446
Joined: 1/4/2002
From: Corona, CA,
Status: offline
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I guess a lot of people would blame the decline in membership on the cost of dues. Personally, I don’t believe that. The course the AMA has taken, for some time, has been to stifle technological growth. The insurance benefits, which could, and should be a major plus for the AMA, have become a negative which detractors site as the only reason for the AMA’s continued existence.
I think the first thing that must be admitted, is that insurance is the engine that drives AMA membership. Without providing the members of the AMA with this benefit, many members would not join. Most clubs would not exist, and many landlords would refuse to rent or lease to clubs.
The common image of the insurance underwriters sitting, like vultures, on the shoulders of the EC members at each EC meeting is wrong. The insurance company, for all practical purposes, has no presence. The AMA’s insurance agent, Larry Johnson, is normally present at EC meetings. Carl Maroney, AMA Director of Special Services, is also normally present. Carl sets on several committees and is not there just because of his insurance knowledge. Larry has, at least in my opinion, the best knowledge of what is in the policy, and can, on occasion, answer questions about the coverage. Larry attends the EC meetings at his own expense. The insurance company is not there telling the EC that if they do, or do not, pass this motion, it will change your premiums. Premiums are based, essentially, on claims history, although extraneous factors such as 9/11, and current insurance market conditions, also have a substantial affect. The AMA does have a responsibility to make the insurance company aware of potential claims (actual accidents), and those may be factored into premiums in the future. Many AMA members seem to think the insurance company sits there and drives the actions of the AMA, and this is not the case. Certainly, insurance is, and should be, a consideration, but only a consideration.
Just what is the value of the liability insurance to individual members? The truth is, as individuals… not much. In recent years, the average number of personal major liability claims related to flying, as opposed to liability claims against clubs and landlords, has averaged between one and two, where the AMA liability coverage was involved. In the vast majority of situations, homeowners insurance covers such claims. Keeping in mind that the cost of insurance per member is on the order of $22 per year, including the SIR (Self Insurance Reserve) if one asks “What’s in it for me?” the answer is not very much… or is it?
Most clubs would not have a site if the insurance did not cover clubs and landlords for liability. Half of the liability claims made, on a dollar basis, not on the number of claims basis, involve clubs and landlords. The coverage for non-club owned landlords is not subject to the safety code. It is a full blown liability policy. Clubs pay a maximum of $120 per year for an AMA charter, club liability insurance, and liability insurance for the landlord. It’s obvious that the individual membership dues subsidizes the insurance for clubs. Without clubs, of course, many of us would have no |
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RE: Membership decline??? - 
I have not yet received the Dec. MA. Thank you for the above. 
RE: Membership decline??? - 
