200 complaints received over member behaviour

Turns out they both have the capacity to annoy NZMCA members.

In fact, nearly a quarter of the 200 formal complaints lodged with the NZMCA in the 15 months from January 2020 to now, involved one or other of those subjects. Close behind them, in terms of the number of complaints received, were slow driving and abuse of the NZMCA’s nontransferable membership – with members accused of selling, gifting or sharing it with others. A variety of infractions made up the rest of the complaints.

“They have all been investigated,” reports the Association’s Complaints Officer, whose identity is withheld for obvious reasons. “There have been 17 deemed serious enough to be forwarded to the Disciplinary Committee for consideration.”

Following their deliberations, one member was expelled, other members were suspended for periods ranging from 3 months to 12 months and several official warnings issued.

Those might not seem big numbers, however the Complaints Officer says what is worrying is reports of ‘more and more instances where members are abusing each other, either over parking in our NZMCA nParks, pushing in at dump stations or just plain rudeness and/or racism’.

“All members, regardless of race or creed, shall be treated with courtesy and respect. It is a simple rule and one that should be considered in all our dealings with members.”

For those members who may be wondering what happens when you put in a complaint – preferably via the official complaint form – they are all forwarded to the Complaints Officer and recorded in a Complaints Register.

The Complaints Officer then investigates to ascertain if the complaint has merit or if there is a simple explanation for the member’s behaviour.

“Sometimes what is seen is only a snap shot at the time,” says the Complaints Officer. “There may be a completely innocent explanation or an accidental breach, a moment of forgetfulness or inattention – and these do happen to us all from time to time. 

“The hardest part of any complaint is when there is a ‘he said/she said’ scenario where it is very difficult to ascertain where the blame lies.

“In these instances, it is sufficient that the alleged offending member having come to the Complaints Officer’s attention is incentive for them to mend their ways. This seems to work as there have only been two cases where the same member has offended a second time.”