NRMA emerges from global financial crisis in a strong position

As our CEO Tony Stuart highlights in his column, NRMA has come out of the global financial crisis in a strong position - a remarkable achievement for the Board, Tony, his management team and all staff across the NRMA Group.

The last 12 months have been important for your NRMA in securing our financial future, strengthening our roadside assistance and delivering a broader range of benefits to you and your family.

It has also been an important year on the advocacy front. In October I will chair my second annual general meeting (AGM) as NRMA President and I look forward to reporting to you on some of the important advocacy campaigns we have executed on your behalf.

I will provide an update on our progress towards leading Australia down a path of energy independence and the development of alternative fuels and technologies to replace fossil fuels.

I will outline the wins in road funding, improvements to government policies that will benefit our Members and those areas we will continue to pursue in the coming year.

Throughout the Federal Election campaign your Directors on the NRMA Board have worked hard at a local level to draw attention to the issues that affect you in your local community. The campaign focused the attention of the major parties and candidates in some of the state’s most marginal seats on issues such as road funding, alternative fuels, road and vehicle safety and the ‘right to repair’ laws.

This ensured that these important issues received the attention they deserved and were not lost among the hype and frantic pace of a Federal Election campaign.

In the coming months my fellow directors and I will focus our attention on the NSW Government and Opposition in the lead-up to the next State Election in March 2011. It is no secret that NSW faces many challenges, none more important than fixing the state’s regional highways and the congestion crippling much of Sydney.

The next NSW Government must tackle these important challenges, and NRMA believes all motorists deserve to hear what solutions both sides of politics propose to fix these problems.

That will be the NRMA Board’s focus in the next State Election. I look forward to updating you on this and other issues at our AGM on October 27. If you cannot make it to Wollongong, please follow the AGM webcast.

Members ready for more holidays and travel

With the holiday season fast approaching, we encourage NRMA Members to start planning their family breaks now.

An NRMA survey of more than 1000 Members found that the travel industry can look forward to its continued recovery after the impact of the global financial crisis.

Almost 80 per cent of Members are planning a holiday in the next 12 months, with just over half (51 per cent) planning a domestic holiday and around one third looking to head overseas. The survey also found that demand for travel is likely to remain strong over the next 12 months.

NRMA Travel successfully predicted this recovery in a survey of Members last year, which indicated overseas travel would pick up from July 2009 and continue to recover through the 2009/2010 financial year. Latest figures showed a staggering one million more overseas short term trips were made from Australia in 2009/10 than the year before.

NRMA Members told us in the 2009 survey that a number of factors may have contributed to them planning future holidays, such as the abatement of travellers’ fears over the GFC and swine flu, and a flood of enticing travel deals from the travel industry.

There are a number of exciting and affordable holiday packages from NRMA Travel throughout this issue of Open Road, and I encourage you to consider these for your next trip away.

In what is further good news for the industry, it appears more of our Members are considering a holiday that ties in with overseas sporting and cultural events. Almost 60 per cent of Members said they would consider travelling to attend a sporting or cultural event in the future.

Adventure World, part of the NRMA Group, is an Official Travel Agent for Rugby World Cup 2011 New Zealand (Adventure World has chartered the five-star cruise ship MS Volendam), giving Members the opportunity to experience what will be 2011’s biggest sporting event.

Booking a package through Adventure World is a guaranteed way to secure tickets to Rugby World Cup 2011. Members also receive a special 10 per cent discount off standard packages, so I encourage you to call 1300 412 568 or visit Rugby World Cup 2011.

Wendy Machin President