Is your Austin on club rego? Read this for new rules on 'Impromptu Events'
Club member David James reported at the December 6 general meeting of the AMVCQ in relation to the use of vehicles that are registered in Queensland under the 'special interest vehicle' (SIV) concession.
By way of background, when David was QHMC president, he floated the idea of impromptu small or individual events, for vehicles registered as a SIV, way back in 2011. His view was and still is, that the impromptu events idea has been available to these vehicles all this time. At the time, no further action was taken with David's idea.
Now it transpires that Doug Young, QHMC rep to DTMR MOCC meetings and also QHMC rep to AHMF, spotted the same idea being used in WA. He compiled some facts and presented the case to DTMR through a MOCC meeting and received a good hearing and the approval of DTMR for the use of impromptu events for vehicles registered as SIV in Queensland.
What is an 'Impromptu Event’?
An 'impromptu event' is an event that has been initiated by a club member, involves one or more vehicles, and must comply with the following elements:
involves an invitation to wider club members to attend the event; and
is either
endorsed in advance of the event by the relevant club or Australia Street Rod Federation committee; or,
where it exists, complies with published club guidelines as to what is a valid event; and
is listed either in the newsletter, on the website, or social media page (or in another manner approved by the club or Australia Street Rod Federation, such as the club calendar of events) prior to the event.
Note: Incorporated vehicle clubs should maintain a register of endorsed impromptu events. This register should contain information on the impromptu event.
Are 'Impromptu Events' run anywhere else in Australia?
WA has an historic registration scheme similar to Queensland’s, which allows club runs and road testing. One refinement of the WA scheme is the ‘Impromptu Event’, which allows an individual club member to initiate a club run at short notice. In WA they are also known as ‘Single Vehicle Events’.
In WA, clubs take advantage of this provision in one of two ways:
by the member sending an email to their club which then goes on the website, or
by filling in an on-line form, which results in it becoming a listed event automatically. The form can be set up so a password is needed to access it. In WA they do not have the option of it being listed on the Club’s Social Media page.
Is this better than the log book scheme, like the one in NSW?
The 'impromptu events' scheme will give the benefits of a logbook scheme without the restrictions and administrative burdens that logbooks create for the member, club officials and Government. It is up to individual clubs whether they want to participate in the scheme, and how they implement it.
Will AMVCQ participate in 'impromptu events'?
At the December 6, 2018 general meeting, in which David James provided his report, it was decided that the club would participate in the 'impromptu events' scheme.
What is required to have an 'impromptu event'?
In deciding how to implement this, clubs need to be aware of potential security issues, as thieves can target homes when they can find out the owner is away. This can be addressed in a number of ways. Password-protected online form and events page. There are two problems with passwords: (a) people forget them, and (b) they can be passed on to others.
Possibilities for setting it up include:
By creating a closed-group facebook page for the club, only accessible to financial members, on which they can list events. This can be by a facebook post. The facebook page manager invites members to join the page once they tell him their facebook ID. If they don’t pay their subs they are removed from the Group. (Note: we currently have a Facebook group, however, it is not a closed group, but a public group and consequently, simply posting your event to this Facebook group would not meet this requirement);
Where members choose not to have facebook or internet access, despite the inconvenience to the webmaster, they could ring up to have an event listed.
Some clubs are voluntarily limiting the number of impromptu events a member can initiate for each of their SIVS registered vehicles to 60 or 90 days a year, so they can be seen to be using their vehicles no more than owners in the logbook schemes in other States.
It needs to be stressed that SIVS registered vehicles cannot be used for commuting to and from work, or as a work vehicle. That would void their insurance if an accident occurs. There is also increasing use of number plate recognition technology in police cars, on overpasses etc, and it won’t be long before a press of one button will reveal the usage of a particular number plate. Repeated use on one stretch of road will be detectable and insurers will look, as always, for any way to avoid liability. Bottom line, this is a great privilege – do not abuse it!
You can also refer the rules for ‘impromptu runs’ on the Qld Department of Transport’s website by clicking here.
How is AMVCQ implementing 'impromptu events'?
AMVCQ has approved members to have ‘impromptu runs’ where the following process is followed:
Complete the :Special Interest Vehicle (SIV) Licence. ‘Impromptu Run’ Notification" form, below;
Email your completed form to info@austinmotorvehicleclubqld.org and send a text to Mark Ellem (Webmaster) on 0400 19 38 21, advising that the form has been emailed. Please send this at least the day prior to you impromptu run as this will provide time for it to be added to the Club's calendar on the club's website;
Ensure you have a copy of your impromptu event notification with you on your run. If there are any questions about your run, being a sanctioned club run, contact can be made with Mark Ellem (webmaster).
Please note: The rules for ‘impromptu runs’ requires that other club members are invited and able to join the run. Consequently, when posted to the website calendar there will be a general invitation to other c;ub members to join the member who has organised the ‘impromptu run’. Further, as our Facebook group is not a closed group, the option of posting the 'Impromptu event' to Facebook is currently not an option available for AMVCQ members to comply with SIV rules. Of course, you can still post your event to this Facebook group to simply inform others.
Our Facebook page can be found at:
