richard_smith237

It wasn't enough time for me I arrived 3.5 hours before departure missed my flight and had to book a hotel for 2 days and rebook my flight I wouldn’t have been enough for me either.... I waited in the massive security queue (easily 1000 people in it snaking all the way through the airport, I’ve never seen anything like it) - about 1 hour before my flight was called the came through the queue asking for passengers on that flight, we were then fast tracked - I made the flight. Obviously the ’necessity for travel’ and bookings on the other side etc mades the difference on time priority. If travelling for work etc there is only one booking (hotel) on the other side which is easily changed. If travelling with family for a holiday etc and bookings, transport, plans etc are locked in, its different and I’d give more consideration to traffic etc. If travelling for work or holiday over the APEC period - Yes, I’d allow more time as I did in heavy weather.

Yeah... I usually end up sitting at the airport for over an hour anyway... so 2 hours is easily enough ‘usually’ (when flying around Asia)... UK is somehow different with the utter jobs-worths at security and amateur travellers trying to carry everything onto their flight to get their cheap ‘no baggage flights’... The issues in the UK and Thailand are different. In the UK the traffic is reliable, the Airport queues wholly unreliable. In Thailand the traffic is unreliable and the airport queues reliable (except arriving immigration at times).

They’re just covering their backsides (as is everyone else), just incase something goes wrong, then they can’t be blamed - IMO - 3 hours is extremely excessive. With the amount I travel, that would be an extra 18 hours per year hanging around airport !!!... And a lot of the time thats an extra hour with my family before I head off etc.... sometimes means seeing my son for an hour after he gets home from school before I have to head off etc... I’ve not missed a flight yet - but the one I nearly did miss I was there 3 hrs early for anyway !!! With the APEC thing though - the advice is sensible. As was the advice to depart earlier a couple of months ago during extremely heavy rain. At quite periods I actually time it so that I get through immigration with about an hour to spare (and can usually time it better with priority check-in and fast track immigration etc).

My bad - doing two things at once and completely miss-read the Op and somehow understood the advice thinking it was for ‘After the APEC summit’.... !!!!...

Utterly ridiculous... In the UK I was there 3 hours before departure and was going to miss my flight due to the 1hr check in queue and ❤️ hrs security queue... horrific (summer)... In Thailand, in the mids of horrific weather I left home 3.3 hrs early, expecting a very slow journey the airport, I was through Immigration with 2.45 hrs to wait !!!! Last week I arrived at the airport (planned) 2 hrs before departure and was thought Immigration with 1.45 mins to spare. Arriving 3 hours... I don’t think thats necessary at all... departing Thailand I’ve always found 2 hours more than enough time...

Questionable... and mileage may vary. IF people have hired in Thailand on their home country licence and been asked for an IDP, then so be it. This may even be a requirement which differs from rental company to rental company.... Regardless - its a completely separate issue from being ‘fined by the BiB’ for having no IDP while carrying a home country licence.

Would only apply to Thais and expats. An IDP isnt a license. Give it up already... everyone knows the difference between a DL and IDP... Driving without a Licence is the same as driving without permission to drive. Thus: IF an IDP is a requirement (currently being debated) then the overseas DL is void without it. Thus: back to stage one - driving without a licence (without permission to driven Thailand).

Its an interesting thread with plenty of useful information from which we can learn. Why are you trying to destroy it with pathetic and unrelated irrelevant distraction ????... Troll elsewhere if you must... This is why you are treated with contempt in so many other threads even when you do make a valid point.

Yes they were but they don't come into effect till January. Was the ‘driving without a licence’ fine also increased ??? While I could find information regarding the increase of other fines, and, while I could also find information (from two years ago) reporting the proposal to increase the fine to driving without a license to a maximum of 50,000 baht and and / or 3 years in prison, I could not find any updated information regarding the fine for ‘driving without a licence’ or any information that it has in fact changed at all from its original 200-1000 baht (I think it is).

Hired in 11 cities. Not asked once for IDP. Rode past cops today. They could care less. No... I was pointing out the part of Jimjim1’s comment that you didn’t pay attention to when you criticised his point... (all of which you did not quote and you suggested makes no sense) His post makes sense when you understand he was not referring to being stopped when asked to show his IDL (he meant IDP) but was pointing out that he had been asked when renting in Thailand.

when hiring a car in Thailand.....

Quoted below from your link above... ‘many comprehensive insurance policies.....’.... This link does not state any legal limit on the validity of IDP after entering the country. I’m yet to see an official source (from DLT / Road or Land Traffic Act) which places a time limit on an IPD from entry into Thailand.

This is from where I suspect the initial ‘misunderstanding may have arise’.... someone has tied in permission of stay, to permission to drive. There is an overlapping requirement of Visa Status / Permission to drive for residents (those on resident Visas such as Non-Imm) who are required to get a Thai Licence - although I’ve never read of a limit on that, but understand it to be 90 days. I suspect some have mixed this up and its been regurgitated and reposted on various other non-official sites.

