Royal Automobile Club of Victoria

Automobile Club of Victoria was founded at a meeting held at the Port Phillip Club Hotel on 9 December 1903 called by Syd Day, Henry James and James G. Coleman.[2] Henry James Joseph "Harry" Maddox (1862-1937)[3] was elected as its first President, and H.B. "Harry" James, its first secretary. At that first meeting, the proposal of Henry Sutton, the Australian motoring pioneer, was unanimously adopted:

"that the objects of the club should be the promotion of a social organisation and club, composed mainly of persons owning self-propelled vehicles or motor cycles; to afford a means of recording the experiences of members and others using motor cars and motor cycles; to promote investigation in their development; to co-operate in securing rational legislation and the formation of proper rules and regulations governing the use of motor cars and motor cycles in cities, towns and country districts; to maintain the lawful rights and privileges and protect the interests of owners and users of all forms of self-propelled vehicles whenever and wherever such interests, rights and privileges are menaced; to promote and encourage the improvement, construction and maintenance of roads and highways and the development generally in this State of motoring, and to maintain a club to be devoted to the interests and advancement of automobilism."[4]

It held its first car rally at Aspendale Park Racecourse in 1904.[5][6] In 1916, the club received the approval of King George V to prefix the title "Royal" to its name.[7][8]

RACV is a member of the Australian Automobile Association which has member organisations in each state and territory of Australia.

RACV was a founder of insurance brand AAMI (previously known as Club Motor Insurance and now owned by Suncorp-Metway),[9] and both companies are now major competitors in the insurance market in Victoria with RACV's business venture with partner Insurance Australia Group.

RACV produces a magazine for its members, called RoyalAuto. It is published and distributed 11 times a year – monthly from February to November, and a combined December/January edition. The magazine's content is based on the three major topics that are of major interest to its readers as RACV members: travel/touring and associated leisure content, motoring/mobility – mainly new and used car reviews and news, and news and programs which touch on broader mobility issues including road safety, public transport and the environment – and member benefits/news. RoyalAuto has an audited circulation of 1,502,079, making it the largest-circulating publication in Victoria.[10] It is the state's most-read monthly magazine.[11]

RACV member magazine has been produced for more than 90 years. It began in 1922 as a monthly supplement in The Australian Motorist. By the mid-1920s, it was launched as a stand-alone publication called The Royal Auto Journal. In 1936, this changed to The Radiator, a newspaper-style journal. In 1953, the magazine became a colour publication called Royalauto, and now it is formally presented as RoyalAuto. In September 2012 a digital version, for iPad, was produced for the first time, and each digital edition is produced concurrently with the print magazine. In August 2013, it was rated among the top 1% of magazine apps worldwide by app rating agency iMonitor. In November 2013, RoyalAuto was named Association or Member Organisation Magazine of the Year by Publishers Australia in its Excellence Awards 2013.[12]

RACV Headquarters on Bourke Street, Melbourne

The registered office is located in the CBD of Melbourne.

RACV is an unlisted public company limited by guarantee headed by a board of directors. The Board comprises 11 independent non-executive directors and 1 managing director and CEO.[13] The non-executive directors are elected to three-year terms by two different classes of members: Ordinary ('Club') members (totalling approximately 30k) who can vote for all 11 of the non-executive directors, and service members who have purchased an RACV product and number approximately 2.1 million but can only vote for 5 specific non-executive directors and consequently have less representation at board level.

• R.A.C.V. Finance – 100%
• Intelematics Australia – 100%
• Gippsland Solar - 100%
• Insurance Manufacturers of Australia (IMA) – 30% (joint venture with Insurance Australia Group owning other 70%)
• Club Assist – 30%
• Australian Motoring Services (AMS)- 24% (joint venture with Australian automobile clubs)
• Collaborate Corp (Drive My Car) – 6.77% (P2P car sharing company)

• Royal Automobile Club of Victoria
• RoyalAuto magazine
• RACV makes an investment in Collaborate a peer-to-peer marketplace