4MyEgo

Was there a cop in the toilet.....LOL You can't make this stuff up.

At the end of the day, we are all heading to the same place, so eat as healthy as you can, exercise and live your life best you can. Switch off from what is happening out there as we have no control over it, the only control we have is how we see ourselves maximising our enjoyment while we are here for the short time that we are. Nowhere is perfect, perfect is what you make of it, and between you and me, there is no such thing, so make believe, it's better than thinking about everything else that is on the negative side of life.

Kings Cross once a red light district many moons ago, is now a trendy upmarket area, besides they have strict noise pollution rules in Sydney. I suppose at the end of the day it's the luck of the draw, I chose the country life away from neighbours, only music, if any that I can hear is from a distance when there is a festival of sorts and it is not enough to bother me. As for answering the topics question, the environment in Thailand is much harsher than the 4 seasons I was used to, that said, with a well insulated and comfortable home, it beats the hell out of working 5/7ths if not 6/7ths of your life and in an office environment for most who would also be stressed out from the work, not happy having to travel in the traffic and have very little time for themselves. Retirement in the old country for most is not sustainable, just a couple of examples, rents shy high, your pension would just about cover your rent if you didn't own a property outright, then it would be to the local grocery store for tonight's dinner, canned dog food. The cost of living is crazy, a kilo of chicken breast will set you back 250 baht vs 88 baht here and you can keep adding on from there. The cost of living here is way cheaper than back home if you go easy on the imports where they stick it to you. I mean what's a drivers licence cost here for 5 years, 300 odd baht, home country you would be lucky to see any change from 4,750 baht. Living here, you have to take the good with the bad, it's not perfect, but perfect is what you make of every situation. I'm good, just have to turn off when it's bad and wait for the good to come up again, that said, it's mostly good and relaxing living the life here in Thailand. Whatever you do, don't talk health insurance costs because that is in the bad, but part of life ????

That in a nutshell says it all. Perhaps he should lock us all down like his cousins are doing in China so that they can reduce the spread to zero which will never be achieved, just like so many other infectious diseases have roamed our humble planet, well, what's left of it. Let's just get infected and get it over with, you can't wrap everyone in cotton wool, we are all going to get infected as this virus will be here for a 1,000 years if not longer, and we all know, we won't be here, so what is the problem, it couldn't be control, or could it ?

I suppose the question now remains, how much longer will we be boosting for this disease which will be with us for 1,000 years at least. We are all going to get it, probably more than once, twice thrice in our life times. Me, 3 times boosted, think I will be going to my local GP in May asking for the annual influenza jab as I see Thailand had just over 100,000 deaths from Influenza and Pneumonia in 2021. When comparing Covid, if I am correct, Thailand has had 25,700 odd deaths since the pandemic hit it's shores early 2020, so looks like you have more chances of kicking the bucket from Influenza or Pneumonia than Covid, although it is a real threat for the elderly moreso. The above said, don't forget your other shots, e.g. Pneumonia and influenza and look out for that bus ????

Thanks once again Sheryl, learning as we go, eyes opening wider as well.

Actually it's 2% of your income up to $90,000 for singles and $180,000 if your married, then you get slugged the Medicare Levy Surcharge of 1% to 1.5% above that threshold, depending on how much you make, however if you take out private cover, this can revert back to no Medicare Levy Surcharge, i.e. 2% only for Medicare I believe. This was introduced to take the heat off the government for those who make a decent coin, i.e. take out private cover or pay for extra for the privilege. If your out of the country for 5 years, Medicare goes with the wind, e.g. you lose it and have to establish your residency for a period of around 6 months before you can get it back. The above said, Medicare is free if you don't work, go figure. Yes becoming an expat comes at a price.

I remembered after hearing a loud noise, I lost the hearing ability in my right ear for a while. However, after a couple of hours, it came back, and I was petrified, as I recall it was a near deaf experience ! Solly ????

Yes that would have been because you went into the next age bracket, e.g. (56-60), I had a quick look at the website and for age 55 it is 55,495 baht and at age 56 it is 68,973 baht, an almost 25% increase. I went from 59 to 60 and it went from around 73,000 baht to about 120,000 considering they also covered my pre-existing condition, still a steep climb.

