Cost of FIA Super License increases again

[ben_watkins]

So the FIA have increased the cost of the Super License once again, prompting the GPDA to tell it's members to delay signing for them just yet..

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/motorsp ... 848504.stm

Super License basic price goes from £9,430 to £9,798

Plus every WDC point goes from £1,885 to £1,978

Plus a compulsary insurance charge of £2,564

Total for Hamilton, as WDC will be £206,416 to compete in this year's Championship


Anyone else think that this is a massive problem for teams and drivers at the back of the grid, who fight for every last point, only to be penalised when they have to renew the super license?

Also how will the costs be worked out if Bernie gets his way and forces the teams to compete for only 3 medals per race?


Costings from BBC Sport

[axle]

Quite honestly I don't get why drivers are penalised at all for doing well..

A license should be just that, not a tax!!

[roost89]

I was under the impression the License was covered by the contracts with the teams. It doesn't really affect their pay at all.

However they shouldn't be punished for doing well!

[mx_tifoso]

Luckily the increased superlicense charges are offset by drivers being able to demand higher wages if they improve their performance/results each year.

There are many examples to choose from.

[donskar]

You've got to love this:

Super License basic price goes from £9,430 to £9,798

Plus every WDC point goes from £1,885 to £1,978

Plus a compulsary insurance charge of £2,564

Total for Hamilton, as WDC will be £206,416 to compete in this year's Championship

This is NOT a license -- it's an income tax. The more you make, the more you pay. The FIA makes the Mafia look like a bunch of boy scouts.

[Rob W]

Of course super licences are covered by the teams - as it's a running cost of the team just like flights and laundry.

I totally agree with the success means you pay more money theme as well - why make a smaller outfit pay a much larger percentage of their operating budget when they have little chance of return on it? Pegging it to performance at a reasonable per-point rate seems pretty practical to me (assuming they have established the need/reason for the super license revenue).

[i70q7m7ghw]

Some fair comments here... but how does this fit in with the FIA's whole cost cutting scheme? It' doesn't. If driver salaries are to ever go down, this needs to change. fact.

[ben_watkins]

It also doesn't fit with the c**p medal system that Bernie dreamt up!

Those who do well in this sport should be rewarded not punished, no matter who foots the bill..

[ben_watkins]

GPDA launch a fresh attack on the 2009 Super License cost..

The GPDA statement in full.

In the wake of recent misreporting of the drivers' issue with the FIA regarding their Super Licence fees in certain sections of the media, and in response to Mr. Mosley's latest comments, the Drivers wish to clarify the following:

In January 2008, the FIA unilaterally increased the Formula One drivers' fees for holding a Super Licence. The basic Super Licence fee for the 2008 season increased from EUR 1,690 in 2007 to EUR 10,000 representing a rise of nearly five-fold. In addition, the points' fees which are paid concurrently with the basic Super Licence fee increased from EUR 447 per point in 2007 to EUR 2,000 in 2008, an increase by a factor of nearly 3.5.

These increases were made without any prior consultation with the drivers, and the first the drivers knew of the increases was when the invoices were received by their respective teams and via the media in January 2008. The proposed increases are inherently unfair, both in the way they were introduced and the way they impact on individual drivers.

Since these increases were introduced by the FIA, they have been opposed unanimously by the drivers because they are unreasonable and unfair. The GPDA has - on behalf of all drivers holding Super Licences including the non-GPDA members - appropriately and professionally sought to resolve the issue privately with the FIA throughout the 2008 season, culminating in a meeting with Mr. Mosley at the Italian Grand Prix last September which opened up the way for further discussion.

This included a request from the FIA to the drivers to disclose their gross earnings. However, Mr. Mosley is incorrect in his claim to the media that he had not received an answer from the drivers as a letter was sent by the GPDA in December declining the request because it was not relevant to ascertaining the appropriate Super Licence fees. Furthermore, drivers' gross (and net) earnings are confidential to the drivers, their management and financial advisors and any relevant tax authorities, and should be respected as such.

