Question to PADI: Cert cards

[letterboy]

smart chips in one universal C-Card. . . . electronically updated no matter the agency . . .


Of course then people would bitch that it costs to much, make your choice 1 card that is 150.00 or 8 cards @ 50.00 a piece?

 

[leapfrog]

It seems to me that the OP is really talking about having one card with your highest certification level plus your specialties. For example a Rescue Diver with EANx, Dry Suit, Altitude, Doplhin Atlantis and so on.

I can understand the idea. The issues are going to be:

1. Higher administrative costs, making the card more expensive.
2. Sufficient demand on the part of recreational divers to make it a worthwhile enterprise.
3. Whether this should be planned to eventually replace C cards with separate specialty cards.

I am not sure this would catch on as an idea. The present system seems to work OK. Most people walk around with a driving licence, social security card, a stack load of credit cards, membership cards, fidelity cards and so on.

Another post talked about being able to choose which card to show at any given place. That is one of the beauties of the system, especially for dive pros who want to go on holiday.

This reminds me of the Blackberry. It's a great concept but still a whole load of us rather have a normal cell phone and a laptop. Lot of Blackberries out there, however............

 

[FlyinV]

I thought I heard a rumor I could pay padi and they would give me a card that combines both my AOW and Nitrox certs?

Is this true?
If yes how do I order one of those?

The instructors and dive masters make a good point about wanting to go low profile but for us regular folks keeping tabs on one less item might make our holidays easier. Even if it is just a cert card.

 

[diverbob]

I went through the card collecting thing my first year of diving. One reason was because I didnt know anybody to go diving with, and taking a class would guarantee me to be in the water. These days, the only cards I carry in my wallet is my DM card, Trimix and cave. I figure between the three of them ,I can pretty much get to where I want to go.

As far as the OP, if you dont want to pay the 50 dollars for the MSD card, then dont. It doesnt hurt for them to offer it. If someone wants the card, then they pay it. If not, they dont. I can think of a lot more things I would like to see PADI change than a cert they offer.

 

[Rhone Man]

It seems to me that the OP is really talking about having one card with your highest certification level plus your specialties. For example a Rescue Diver with EANx, Dry Suit, Altitude, Doplhin Atlantis and so on.

I can understand the idea. The issues are going to be:

1. Higher administrative costs, making the card more expensive.
2. Sufficient demand on the part of recreational divers to make it a worthwhile enterprise.
3. Whether this should be planned to eventually replace C cards with separate specialty cards.

Not sure I buy into those objections entirely. Every time you get a new specialty, you get a new card at the moment (at least with PADI you do). This would continue to happen, but in the future you would get a fresh AOWD card (or whatever) with your fresh speciality "endorsed" upon it rather than a separate speciality card. So cost should be a wash (except for the one off costs of changing a system). I am not sure if demand changes one way or another as a result - no one will be swayed whether to do a course or not by how it is documented. I am not sure that I fully understand point 3 - that is what happens at the moment isn't it?

At the moment I have a pack of C Cards (mostly PADI) which I would mightily appreciate consolidating into one. In fact (you have to know what is likely to appeal to PADI), I would probably even be willing to pay for a new card if it consolidated all of my old cards.

 

[leapfrog]

Not sure I buy into those objections entirely. Every time you get a new specialty, you get a new card at the moment (at least with PADI you do). This would continue to happen, but in the future you would get a fresh AOWD card (or whatever) with your fresh speciality "endorsed" upon it rather than a separate speciality card. So cost should be a wash (except for the one off costs of changing a system).

Well, Rhone Man, people do certs and spcialties all over the globe. It's not unusual for a diver to do OWD at an LDS say in Florida (PADI Americas), AOW on a trip to Thailand (Asia Pacific), Nitrox in the BVI (Padi Americas), and do a Rescue course on a vacation to the Canary Islands (PADI Europe). So there are going to be coordination questions, administrative questions and then who issues the new card every time our diver now goes and does an Ice Specialty in Norway or a Wreck Specialty in Japan. Now,of course it can be done but you'll need more office administrative people, more administrative costs.

I am not sure if demand changes one way or another as a result - no one will be swayed whether to do a course or not by how it is documented.

What I am saying is that PADI would probably look at this as an idea if there was sufficient demand for such a service from the bulk of their divers but unlikely to look at it on behalf of a a minority.

I am not sure that I fully understand point 3 - that is what happens at the moment isn't it?

Point three relates to point two. Are you and the OP proposing that this idea replaces the current system or runs in parallel with it?

