I think a part of the "notam problem" is that most of the UK GA scene is quite "old" in terms of pilot age, and doesn't have IT skills.
...
And anybody who trained before c. 2002 will not have seen any notam website at all. In 2003 the ais.org.uk site was crap, missing off vital French power station TRAs which nearly got me busted by the frogs.
And most "older" pilots do not know how to use a PC, never mind the internet.
Grow-up. Who do you think created and developed all the technology that you take for granted? It was not today's youngsters. My first exposure to computers was an Elliot 803 in the mid 1960s and I worked with various computers full time from 1968 until April this year when I retired - including being trained by IBM on the original PC pre-launch.
Yes NOTAMS are a pain. I ALWAYS check them the night before I expect to go flying (NotamPlot usually) - even when I don't expect to leave the circuit - and I also check the freefone before flight.
One off the concerns I have is that they are stuffed full of non-standard abbreviations. I did a survey of a single day and found well over 60 abbreviations used that were not in the published list of standard abbreviations. This I raised in writing with AIS who promised to raise this point with those responsible for accepting UK NOTAMs and doing the data entry.
Regarding payment - I believe in the principle the polluter pays - so if there is a charge it should be paid by the body requesting the NOTAM - not the pilot obliged to read it - even if it has no relevence to his flight.