Phuket Thailand

Sleesy · #1 18-09-2004, 07:30

I've been in LOS 5 months now but don't drive that often. Haven't had a car accident for about 10 years but am just preparing myself for my first one in LOS....

I've heard numerous stories about Vehicle related accidents eg:

1. motorbikes shooting up the inside of your car when you're turning left
2. several motorbikes just laying their bikes over and claiming they were hit

And the usual ending to the story:
1. Farang pays whoever's fault it is and regardless if any damage was done.
2. General cost 2000Baht to the 3rd party.
3. If you don't pay and the police come along it's gonna cost you double.

Know of similar stories or has this happened to you ?
What's the average "expense/fine" in this situation ?

Cheers,
Sleesy.

Ps This is not a whinge about LOS, as I mentioned initially, just trying to prepare myself for what I see is the inevitable....

Nicke · #2 18-09-2004, 14:47

I have details only about two accidents.

I had an accident with another motorbike. I had to visit police station with the Thai guy. The damage on his motorbike was valued to 3700 baht and I had to pay 500 baht for his hospital visit. I think this was a fair outcome.

The second time was my secretary who drove motorbike into a car who turned left, she had to pay 10,000. (She and the car driver was Thai) She had to discuss this with the insurance guy who arrived to the scene, no police involved here.

If you have an accident and the other part require too much money, it is better to let the police sove this. It is not uncommon people try to extract as money as possible from farang, from what I have seen the police is fair. If it is a more serious accident I think you are not allowed to move the vehicles until the police have seen the scene.

butterflyblonde · #3 19-09-2004, 00:44

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sleesy

I've been in LOS 5 months now but don't drive that often. Haven't had a car accident for about 10 years but am just preparing myself for my first one in LOS....

I've heard numerous stories about Vehicle related accidents eg:

1. motorbikes shooting up the inside of your car when you're turning left
2. several motorbikes just laying their bikes over and claiming they were hit

And the usual ending to the story:
1. Farang pays whoever's fault it is and regardless if any damage was done.
2. General cost 2000Baht to the 3rd party.
3. If you don't pay and the police come along it's gonna cost you double.

Know of similar stories or has this happened to you ?
What's the average "expense/fine" in this situation ?

Cheers,
Sleesy.

Ps This is not a whinge about LOS, as I mentioned initially, just trying to prepare myself for what I see is the inevitable....

Just to add a few things to watch out for Sleesy.

1) Unlike the uk , if you are at a junction and going straight ahead you will find the thai's from the other way that are turning right will aways cut across your path (to your left side) instead of waiting patiently in the centre of the road until you have passed across like drivers would back home.

2) The lack of any indication whatsoever was always present amongst at least 50% of drivers , I especially found fat old muslim women with god knows how many children aboard to be the worst offenders. You beep your horn to give a gentle warning and all you see is their face looking like a well smacked a-r-s-e

3) You mention drivers shooting up the inside when turning left , this is only half the story , expect them to whizz around you from the left and right with no regard to safety. (you need eyes in the back of your head , or about 20 pairs of eyes mounted onto your head should do it.)

4) Going back to point #2 they seem to lack any ability to check if somethings coming when pulling off from a stationary position , (again the fat muslim woman springs to mind)

5) When sitting stationary in the middle of a road wanting to make a turn , you would be amazed how many don't actually see you sitting there and almost collide into the back of you , I almost had an accident from the rear a few times.

6) Pothole driving , so many weaving in & out of traffic just to avoid yet another bump to the suspension , will come at you from the other side of the road too.

7) Lorries in los , no matter how fast you ride/drive , you just can't shake these fcukers off , I rode like the wind back from Laem Sing one day just to see if i could shake him off my tail but this lorry driver was right up my a-r-s-e all the way. It's impossible to get away , don't bother trying it & let them overtake you as it seems like their only goal in life.

8) Nightime drivers , needs a whole section to itself just to do it justice ,unlike the UK where people generally slow down due to limited vision , Thai's are the opposite , mixed with booze and many teenagers = bad accident, I have drove at night many times but when you have some drunken youth going flat out with no lights on & coming at you on the wrong side of the road , you tend to say to yourself ''by jove , i wasn't expecting that''

9) Junctions, so many just don't want to wait for you to pass and will pretty much always pull out anyway , My tip is to cruise a little slower , ease off the gas a bit and let them go as they are gonna do it for sure.

10) If you drive a car or jeep in any heavy traffic like around Rat-thu-tid rd around midday or rush hour then expect to drive at 5mph max. It's just one big flood of honda's at certain times of the day , feels like your'e sinking in quicksand. ps ...watch out for the fat muslim lady - she's a nutter.

Well , i hope you have a much fun driving in los as i had writing this , ahhh brings back many happy memories for me.

At least you won't get hurt in your jeep/car ,
A good tip i got from a guy from Brighton who had his arm in bandage, ''If you hit a thai , make sure you kill him'' evens if that means turning back round to finish the job as the expense can be enormous.

Drive safe sleesy , I'll be cruising the road to hell myself soon , can't wait

eric-the-viking · #4 19-09-2004, 06:49

these are all reasons why i hire a driver for the day,its their roads they know the system and are use to it,all i have to do is sit back have a drink and remember you pay a small fortune to ride a roller coaster in the uk that is not half as nerve racking as driving in los

Sleesy · #5 19-09-2004, 11:50

Thanks Butterfly for the very amusing Tales of Thailand traffic !

I did get a driver in the early days but now share a rental with Mafia (my Bunny Bar partner & nominated driver whenever possible)...

I also drive from Patong to Surin a couple of times a week and have had some "interesting" Cannonball Run type experiences...

Was looking at A Chevy Colorado Pickup at Tesco's yesterday, looks large enough to shove a dozen tuktuks over cliff edges when required !

Bobby · #6 21-09-2004, 18:49

IMHO, I don't think it's a good idea to rent a motorbike or a car without an insurance...

Mac · #7 22-09-2004, 06:30

I was walking up the Beach road towards the football field when an English bloke came crusing up behind me on a Dream at about 5 MPh. He was heavily loaded in all senses with two girls on board. Suddenly and for no particularly apparent reason he fell off.. The traffic did not stop but weaved around them as they struggled to pick themselves up. I, (good citizen) rushed to help and the guy said - "no problems, I'm fine" and promptly stepped in front of a lorry and was hit from behind. He ended up on the pavement, again apparently not hurt. The bike was squashed by the lorry.

The Police station was just there and a young officer came out to survey the scene. He waved the lorry on...

Mai pen rai.

Mac