With all the talk about interpreting law going on I wonder if it would be worth putting together an E-skate Association.
In, my limited, experience when there has been changes made to legislation part of the process has been consultation with Industry and trade associations, there has also been occasion (in the UK) when a hobbyist association has been able to raise issue and contribute to the legislative committee.
Views of an established association would be of more use than that of a group of flag waving individuals, if ever knee jerk legislation was proposed.
An association could be a way of providing a framework from which to be able to demonstrate best practice ā Iām not talking ride at 15mph or 250 Watt ā just reasoned thought as to why choices are made, something along the lines of what āa prudent and reasonable personā would do.
Ride carefully; wear a helmet; maintenance; reliable electronic braking methods; not skating whilst pregnant or smoking crack; lights at night etc.
If an E-skate builder were to wind up in court and be able to demonstrate following a common sense approach to e-skating then, perhaps, this would help with mitigation.
Not saying āletās create an association and lobby Governmentā more letās keep our heads down and prepare ā at the end of the day who actually knows more about E-skating than the people here.
I have been thinking about this for a very long time!..
Just never had time to take the steps. How does one create an association? is there an international register, is it just a legal body? what does it need as a minimum to exist?
An association is just a group of people that have come together for a joint purpose.
Location of association would need to be known to determine whether or not there is a registration process.
Iād imagine itās a complicated as the association wants it to be - there will be responsibilities, such as filing tax returns and if making a profit sorting the financial liabilities.
āUnlike an incorporated organisation (for example, a limited company) an unincorporated organisation is not a ālegal entityā in law. So it has no legal rights and is not separate from its members. It follows that individual members are legally responsible for the acts and omissions of the entire organisation.ā
Keeping it simple, if an association were to be formed a framework of something like this would do:-
General Aim ā Safeguarding the use of E-boards for commuting and recreation?
Rules (Member Agreement) - donāt be a dick ā simple common sense stuff.
Member guidance - wear a helmet, donāt play chicken, best practice.
Management Structure/Committee ā People to run association on behalf of members (usually elected)
The amount of time required to set this up is as much or as little as people are willing to commit ā Iād be happy to volunteer an hour or so each month.
Cost - depends on what the association wants/needs to pay out for. There does not have to be a fee for membership.
Itās really down to if the E-Skate community think there would be future benefit to forming an association and having a more formal community voice. Slowly establishing an association now would be far easier than creating a reaction association later.