Thx for that insight Sheryl, good to compare. I filled in a questionnaire for a quote on April France's website, well at least I thought I did and I received a phone call a day or so after and then an email from April Bangkok with the quote. I had no knowledge that there were differences in regulatory controls thinking I was dealing with April France. I have also asked the broker I use if his quote is from April here or France, they are probably the same quote, price wise, but as you say, if a dispute arises they fall under different regulators which is great to know, that and now that I have involved my wife to do some research on Thai forums, it April Thailand only offers so many private hospitals for you to go to and claims are less of a hassle with April International, e.g. less paperwork. When I look at my payments with David Shield (pre-existing condition) included, it went like this, quoting USD of course: My birthday is in August and the policy starts in May, don't know if this has anything bearing on the policy being cheaper or whether they adjust it according to ones birthday being in a few months time of the annivesary or whether they leave till the next year ? 2020 age (59 years) $2,325 2021 age (60 years) $3,690 2022 age (61 years) $4,266 It is evident that there was a big jump in 2021 at age 60, i.e. $1,365 and a jump again in 2022, i.e. $576. When I look at your increases, they are nowhere near the increases I had, suffice to say, you have no pre-existing coverage, so I would put it down to the pre-existing condition being within all the increase and for 2022, assume the increase would have been something like $250 as an annual increase, with the pre-existing condition being the balance, i.e.$326 ? This has all been a learning curve for me and the more input I am getting from people, it leads me back to what I have always believed, we NEED private health cover when living overseas, unless one chooses otherwise, e.g. if we can get it, with factors ranging from age, and whether those such as myself are prepared to accept paying a premium to get pre-existing condition covered, if, or not. At the end of the day, I have had a long hard look at what it is going to cost me for my wife and 2 kids to renew their policy with a separate insurance company, as she goes into a new age bracket and it will be 74,500 baht, that said, we know David Shield wanted 142,500 baht to renew my policy with the pre-existing condition, so when I combine those amounts it comes too 217k baht per annum. Now if we all went to April on the 327,500 baht deductible, pre-existing cover not included, and will be at my expense if an event just happens to come my way, the annual policy would be 53,165 baht for 16 million baht coverage, very affordable in my opinion, and when I look at the savings from leaving David Shield, and my wife's separate insurer with the two kids, the annual savings would be 163,835 baht, now if there was no claim in 2 years, those savings would cover the 1st 327,500 baht as the deductible. This to me comes up as the best option, e.g. I can afford the deductible and appreciate it would be one claim to the maximum of 327,500 per year, or multiple claims in the year to the same deductible value. If there were no claims in the 2 years = 327,670 baht, 4 years = 655,340 baht, 6 years 983,010 baht and so on. We would still be insured that is the main objective and if there are no unfortunate incidents, then I only have to worry about my pre-existing condition which would be covered by me in the event of an emergency as it would be excluded from the policy. Always happy for anyone to add to this, in case I am missing something, however am aware the lower the deductibles the more the premium, and the less out of pocket costs towards any incident, however not having the pre-existing condition covered is the thorn that sticks out and has made me look for alternatives.

Can I ask what age you were when they increased your premium amount by 30k and if it was April Thailand or April International ?

Therein lay the problem for me, e.g. as I have a pre-existing condition which David Shield covered for the 4 years that I was with them, it would appear that that cost for the cover sky rocketed or the policy premium did, e.g. 142,500 baht at 61, no breakdown costs, covered for us 1.2 mil or 40 mil Baht. Above said, I don't need that much cover and when I add the wife's and kids separate insurance company, it's also going up so it's a combined amount of around 220k baht, without taking into consideration that there will be increases as we go along. It's one thing to be insured and know what your annual premium is going to be (age bracket wise), but when you also get annual increases coming out of the blue, you have to ask yourself, how high can this go, and my hunch is, higher and higher. Health insurance is a must, however to what cost, yes I can afford the 220k baht per annum, but that is not my point, it's the constant increases annually, age brackets I can understand as you know what's coming, but the out of the blue increases annually don't sit well with me. I suppose I should revisit the deductibles and perhaps take the highest deductible (327,500 baht) and in the event that I have a claim (without my pre-existing) or any family member is unfortunate to have an incident, then anything over the deductible would be welcome. Not an easy spot to be in, but it is what it is, today, self insuring, tomorrow looking at insuring, round and round we go.

Good point. Can I ask; 1) How much you were insure 2) Any deductibles 3) How much the claim was for It's all relevant to me as the combined family policies will end up costing me around 220k baht per annum when the wife's policy increases into the next age bracket which is 1 January, i.e. if I had kept the David Shield policy with the pre-existing condition. That said we all know premiums increase with age brackets, and in my case with the previous provider, annually with the excuse being world costs and market environment. From what I have read and from knowing of people who have been hospitalised, tops is under the 2 mil mark, which would be 8 years, with me putting 250k baht per annum into a separate online account.

Is there a difference as I checked April out with the broker and April direct, and yes they have a Bangkok address.

