JOINING SYDNEY/ ILLAWARRA LETS

Upon receipt of your membership form you will be allocated a Member number and an account will be set up in your name on the central computer. You will receive an emailed Contact List, and your Membership card and a Cheque book will be sent in the post.

  1. To start trading, simply contact another member using the Register, negotiate a price and exchange a cheque.
  2. The payee is responsible for sending the cheque into the office where it will be processed by the office staff. The payers account will be debited and the payees account will be credited.
  3. Repeat step 1 and 2 ad infinitum.

FEES
Our financial year begins on the 1st of October.
The initial joining fee is $2.50 + 10 operas.
Annunal renewal fee is $2.50 + 10 operas which falls due on 1st Oct.
The cash component covers postage, phone, rent, stationary and other incidentals.
Administration account: The opera component will be automatically deducted from your account and transfered to the Administration account which is used to pay office staff for their time.

JOINT MEMBERSHIP
All members of one family, including children, may join under a single membership number as long as they live in the same household. All members will receive a separate membership card and will trade using one account.

MEMBERSHIP CARDS
You MUST produce a valid membership card every time you trade even if the other person doesn't ask for it. It is the responsibility of all members to check the current financial status of traders.

CHEQUEBOOK
Operas are transferred from one account to another by means of a cheque or multi list sheet which are provided free of charge from the office. The payer alone can authorise the transfer of operas from their account to that of another member. It is the responsibility of the payee to send cheques to the office as soon as possible for processing. A processing fee of 0.5 opera per transaction is deducted from the payers account and transfered to the Administration account. Cheques received from trades done with NON financial or inactive members will be dishonoured and returned to the payee. Please ensure that cheques are filled out legibly and correctly with the membership #, date and signature.

CONTACT LIST
The Contact List is emailed to members every month and contains the phone number and email address of all other members.

THE REGISTER
The Register (or skills directory) is a listing of all services offered by members. It is updated regularly always available online but to ensure privacy it will only contain membership numbers NOT names or contact details. You will need to match the membership # with your contact list to get in touch with other members. Skills may be updated at any time by simply contacting the office.

THE TRADING POST
Unlike the Register which lists services, the Trading Post lists one-off "For Sale or Wanted" ads for goods. This is also available online. To place an ad please contact the office, preferably in writing.

THE NEWSLETTER
The Newsletter contains the latest information concerning the membership, Committee meetings, AGM, events, changes of telephone numbers, advertisements, articles, items of interest, LETS good news stories etc. Articles from members about LETS are most welcome. This is emailed to all members once a month.

STATEMENTS
In an attempt to save paper and time we do not automatically issue Trading statements to all members. Statements can be requested by sending a SAE to the office.

THE COMMITTEE
The Committee is elected each year at the AGM. Office bearers are Co-ordinator, Secretary, Treasurer & Office Manager. ANY member can stand for election. Committee meetings are announced by email. Members are welcome to attend Committee meetings as we value imput from all spheres. Meetings are often used as Trading Days where members bring along fresh produce and other items to sell.

THE OFFICE
Our office is located in The Factory Community Centre 67 Raglan St Waterloo.
The office is staffed by members in rotating shifts and paid at a rate of 20 operas an hour. Any member wishing to earn operas can become a staff member.

 

MEMBERSHIP AGREEMENT

1. Sydney & Illawarra LETS is a non-profit organisation managed by a working party made up of members. LETS provides a service which allows members to exchange information to facilitate trading and maintain such records of that trading as members request.
2. A local OPERA is the symbol of energy transferred between members. Members shall be willing to trade in OPERAS. The committee will transfer operas from one members account to that of another only on the authority of the member making the payment.
3. The committee is authorised to levy charges on members accounts in operas at a rate determined by the committee.
4. The committee may decline a transaction or a membership it considers inappropriate.
5. Accountability of taxes incurred by members is the obligation of those involved in an exchange. Sydney & Illawarra LETS has no obligation nor liability to report to the Australian Taxation Office nor to collect taxes on their behalf.
6. No warranty or undertaking as to the value, condition or quality of the items exchanged is expressed or implied by the virtue of introduction of members to one another.
7. While all information on members accounts, except balance and turnover, is considered personal and confidential, LETS cannot guarantee confidentiality nor be held liable for breach of it. A member may know the balance and turnover of another member.
8. The committee may act on behalf of members in seeking satisfaction from a member whose account is heavily out of balance.
9. All transactions between members are the sole responsibility of those members and no liability to the members of any nature shall be incurred by Sydney & Illawarra LETS or the committee in respect of such a transaction.
10. The only liability of the committee to any member for any damage suffered by such a member shall be limited to damage caused by wilful default by the committee.

 

To become a member please print out the membership form and post it to the office.