RYA members Credit Card

[Chris_Stannard]

This morning I received a letter, signed by the CEO Rod CARR, inviting me to take out an RYA credit card.

Apart from the fact that the rate of interest is 15.9%, well above the 8% of Cahoot, I object to a once proud members association, with Royal patronage, being used in this tawdry and money grubbing fashion.

If you receive such an invitation, and feel as I, do I suggest you let Mr Carr, or you local Council member know your feelings.

<hr width=100% size=1>Chris Stannard

 

[ParaHandy]

careful ... might be an affinity card where a % is skimmed off to the RYA. Lots of orgs do so now .. eg rnli, universities .....

most have crap interest rates ..... get owt for nowt these days

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[steve_cronin]

IT IS....

an affinity card. At least the one I've had for over ten years is.

I don't use it anymore preferring my RNLI affinity card and my Alliance & Leicester MBNA Cashbach card now.

Steve Cronin

<hr width=100% size=1>The above is, like any other post here, only a personal opinion

 

[waterboy]

Re: IT IS....

Sad isn't it. The RYA has had to go commercial in some aspects and it really is laughable. They tried to sell me advertising space in their magazine on the deluded basis that they had a much larger readership than their nearest competitor - PBO! Distribution maybe, but readership, no.

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[zefender]

Re: Ah but it\'s a benefit see?

The RYA website lists this superb and unique card as a benefit of membership. How's that work then?

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[Peppermint]

Re: Oh! you opened yours did you?

We slip ours through the shredder unopened.

When we did open these unsolicited offers we were able to do a bit of simple addition. In a ten day period my family of four, all over 18 years, received 14 offers of credit. If we had signed up we would have had access to nearly 90k's worth of new credit.

It's a bit more than that really cos I got offered one with no limit.

It appears that the RYA, like many other organizations, has their members interest at heart rather than their interests.

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[Cornishman]

Why have you not been 'objecting.................in this tawdry and money grabbing fashion' over the last 10 years or so, I wonder? The RYA card through Beneficial Bank was first issued years ago.
I do agree that the interest rate is pretty awful, but then so are many of the other credit cards on offer. I have seen advertisements for cards with rates as high as 19.9%, so I guess it pays to shop around.

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[sailorman]

perhaps @ those rates they might consider re-insateing the "Free diary" ( blue spot) scheme

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[PeterGibbs]

Ah, the year 2003. Yes, things have moved on and nothing, even our own dear RYA, is what it was....

"Money grubbing" - surely a little harsh? And since even the CEO of Barclaycard wouldn't borrow on his own card (at a much lower rate than the RYA affinity card)
we can take it that cards, any cards, are a rotten way of financing debt. Tesco will lob you some dosh for less than any card...

I think the RYA is worth supporting - what else is there to foster our sport? I took one of these cards years ago and I rather like its restrained and unostentacious, even understated appearance; much more important to me than the interest rate -which I never pay.

PS Beneficial Bank (the RYA VISA card) won't clock you for the whole interest charge if you are just a little late in paying monthly - but Barclaycard is another story!

PWG

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[Chris_Stannard]

It is not the first time I have complained about the way the RYA is going. I understand that the RYA gets about £70,000 a year for this, or about 2 more office staff to push paper around the new HQ.

What offends me is a blatant attempt to sell me a bad deal as though they, the Bosses of the RYA, have done a good deal and are doing me a favour, with such a marvellous card. And I do not believe it enhances the profile of any organisation to be associated with such an endeavour.

<hr width=100% size=1>Chris Stannard

 

[zephyrsailor]

i have a credit card (which i wouldn't dream of using!) that has about 28% interest!!

<hr width=100% size=1><font color=purple><A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.yachting-school.com>http://www.yachting-school.com</A></font color=purple>

 

[Solitaire]

Then do what I did when I got it! looked at it saw the deal was bad and threw it in the bin! We live a country with freedom of choice - it works both ways. If you don't like it throw it away! The response rates delivered by such marketing tactics are in the single figure %'s and in most cases less that 5%. The RYA is a commercial organisation, they have the right to market to you. You have the option of disregarding it, by opting out of the system by asking the RYA to remove you from such mailings - which they are legaly and duty bound to do. Alternatively register with http://www.emailpreferenceservice.com and that way you are exercising your choice! You'll also be helping by reducing costs to people such as yourself.

Alternatively go and live in a cave!

<hr width=100% size=1>Boating is <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.powerboat-training.co.uk>Serious</A> Fun
<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1>Edited by Solitaire on 21/11/2003 09:06 (server time).</FONT></P>

 

[aod]

Good Links

Not posted but read the thread and many thanks for the excellent links.........................!

