I fear it is a dark and misty affair as folk seem to have forgotten constructive criticism. There is one thing to be upset about something and harangue a club official. Worse, it tends to be an available one, who has no idea what actually happened. Its another to calmly point out, factually, that there has been a problem to, presumably, the Chairman. For RUM that would be Jean. No one is going to promise a perfect answer can be made to a compliant, but without feedback it is extraordinarily difficult to know what folk want, or what may, or may not, be a problem.
On the other side, as someone who has made constructive criticism, I can vouch for the fact the much of the time its been ignored, or not acted on. I am not suggesting that is necessarily out of order. Those doing the tasks do it the way they do it, as they do it free, in most cases. Maybe I am wrong anyway. However, I have nearly withdrawn from all clubs now, as I do not think I am. In several situations I have found myself in, by dint of doing club work, it has led directly to a confrontation between my knowledge of damaging facts and the operation of a committee. These issues raised in the correct way have been voted by majority to be fudged 'out of existence'. I cannot serve in this situation, as my responsibility to serve is to the club member, not the committee. Clearly in those cases I was the only one who thought this, which is rather worrying I think. I therefore resign and leave them to it.
So all I know is there are a large number of owners, certainly more of certain types of cars than others, who choose not to be a member of any club and become divorced from what the clubs do. Each tale as to why differs, but each is a loss to clubbing together, and a loss to that owner, as they become much more isolated.
It is not for me to transmit the full story given to me by the owner of the car at Newbury. I do not want the position of wosbird to the Microcar world. I would observe that the rise in values, change in ownership profiles, and the tendency of people to be more aggressively selfish, have a bearing.
A thought, of no strength either way. Do you think that clubs who sell spares as Limited Companies can, or are perceived as being, an informal clubbing together of owners? Or are newer owners looking at them as a business, as they pay for a service or parts. They therefore expect a degree of good service. Certainly the Americans, as a group, show far more expectation of good service and information access, and get pretty frustrated if they do not receive it. Americans tend to know how to complain. Its not a British thing to be seen to complain. Feeling fingers burned the potential recruit retreats feeling ripped off by what appears to be a business service, but is not set up to provide what that image in their mind portrays. In the same way, an advertised expert or service provider, on behalf of a club, is seen as a person similar to an employee, available to resolve problems at some speed, despite that he is a volunteer with his own complicated life to deal with.