At the moment I have a pack of C Cards (mostly PADI) which I would mightily appreciate consolidating into one. In fact (you have to know what is likely to appeal to PADI), I would probably even be willing to pay for a new card if it consolidated all of my old cards.

What C Cards are those? You also bring up another major problem yourself which is how do we account for your non PADI C cards?

 

[NudeDiver]

What's to happen when you take an additional specialty after your MSD card is issued? Pay another $50 for an upgraded version? Do you expect PADI to do them free or in lieu of the card they would have issued for the specialty?

Um - I addressed this in the OP.

There might be good reason to NOT show every card you have. Why would you show Rescue Diver when your First Aid and CPR certs have expired? In fact, why show Rescue at all?

Good point. They should not issue a card for RD at all.

1. Higher administrative costs, making the card more expensive.

I don't see how. One card, with a few things printed on it. It's a little more ink.

Sufficient demand on the part of recreational divers to make it a worthwhile enterprise.

Print them for everyone - demand takes care of itself.

Whether this should be planned to eventually replace C cards with separate specialty cards.

Replaces all non-pro cards.

I am not sure this would catch on as an idea. The present system seems to work OK. Most people walk around with a driving licence, social security card, a stack load of credit cards, membership cards, fidelity cards and so on.

They walk around with ONE DL - not a stack, with one for each kind of thing they can drive. Also, anyone walking around with a SS card is....unwise.

FWIW - contents of my wallet: 1 DL, one cc, one atm card, and maybe a small amount of cash. No other crap in there

Another post talked about being able to choose which card to show at any given place. That is one of the beauties of the system, especially for dive pros who want to go on holiday.

Plan does not affect pro cards.

As far as the OP, if you dont want to pay the 50 dollars for the MSD card, then dont. It doesnt hurt for them to offer it. If someone wants the card, then they pay it. If not, they dont. I can think of a lot more things I would like to see PADI change than a cert they offer.

Has nothing to do with the multiple cards on one card concept.

At the moment I have a pack of C Cards (mostly PADI) which I would mightily appreciate consolidating into one. In fact (you have to know what is likely to appeal to PADI), I would probably even be willing to pay for a new card if it consolidated all of my old cards.

Someone gets it!!! I'm not willing to pay $50 for an MSD card, but I would be willing to pay for a consolidated card - and it would be EASY money for PADI - the whole fee could go in their pocket, rather than some for an instructor.

 

[FlyinV]

How come all my PADI cert cards have different "Diver ID" numbers on them?

You would think a diver would get issued a unique diver number when they first take a PADI class and thats your padi number for your life and all your records would be connected to that one number.

I know they issue a number to an instructor but I wondered why not us OW/AOW and specialty people?

 

[NudeDiver]

How come all my PADI cert cards have different "Diver ID" numbers on them?

Probably for the same reason that the myPADI website has been closed to new registrations, for what seems like forever, because they are going to remodel it in 2009 and need to get ready. Talk about a sign of a crappy IT staff (or contractor). Good lord! Imagine if, say, a bank, said, "we can't open any new accounts for a year because we're going to mess with our computers in 2009".

You would think a diver would get issued a unique diver number when they first take a PADI class and thats your padi number for your life and all your records would be connected to that one number.

Yes, you would think.

I know they issue a number to an instructor but I wondered why not us OW/AOW and specialty people?

No doubt because, "there are different PADI regions/orgs and they are semi autonomous" or some such BS. Nevertheless, it is ridiculous that I, a single diver, have, um...6 different diver numbers with PADI.....and 6 different cert cards.

 

[rstofer]

Good point. They should not issue a card for RD at all.

Might be a good idea! Have you even seen a REAL off-duty police officer wandering around the shopping mall with a T shirt saying "I'm a cop! Bring me your problems!". You won't, either.

I have had a RD card for over 20 years. I don't carry it anywhere. My first aid skills are obsolete and my training was in warm water. It is absolutely useless against wetsuits or drysuits. Might as well not have it. In fact, all RD certs should expire every year or two. That would force the issue of current First Aid/CPR and rescue techniques appropriate to the area. That would also invalidate the MSD cards. Hm... Not a bad idea, revenue wise!

And why in the world would you want to carry all your PADI cards in the first place? Fish ID, Equipment Specialist, Underwater Photographer and many others are completely irrelevant. Nice courses to take but the cert is meaningless. Leave the cards at home. Adding clutter (and SIZE) to a cumulative card would not be a good trade-off.

I do agree that a cumulative card would be nice but, as it won't integrate with my NAUI certs, I'm not signing up. I'll take a couple of PADI specialties but that's about it.

Richard