BSAC Membership Information - Replacing Lost QRB
Should a member have the misfortune to lose his / her BSAC Qualification Record Book, the following steps should be taken to obtain a replacement.
- Report the loss to your Branch and pay any replacement costs (The cost of a replacement QRB can be obtained from the BSAC Mailshop).
- The Diving Officer or Membership Secretary will order a replacement from HQ. They must state Membership number and Qualification level held and forward any payment.
- BSAC HQ will issue replacement QRB with Name, Membership number and Qualification level completed. BSAC HQ will also issue specific guidance for Diving Officer for completion training records.
- Diving or Training Officer completes previous training records from Branch records and returns QRB to member.
Members and Branches should note that BSAC HQ does not keep definitive records of training or qualifications gained by members within their Branch so is unable to provide information needed to prepare a replacement QRB. All HQ can do is confirm current membership and the qualification held (if such information was given) on the last membership renewal form. HQ keeps a 'Lapsed Member' file that started in 1991, but has no records of any members prior to that date.
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BSAC HQ does keep registers of members who gain the nationally awarded qualifications of BSAC First Class Diver and Club, Open Water, Advanced and National Instructor, so can thus confirm that members achieved the appropriate diver grade entry level to take these examinations. HQ can also supply replacement Qualification Record Book Certificates for First Class Diver and Instructor grades.
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Since 1st April 1996 BSAC HQ has maintained a database of members' attendance at Skill Development Courses, and can issue replacement SDC certification. Independent confirmation of attendance is needed for SDCs run before 1st April 1996.
then pass them to the Branch Diving Officer who should 'map over' elements of completed training into the new QRB. The member will then be able to complete their training for Club and Sports Diver in the usual way.
Lapsed Members
Under BSAC Rules, the Club is not obliged to provide replacement QRBs or confirm that BSAC qualifications were gained by persons whose BSAC membership has lapsed. Thus, BSAC will not issue a replacement Qualification Record Book to a non-member. However, where former qualifications can be proved, plastic Qualification Cards will be sold to lapsed members or HQ is willing to issue a 'To whom it may concern' letter confirming that BSAC qualifications were gained in the past.
Guarding against the inconvenience of Qualification Record Book loss
A Qualification Record Book is likely to be your only record of diver training and qualification. Look after it. QRBs are not waterproof - keep it in a waterproof bag or container. As each BSAC qualification is gained, it is a wise safeguard to take a photocopy of the training record and certificate pages and keep it safely so that, in the event of loss, a new QRB can quickly and accurately be compiled. Routine use of the plastic BSAC Diver Qualification Card as evidence of qualification reduces wear and tear on your QRB, prolongs its life and reduces the risk of loss.
Novice Divers who have not completed Sports Diver training
Following the change to the Club and Sports Diver Training Programme in April 1998, existing qualified Novice Divers were given a year to complete their training up to Sports Diver. This transition period is now over and it is not appropriate for Branches or Schools to complete a student's training to the pre-October 2002 Sports Diver system. The BSAC recognises that some Novice Divers may not have been able to complete Sports Diver training by the published deadline. Rather than require them to retrain to the new Ocean diver programme, the most reasonable action would be to obtain a new Ocean diver QRB, and for the Branch Diving Officer to 'map over' the elements of Ocean diver they have completed as Novice Divers, and for the member then to complete any remaining Ocean diver lessons. However, if a long interval has elapsed since they qualified as Novice Diver, full retraining as an Ocean Diver might be appropriate.
To obtain a new Ocean Diver QRB, the member should return their existing QRB to the BSAC Mailshop, together with a payment.
The Mailshop will then enter the member's name and Membership number into the new QRB and attach a sticker to the 'old' Novice QRB to indicate it has been replaced by a new one. Both QRBs will then be returned to the member. The member should then pass them to the Branch Diving Officer who should 'map over' elements of completed training into the new QRB. The member will then be able to complete their training for Ocean and Sports Diver in the usual way.
It is strongly recommended that prior to sending any QRB to HQ that photocopies be taken of all relevant pages, to safeguard against loss of these valuable records.
Page last modified: 2nd Nov 2006 - 10:02:53