Richard

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[zefender]

Registering with MPS will not stop mail from an organisation with whom you already do business. It is designed to stop unsolicited mail only.

Surely the point though is that RYA is flogging a credit card offering higher rates than are available elsewhere and calling it a member benefit. It simply isn't a benefit. Now if they were to write and say, look we're a bit hard up and we want you to take this card (whether or not you incur interest) cos we get dosh for that and it can pay for our heating, then maybe that's OK. For an organisation which is established to act in the interest (no pun intended) of its members, to flog something that is plainly not, is strategically a bit off message...IMHO

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[Solitaire]

I did not say that the MPS would stop all mail. I suggested that the RYA be contacted directly. If people took more attention of the the things they signed up for they'd see that all forms have an opt out clause. Tick the box and you'll cut down the amount of so called unsloicited mail you'll recieve. In the case of email,, you know have to positively OPT IN or else email data cannot be used and it also cannot be transfered to unrelated product categories.

Via Beneficial Bank the RYA are offering its members a credit card - you don't like the offer, your choice If not enough people respond to make the cost of marketing economic in terms of both ROI (return on invsetment) and life time value then it will stop or a modified offer put forward. Funds have to found from somewhere, overheads have to be covered. The RYA is fundamentally a business, it needs to generate revenue. This comes from many sources, subs, competition entries, other fees etc. Prices of which may go up substantially to the members if other "free" sources of revenue can't be found. Frankly I have less of a problem with this sort of marketing activitiy than I do with all the other credit card companies who offer me short term deals to get me "onboard" and then after 6 months promptly put the interest rate up to what the other cards are doing. As a family, we have an RNLI credit card, we don't use the credit facility but we do use the card as each transaction benefits the RNLI. The same would apply to the RYA card.

I go back to my original point - your not being forced to do anything against your will - its your choice - don't like it, don't take it up. As to member benefit? That's for you to decide next time the subs increase by more that you'd like. Then again you have a choice don't you?

<hr width=100% size=1>Boating is <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.powerboat-training.co.uk>Serious</A> Fun

 

[zefender]

Re: \"The RYA is fundamentally a business\"

It's not a business or meant to be one.
I don't think I'm splitting hairs here.
It exists for its members. I'm not sure of its constitution but it might even be owned by its members. That is a bit different from the relationship one may or may not have with a commercial organisation.

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[Solitaire]

Re: \"The RYA is fundamentally a business\"

Oh dear! Live in the real world, everything is a business, even mutual operations and charities. They have to be - or should be - commercial to survive in this day and age. Mind you haveing been to some of the race meeting briefings some of the RYA personel need to be bought into the real world as well. One I went to recently had a woman doing the briefing who was better suited to addressing a WI meeting 20 years ago. But that's another story!

<hr width=100% size=1>Boating is <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.powerboat-training.co.uk>Serious</A> Fun

 

[ParaHandy]

Re: \"The RYA is fundamentally a business\"

you're being a bit obtuse, obstinate! or otherwise as the feeling takes you ...

the rya get £15 for each card which surely is a benefit to the rya membership given that subscription to the bl**dy org costs £30 (or so) so if everyone took a card, revenue would substantially increase. the interest rate is 14.9% (not 15.9%) which in the definition of usury favoured by the credit card cpys is about middling ... and the rya get a skim on each £ spent (a tiny, tiny amount but better than kick in bollocks, no?

i have utterly and absolutely no connection with rya, nor wish any etc etc

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[zefender]

Re: "The RYA is fundamentally a business"

In my (real) world, there are organisations that live or die by their reputation, by their values and their purpose. There are issues like brand stretch which can cause major contradictions in their positioning in the 'marketplace'. Such contradictions can cause people to question their original relationship with that organisation. So if an organisation which purports to defend my interests starts flogging things which are not in my interest, I begin to doubt the basis of our 'relationship'. This is why other posts have raised the issue of the role of the Police using speed cameras to generate revenue. If, in the case of RYA floggin' expensive credit, it's a contradiction. If it's just 'business', it's just bad 'business'.


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[Solitaire]

Re: \"The RYA is fundamentally a business\"

/forums/images/icons/laugh.gif Points on which we can agree! I actually think it is bad business, but that was not the issues raised first of all. We are now coming done to marketing dynamics and that is a whole different ball game. When I saw the mailing I laughed and thought to myself "they got to be joking" and deposited it in the bin(recyclable of course).

<hr width=100% size=1>Boating is <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.powerboat-training.co.uk>Serious</A> Fun