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Original poster

Is it awful to borrow a friend's national trust card to get in free

143 replies

Twiglett · 23/06/2006 11:17

to national trust places

when it is obviously a charity

or is it payback for the disgustingly foul and overpriced food they sell at such places?

OP posts:
zippitippitoes · 23/06/2006 14:27

they worry a lot about wear and tear ..it is a large part of their budget..it's why some properties have timed tickets and restricted opening, no back packs etc, no walking on wet ground

expatinscotland · 23/06/2006 14:28

i agree w/NormaSnorks 100%.

NormaSnorks · 23/06/2006 14:29

I imagine they'd worry a lot about wear and tear - especially if the fruadsters who were going in for free were leaving their cheese string and lunchables wrappers everywhere.... (because there's bound to be a correlation... )

flutterbee · 23/06/2006 14:31

A few years ago before I had DS I decided to take my younger brother and sister out for the day with my DH (then boyfriend)we decided to go to a NT place and my Mum gave us there membership card.

I don't think it is wrong at all, if you are going to be using it several times then yes I would say get your own but for one trip a year no way.

zippitippitoes · 23/06/2006 14:31

in fact there are a lot of dilemmas in balancing their remit to conserve the property and land with access to the general public and budgetting and raising finance from alternative sources than visitor numbers

Caligula · 23/06/2006 14:34

Exactly Flutterbee. If it's an habitual thing it's taking the piss but if it's a "try out" I can't get too outraged about it. You probably shouldn't do it Twiglett, but there are much worse things you could do. Give your child cheese strings for the outing, for example.

flutterbee · 23/06/2006 14:35

So along the same lines if someone has a membership and goes every weekend and twice in the holidays are they then pushing it too far and taking advatage or are they just making sure they get there monies worth.

ScummyMummy · 23/06/2006 14:36

Well, I think they can charge quite ludicrous prices at some of these places and if a friend of mine was going who wasn't rich beyond the dreams of avarice I would offer them my card if I had one. Family day trips are good news but too many people don't go because they cost so much. Access to places like this can be v unequal, imo.

Bink · 23/06/2006 14:37

It's wrong. And that other people do it/have done it doesn't make it right. And as for the class-warfare stuff: as someone else once said - useful things, principles.

I'm kind of depressed that the case NormaS [respect icon] has so neatly and sensibly put even needs to be made.

zippitippitoes · 23/06/2006 14:38

I think it's 65.00 for family membership..it works out very reasonable by comparison with most private enterprises like eg soft play centres or lego land etc

flutterbee · 23/06/2006 14:39

Can anyone answer my question then??

zippitippitoes · 23/06/2006 14:40

no they can go as many times as they want just as you can with your gym membership flutterbee

ScummyMummy · 23/06/2006 14:42

There are a few families I know who couldn't afford that in a month of Mondays though zip, there really are. And they don't go to lego land or soft play centres either. And I would certainly lend any of those families my card if I had one and they wanted to go. Sorry if that offends people.

WigWamBam · 23/06/2006 14:43

The NT majorly cocked up our membership this year, and as a result I ended up with three sets of membership cards. My sister and her dp are majorly p*ssed off with me because I won't let them have a set - but why should I (and all the other NT members) pay whilst they get in free? Maybe it's not quite the same as "borrowing" a friend's card occasionally, but where do you draw the line? Is stealing acceptable if you only do it a couple of times? I don't believe so.

NormaSnorks · 23/06/2006 14:44

flutterbee - if you have paid your membership then you are entitled to go as much as your would like. As Zippi has said however, the NT will make assumptions about the 'average usuage' of e.g. a family which will probably also take into consideration about wear & tear (e.g. how many visitors before a car park needs to be re-tarmac-ed or something).
If you were a 'heavy' user, this would likely be balanced out by a 'light' user.

I'm afraid I just don't accept the 'expensive' argument - a single visit family ticket is usually about £15 and this is soon recovered if you get annual membership. How many times have I seem people talking on here about Legoland being about £24 a ticket???

zippitippitoes · 23/06/2006 14:44

lots of people can't afford things though..if you are feeling charitable then you could offer to pay for their visit!

JanH · 23/06/2006 14:45

I think it's £73 this year (goes up a bit every year) - £1.50 a week? Not exactly beyond the dreams of avarice, scummy

We've had our membership since 1991 and I think in that time we've visited NT properties no more than 5 times (only 1 close to us ) but a) we can go any time we choose to and b) they are using our money well IMO.

expatinscotland · 23/06/2006 14:49

'There are a few families I know who couldn't afford that in a month of Mondays though zip, there really are. And they don't go to lego land or soft play centres either. And I would certainly lend any of those families my card if I had one and they wanted to go. Sorry if that offends people. '

I'm one of those families, Scummy, but sorry, that doesn't make stealing right and I wouldn't use someone else's card b/c it's wrong.

FWIW, MOST places like this offer concessionary membership for people on Working Tax Credit, housing benefit, income support, etc. The Royal Botanical Gardens in Edinburgh, for example.

zippitippitoes · 23/06/2006 14:50

in fact I think it is really good value..where else can you get such beautiful and educational opportunities and contribute to conserving history for such a small price...

on a low income it is a treat well worth budgetting for

expatinscotland · 23/06/2006 14:51

Exactly, zippi! We save up for our membership and really enjoy it this time of year. We're going to picnic tomorrow, in fact.

NormaSnorks · 23/06/2006 14:53

Good for you Expat...

ScummyMummy · 23/06/2006 14:53

Also, aren't family cards pretty much sold with profit in mind a la gym membership? E.g. most non-diehard people will actually visit NT properties once or twice a year but on the first of those occasions they buy a card in a moment of impulsively blissful stately home watching enthusiasm, intending to go 5 times per week from that point on but never really getting round to it? In that case it only seems right to let the card get a bit of use from a mate.

FioFio · 23/06/2006 14:54

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FioFio · 23/06/2006 14:55

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zippitippitoes · 23/06/2006 14:56

as janh says some people are altruistic about the use they get from the card becuase they want to help conserve the heritage

the nt will account for how much use they get from it in calculating the cost and they need a predictable revenue stream which the annual membership provides in order to set an annual budget