Following the announcement on 24th March 2020, when the Executive recommended that members cease diving activities, the Executive have been closely monitoring the most recent Government guidelines regarding the Covid-19 virus (especially with regard to the ‘lockdown’, self isolation and the ban on gatherings of more than two people). After discussions with the SAA insurers and also having taken independent legal advice, we must now, regretfully, issue a temporary complete ban on any member or member clubs undertaking any diving activities.
We have negotiated with the SAA Insurers that the SAA insurance will be temporarily postponed until the Executive (taking account of all the circumstances regarding the Covid-19 virus and with legal advice), is in a position to lift the temporary diving ban.
Your SAA membership will therefore continue in all other respects during the temporary diving ban (including the opportunity to participate in a postal proxy vote for this year’s AGM – further details of which will follow shortly). Your SAA membership will also effectively be extended this year to cover the period of the diving ban. This will therefore ensure that no SAA member or member club will be penalised in any way or suffer any loss of their SAA insurance cover as a result of this diving ban.
The Executive will, of course, take all steps to lift the diving ban as soon as possible when it is safe to do so. Please be reassured that our primary concern is the wellbeing, health and safety of all of our members, the diving community and the general public.
We are all being asked to follow Government advice to reduce the transmission of coronavirus (COVID-19). which can be found at https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus.
Thank you for your continued understanding and support during this extraordinary situation and we hope that all our members keep safe and well throughout this pandemic.
Please do not hesitate to contact us at Email: admin@saa.org.uk should you have any queries, or require any further information regarding any of the above.
Keep safe
Chris Jones
SAA Chair
