Royal Automobile Club of Queensland
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| The Royal Automobile Club of Queensland Limited | |
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| Motto | Wouldn't be without them |
| Formation | 1905 |
| Type | Roadside assistance, Vehicle inspection, Travel advisory |
| Location |  Queensland, Australia |
| President | Julie-Anne Schafer |
| Key people | Richard Pietsch, Deputy President Ian Gillespie, Chief Executive Officer and Secretary |
| Website | www.racq.com.au |
The Royal Automobile Club of Queensland Limited (RACQ) is a motoring club and mutual organisation, providing roadside assistance, insurance and other services to its Queensland members. It is a member of the Australian Automobile Association.
RACQ Insurance, its insurance arm, is a 50:50 joint venture with financial institution Suncorp.
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[edit] History
Twelve motorists formed the Automobile Club of Queensland in 1905 at a meeting of “almost all the motorists in Brisbane” which was held at the School of Arts, in Ann Street. The club received its Royal Charter in 1921.[1] The club was formed as an advocacy group, styled after the successful Royal Automobile club of the United Kingdom. At the time of formation there were only 16 registered privately owned motor cars in the whole of Queensland.[2]
Eighteen local motorists eventually agreed to be foundation members. Half were doctors – a good indication of their comparative affluence – and their belief that ‘autos’ could be a reliable means for visiting patients.
Dr. George Hopkins was voted president, and Dr. Charles Marks was the first vice-president.[3]
One of the clubs first publicity campaigns “urged farmers to stop placing logs and other obstacles on roads, blocking the progress of the "infernal contraptions" they feared would frighten their cows out of milking.”
In 2005, RACQ celebrated 100 years of service.
[edit] Sponsorship
The RACQ sponsors the Litter Prevention Award in the Ergon Energy Tidy Towns competition.[4]
[edit] Locations
The RACQ headquarters are in Eight Mile Plains, on the southside of Brisbane, with hubs at Tingalpa, Fortitude Valley, Murarrie and Southport.
Its branches are mostly owned outright, however some are franchised or contracted out. This particularly true of the road service division, which uses contractors outside of Brisbane.
On 29 August 2006, RACQ officially launched a new mobile branch that functions as an ordinary branch, and be used for exhibitions, trade shows and to assist in large-scale disasters in helping communities get their claims processed quicker and back on their feet again sooner.
[edit] References
- ^ Question: What does RACQ stand for? (HTML). FAQs. The Royal Automobile Club of Queensland Limited. Retrieved on 2007-06-29.
- ^ GovernorRACQ speech. Retrieved on 2008-04-15.
- ^ travel in 1900Get a Horse. Retrieved on 2008-04-15.
- ^ RACQ Sponsorship. Retrieved on 2008-04-15.
[edit] External links
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