Mappers Beware

[Oldman]

A relevant news item from today's BOF web news
http://www.britishorienteering.org.uk/i ... 9yZy51ay8=

[Red Adder]

And it still doesn't address the original issue - if you are a club mapper doing a small number of schools for pin-money + expenses BOF insurance no longer appear to cover you.

You are covered if the school or its employees / pupils did something to you (eg left something on a corridor floor you tripped over) as would any visitor to the school. However, as a contractor, you are no longer covered by BOF if you did or omited to do something (eg left a gate open an a child ran out into the road). Any personal liability insurance attached to your household policy would not cover you as you would be classed as working. For the small number of maps you do a year I suspect it would either very difficult and/or exspensive to obtain cover.

This is something BOF should be looking in to - checking the terms of their insurance etc. Is it possible to define a club mapper producing a school map as an activity that "promulgates the sport" ?

[andypat]

Is that really such a big issue? I amnt covered by any insurance when i go for a training run in the woods or up a hill, I suspect a far more dangerous activity than mapping a playground?

[Scott]

Is that really such a big issue? I amnt covered by any insurance when i go for a training run in the woods or up a hill, I suspect a far more dangerous activity than mapping a playground?

It's the third-party liability that is the issue:

you are no longer covered by BOF if you did or omited to do something (eg left a gate open an a child ran out into the road).

I suspect many schools will be unwilling to let people work on site if they don't have "appropriate" (ie £5million+) liability cover.

[ianandmonika]

Not sure professional mapper = good map. That's a dangerous assumption to make?

[Big Jon]

"Not sure professional mapper = good map. That's a dangerous assumption to make?"
I think in general a professional map is likely to be better than an amateur map as the professional has to prove to employers they are good value for money. There have been some shocking bad professionally made maps over the years however there have been a lot more shockingly bad amateur maps!

[madmike]

There have been some shocking bad professionally made maps over the years however there have been a lot more shockingly bad amateur maps!

And also some top quality amateur maps and some top quality professional maps - you can construct arguments both ways: e.g. professionals have to make a living so quality good v amateur can devote time that would make professional map unaffordable......

Not sure one is better than the other in general

[Clive Coles]

The danger with professional mapping is that professionals need to make a fair profit and balance their books. They are not charities ~ most club mappers rarely cover their costs.

Professionals necessarily have to limit the number of visits they make to an area especially if there are travelling and accommodation costs to be incurred. Professionals will deliver excelllent cartography, usually to an agreed timetable, but if time spent on the ground survey is limited the detail and accuracy may be questionable.

Given the choice I would prefer to commission a local mapper who has the time and expertise to spend on the assignment. Not all clubs however are as fortunate as others. We should be gratefull our sport is able to utilise both professionals and club members to provide quality maps for our events.

[Big Jon]

Bear in mind that I am talking about the situation in Scotland and I don't have much experience of mapping in England. In Scotland much of the terrain is technically complex and I would challenge most "amateur" mappers to be able to handle it. As a professional mapper I have a lot of experience that enables me to cover the ground much more quickly than a relative novice and so this balances out my higher daily cost (and reduces accommodation etc costs. For a simple park or small woodland area maybe a local amateur can produce a decent map, but in large complex areas and for major, high profile, events the best and safest option is to use a professional mapper.

[Clive Coles]

Would agree with you Jon ~ mapping complex areas such as mountain terrain is something that requires proven expertise as does those maps that are required for major championships .

My son has just finised a sector of a map for his club in the French alps working alongside another experienced mapper. A very different challenge than an English assignment !

[AndyO]

A relevant news item from today's BOF web news
http://www.britishorienteering.org.uk/i ... 9yZy51ay8=

Well it does deal with the map assessment question, by taking it back for reconsideration. That's good news, let's hope they come back with a workable means of doing the job.

Thanks, Oldman