I too used to believe the IDP was valid for (90 days actually) after entry. I have never seen a source for this information. Thus: I would happily be re-educated if provided with an accurate and official source. (note embassy pages etc are notoriously inaccurate).

A foreign license with IDP is valid until 90 days since entry to Thailand, or until the expiration of the license or IDP, whichever comes first. However, determining how long someone has been in Thailand without recourse to your passport or at least passport number is problematic. So as a practical matter it is not checked at your typical police checkpoint. However, should there be a serious accident it certainly could be checked. I used to believe so too.... based on ‘hearsay’ on various webforms such as this etc... There is a lot of misinformation and ambiguity surrounding IDP’s and how long we can drive here, for how long etc. I have never found a source which states this 90 days limit. I have never seen an insurance document which states this 90 days limit.

Valid point... With all the Ambiguity and various circular requirements and regulations based on Nationality of home country license, Visa Status etc... with the BiB not knowing the specifics of their own Laws etc.... ... the most logical options are: Get a Thai Licence ASAP and having an IDP will not hurt your case if stopped by the BiB, in fact its more likely to appease them in their absence of legal knowledge rather than having to explain to them that they are wrong and you are right that you don’t need an IDP... ... The BiB won’t have heard of and won’t care for the 1968 Vienna convention or care for the Road Traffic Act.

A good option IF there is someone at his address from which to mail the IDP. But, this goes back to whether the IDP is needed at all ? - It depends on which country issued the Ops DL and what his visa status is here. iF the Op is on a Non-Imm visa - he needs a Thai DL. Also note: (In the UK at least) the IDP must be obtained in person, it cannot be obtained online etc.

Really ??? - where does it say that ???? The IDP is valid for 12 months. The requirement to switch to a Thai DL depends on your visa status.

Sadly, I completely agree..... ... it is this repeated response which enables DUI behaviour and actually ‘creates’ more danger on the roads as people are sent the message that DUI is not a serious issue, they’ll simply get away with it if they have an accident....

He saw it was a Yaris !!!

Not true: You can use the DLT QR App (shown a couple of posts above). Risk there is, the App crashing etc... so its good to have the physical licence. This App was put in place to reduce roadside corruption... i.e. Police officers taking your Thai DL and holding it ransom until you pay the ‘roadside fine’.... The BiB are no longer permitted to take and hold onto your Driving Licence, although many were still doing this. Now all you need to show them is the App. Of course, then the BiB have your phone and potentially a bigger bargaining chip, but that is perhaps a step too far and the BiB are not quite that ballsy just yet !!! Excellent advice !!!.... I’ll remember that ‘just incase’ I ever do lose my licence overseas. That said: Thai’s no longer need a police report to replace a lost licence (Wife lost hers), I assume this is also the same for foreigners, but I’m not sure. It could also vary from province to province and DLT office to DLT office.

It is a fact. The insurance is cancelled if a Thai licensed is not obtained within 60 days of arrival. That is not on applying for insurance. I assume you mean ‘Void’ (not cancelled).... but no, it is the car which is insured... Someone on a Tourist Visa and a UK license could drive our car without issue no matter how long they had been in country. Residing.... Thats the key word there.... In this context it means a foreigner on a Resident Visa. Foreigners with a Resident Visa (i.e. Non Imm) must get a Thai Licence. Tourists and those on Visa ‘can’ get a Thai Licence IF they can secure the right paperwork (specifically Certificate of address (from immigration) or Affirmation of Residence (from Embassy)). Otherwise: Tourist’s can drive on their home country licence under conditions a) Without an IDP IF their home country licence is in English (and part of 1968 convention). b) With an IDP their home country licence is in English (and part of 1968 convention). An IDP is valid for 1 year - they can simply renew after one year and continue driving legally. These laws assume that a ’Tourist’ cannot stay in Thailand for that long. Also not quite true: In Thailand, in most cases it is the car which is insured not the person.

Mine is on both my laptop and phone. I have to ever been able to get to a human on Line either. Correct - LINE can be used on both a Laptop and a Phone (I’m not sure about a Phone and a Tablet - i.e. iPhone & iPad)... The secondary account (LINE for computer) requires permission from the Master Device (ie. the Phone to scan the LINE Generated QR code on the desktop to approve the LogIn. None of this is a solution to accessing the original account if the log in on the main device doesn’t work.

Just use email. Easier. You're getting side tracked..... The Op isn’t asking for advice on how to avoid a car-crash, he’s asking advice on how to get the car repaired... so there is no point telling him to take the bus !!!

I don’t think that would work either, as even when an ID is created and deleted. A new ‘carbon copy’ ID (the same) cannot be created as that would conflict with the ID of the date still locked on the company server. Its the same if we delete our hotmail e-mail account. We can’t create a new e-mail account with exactly the same username (e-mail address). Account recovery is required.