Statement From PADI For 2021 Membership Renewal Fees

drew richardson padi statement

Drew Richardson, President and CEO of PADI Worldwide, has announced the training agency’s plans to support its professional members during the Covid-19 pandemic. 

According to a statement released this week, and previously sent to PADI Instructors and divemasters, ‘PADI is offering unprecedented and much needed relief…to support [its] Members during these challenging times.’ There has been much speculation as to what measures the organisation would take, following an initial promise to defer partial payment of membership fees until March next year.

‘In these unprecedented times when diving activity is down, providing needed relief and unsurpassed support to loyal PADI Members is job one,’ said Richardson. ‘The PADI staff and I understand that every member’s story differs across 182 countries, and we are listening and adapting to demonstrate solidarity and togetherness as we go forward into recovery.’

PADI currently charges its instructors around €360+VAT (it varies by location) per year to maintain teaching status for both diving and first aid training, with discounts to the price applied for those who sign up for automatic yearly renewal. Fees have, by and large, increased incrementally year-on-year. 

This year, the renewal fees for 2021 will remain exactly the same as they did for 2020, with three payment options available.

  • Option 1: 20 per cent off auto-renewal – already the lowest renewal rate – when enrolled by 15 November 2020
  • Option 2: 20 per cent off one-time renewal if renewed online by 31 December 2020
  • Option 3: Defer 75 per cent of the total membership fee to March 2021 by enrolling in the auto-renewal payment plan (and paying 25 per cent of the fees) on or before 15 November 2020

A range of other benefits are being offered, including 21 free digital learning products for instructors (for their personal use, not for students), a price guarantee on training materials and merchandise until at least 1 April 2021, and a ‘PADI Gear’ gift voucher for equipment purchases.

‘We are also providing an option for any current PADI Member to temporarily pause membership, if needed, and easily reactivate it in the future,’ said Richardson. ‘Our members mean everything to us and we know that together we are stronger and will lead the world to seek adventure and save the ocean.’

The information was distributed to PADI professionals earlier in October, with mixed reactions on Internet dive forums. Many instructors have been left without any source of income for more than six months, and have complained that the measures are not enough. Others have noted that PADI itself has been hit hard by the dive industry shutdown, and that payment of fees is essential for operational continuity.

 

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