Renewal FAQs
2008 renewal notices were sent to all Fellows at the start of October 2007. We hope that these questions and answers will help you understand your renewal and the fees that we have asked for.
If you still need advice, or haven't received your renewal, please email renewals@geolsoc.org.uk, or telephone +44 (0)20 7434 9944 between 9.30am and 1.30pm. Please quote your Fellowship number when you contact us.
1) Can I renew over the telephone?
We would prefer it if you could complete the boxes on your renewal with your credit card details, attach a cheque, or fill in the Direct Debit Instruction enclosed and post it all back to us in the envelope provided. This makes processing easier as there is a personalised barcode on your renewal.
2) I pay by Direct Debit/continuous credit card authority, and my account/card details have changed since the last renewal OR I want to add/delete items so the total amount due will change. What should I do?
You need to contact our Accounts office immediately. We start to collect automatic payments at the start of November so changes need to be made by then ideally. If you contact us later than this, the first instalment will be taken as shown on your renewal and we will need to adjust the remainder afterwards. 3) I don’t know if I am in the correct age bracket. How have you calculated my fees?
The price that you have been asked to pay for 2008 is worked out using your age on the 31 December 2007. Where we do not hold a date of birth, we automatically apply the 34 – 59 years old fee. If you think that we may not have your date of birth, or seem to have incorrect information, please add the correct details to the renewal notice by hand and send the appropriate payment instead. (The fee categories are shown on the back of the renewal notice.)4) I am/have just retired. Is there a discount?
Fees are calculated on the basis of age so please check your renewal against the fee categories (on the back of the renewal notice) to see if the amount we've asked for is correct. The fee for those aged 60 - 69 is £84 and the fee for those aged 70 or over is £59, whether or not they are still working.
5) I am not working / off sick / on a reduced income as I am raising a family, but want to maintain my Fellowship. Could I pay less this time?
We may be able to help - please write/email the Fellowship Office with your renewal notice details, and we will get back to you. Please note that the Unemployed rate is only available to Fellows who have paid the full fee (ie the 34-59 bracket) for 5 years. 6) I would like to pay the reduced fee for full time postgraduate students – how do I do this?
Just cross out the printed total and write in £47 by hand. Please add a note to tell us what you are studying for, where you are studying (including the department), and the date you expect to finish. Then send in the renewal notice and payment as usual.
7) I am a Candidate Fellow and thought that I had paid a one-off fee to last until I graduate, but I've been sent a bill for 2008.
It's possible that your database record has been set up incorrectly. Please write/email and confirm the date that your course ends, and that you have paid in advance. We will check and get back to you.
8) I've recently moved house/changed my name etc...
Please notify us by making the changes to your renewal notice by hand and sending the sheet in with your payment. We will update your details on our system.
9) My renewal asks for the Overseas Fellows’ rate but I am now resident in Europe again. What should I pay?
Please amend the printed total by hand to £166 (and add other items that you pay for if necessary) and return with your payment.
10) I thought I was a Candidate Fellow but have received a renewal that shows me as a Fellow - what's going on?
If your degree course finished in 2007, then you need to upgrade to Fellowship by the Ordinary General Meeting in May 2008 at the latest. (Even if you don’t want to upgrade, it is not possible to remain as a Candidate Fellow after the end of June 2008, as set out in the Society’s Bye-laws). We have therefore invoiced you at the appropriate Fellowship rate for 2008. We wrote to those concerned in August, and sent out simplified application forms. Please contact us if you graduated in 2007 and have not received the invitation to upgrade.
11) I would like to resign - what do I do?
Add a note to your renewal reminder and send it in. If your payment method is Direct Debit or continuous credit card authority, you should do this immediately so that we can stop your instalment(s) being collected.
12) Will I get a receipt?
If you need a receipt please ask for one when you send your payment, or at any point afterwards. Please allow a few weeks for it to arrive. We do not send receipts out automatically.
13) What is the deadline for renewing?
We strongly advise you to renew before the end of March, as non-payers will not be sent their free journal after 31/03/08. The final deadline for renewals is 30 June, which means that everyone has just over 8 months in which to pay. Any Fellow who has not paid by this point is removed from Fellowship, in accordance with the Bye-laws.