In fact, Mr. Mosley himself alluded to such confidentiality in recent correspondence with the GPDA. On the subject of whether the Super Licence is paid by the team or the individual, Mr. Mosley concluded it was a private contractual matter between the driver and his team, and not a matter for the FIA.

The drivers are not opposed to a reasonable increase in the Super Licence fees, the fee which should cover the administrative and other costs relating to the issue of the licence.

Therefore, the drivers have offered to pay the 2007 Super Licence fees adjusted upwards by inflation for the 2008 season with a corresponding increase for the 2009 season.

In addition, the drivers have offered to explore fair ways in which they can assist the FIA in raising funds to meet the apparent EUR 1.7 million shortfall required to run the Federation in 2008 and a further EUR 3 million shortfall that will be required in 2009, according to the figures cited by Mr. Mosley at Monza.

The drivers contend that the Super Licence fees should not be a revenue stream for the FIA and such a change constitutes a major departure in principle for both past Super Licence fees and fees for any other drivers' licences. The FIA should raise sufficient funds from the exploitation of its commercial rights.

As a principle, the drivers should not be taxed to fund the costs of others fulfilling their legal duty to the drivers. It is the teams' duty to provide the driver with a safe car, it is the circuit owners' duty to provide a safe circuit and it is the duty of the manufacturers to provide helmets, fireproof overalls, etc. fit for the purpose of safety. The FIA, as the governing body, has a duty to impose safety regulations and to supervise through licensing the parties carrying out their duties, e.g. licensing a circuit. The licensing process for drivers is to ensure that the drivers are competent to race at the level necessary in Formula One.

FIGURES

* Already in 2007, the F1 Super Licence was the most expensive Licence payable by any sportsperson in the world
* In one year and without prior notice, it went up between 200% (basic fee) and 350% (fee per point)
* The winner of the 2008 F1 World Championship will have to pay $270.000
* The closest Licence Fee in the world is NASCAR in which each driver pays $4.000 per season
* The FIA qualifies the drivers' contribution to the running of the Federation to a total of EUR 1.7 million per season via our Super Licence fees.

[CMSMJ1]

I just paid £50 for my ACU racing licence which arrived today.

I would imagine that the FIA needs to look again at this issue or else the head to head of drivers vs FIA will mean a quiet Melbourne...

[nae]

boo hoo the poor drivers

[tk421]

boo hoo the poor drivers

that coupled with your signature: "F1 isnt a sport its a shambles of very fast advertising billboards running round a track every two weeks."


All professional athletes earn gobs of money. Your comment is purely a fill-in-the-blank. boo hoo the poor driver, boo hoo the poor footballer, boo hoo the poor hockey player, boo hoo the poor basketball player, or even boo hoo the poor actor. There are many things that could be said, but I'll just say it serves no purpose to make a comment like that.

Anyway, they're getting penalised for doing a good job. The better they perform, the more they pay. That's the only point I have an issue with. I say one flat rate for every driver, and it's done. I'm not saying the license should cost 10 pounds, but I don't think Kubica should pay more than Sutil, or Felipe more than Nakajima....

[nae]

more than half these guys live in tax havens,dont pay taxes and pay expensive accountants to keep it that way, they dont really pay there way in normal society. (given some try and give some back through charity work but that isnt paying taxes)

they may be risking there lifes but no more than say a fire fighter does.

they are in a very privileged position (sometime earned sometimes bought)

and if they are daft enough not to have a points bonus or signing on fee covered in there contracts, well !

if they don't like it they can go race tin tops or retire, OH wait they wont

as i say

oh boo hoo the poor drivers

[Ciro Pabón]

What's interesting in today's letter is how FIA can be short of money to pay its own expenses, while FOM swims in money.

Mosley is leaving a legacy of regulation changes, but as an administrator... is a buey, caramba.

I bet that the website alone, well managed, can get 1.7 million euros easily.

[D'Leh]

Mosley's reign gets a disgrace more and more with the years passing. He should have left the stage a long time ago.