I'm 62 with a pre-existing condition (stent), so don't know about a 4th at them moment, but the annual flu jab definitely, will ask the doc when the time comes whether the 4th should be taken as I seriously haven't researched it, been Covid brain free for a while and feels good.

My wife is also due for her 3rd shot and I am gently nudging her, as you say the flu also kills, I posted a reply in another post, just over 100,000 people died of Influenza and Pneumonia in Thailand in 2021 which makes Covid look mild considering only 25,000 odd have died from it since 2020 when it unleased in Thailand. I have had 3 doses of Pfizer, the wife 2 and am not really into a 4th due to the strain being less lethal so to speak but might go and get my annual influenza jab, with the wife, as for Pneumonia, I had my booster last year so am good for another 5 years. It's amazing that things are going the way they are going, we are all needing more different types of vaccinations to at least try and stay ahead of the sentence which could be handed down at any particular moment.

I hear you loud and clear. It did me too. It's actually put me off all insurers. Yep, I also get stung 2.5% of the premium amount from the banks, international transfer and at their exchange rate which is usually lower than I can get elswhere. This is what happened to me with David Shield, can't say I didn't see it coming, e.g. I expected it when I reached the 60-64 age bracket, but not every year as well, and not having made any claims in the 4 years that I had been with David Shield it certainly sucks, that said, it's not my problem if they switched underwriters, I still end up with the increases, and I see more coming from insurers due to Covid payouts to hospitals. All of the above said, I have looked at April and compared all of their deductibles for the 3.725 mil and 16 mil policy, inpatient only and at the end of the day, it sucks, sure I might save 80,000 baht on what David Shield wanted to charge me for the next year i.e. 142,500 baht, if I take the 81,750 deductible with April, but that means if I have a claim in the 1st year, I will have paid what my previous premium would have been with David Shield, i.e. the 142,500 baht, albeit I would have been covered for my pre-existing condition, but not with April. The above said, I could go as high as the 327,500 deductible for around 30,000 baht a year, but think about that for a minute, 327,500 out of pocket before they chip in for me to save 50,000 baht off of the premium, i.e. the policy for 16 mil would have cost me 80 odd thousand baht, and again my pre-existing condition wouldn't be covered. At the end of the day with all the research I have done, I have decided to self insure as I have equal the amount to the higher policy cover in reserves, albeit it I wouldn't like to have to touch it in the event of an emergency, but lets' face it, in the 4 years that I have been insured, no claims, am fairly healthy, have a pre-existing condition that hasn't caused me any issues in 12 years, what are my chances of ending up in hospital, one would have to be unlucky, so I will park the money in the bank in a (separate online account) and put 250,000 baht per year which is basically what it would cost me for the family per year noting the wife's policy with another insurer goes into another age bracket this year so her premium goes up as well, and if we are unfortunate enough to have an emergency or require elective surgery then I will have to pay for it as opposed to being extorted, well that's how I feel about it, no reward for no claims, just up, up and up, no real loss to them as we age, take what they can until we jump ship due to the ups in the costs, up to you as they say here. I do hope that we have smooth sailing for at least 8 years as that would have built up 2,000,000 baht in savings that the insurers would have taken, not including any increases due to age brackets and annual increases. Wish me luck.

From where I am sitting in the north-east, those elderly have adult children and those adult children tell them till they have turned blue, but do they listen. A classic example is my wife's grandmother who is in her 80's, her response is spitting out the red tobacco with a smile (classic), as for her parents who are in their mid 60's, mother is overweight, high blood pressure and father no know issues, they are all sort of like the Beverly Hill Billies, and I got the daughter, yeeha. I said to my wife, you can take em to water, but.....and she knows the rest, I wash my hands she said, now you get it, up to them Krup.

Brilliant air purifier, if anyone is interested, PM me as I might sell as I only used it here in the bush for a couple of months, till we stopped the neighbour burning that horrible Eucalyptus which he wasn't supposed to do in a built up area (village). It's been part of the furniture ever since and the filters have many hours left in them.

Unless your with SCB, and the others where you can transfer 2 mil per transfer.

Wise has a limit as to how much you can send per transfer, I should have said Wise in my previous statement, don't know about banks, your probably correct as I have never used them to transfer money, their fees are much more than Wise. https://wise.com/help/articles/2932335/guide-to-thb-transfers

Don't know much about the property thing, 49%, I know if it's land, you have 0%. As far as Wise goes, I have used them for amounts as high as a mil and they are fine, but if you leave the money in the account for more than 3 days they charge you and annual interest rate of 1.6% something to do with Oz government regulations about them having to have the equal amount in their account so it costs them, might be different in the UK. Also most banks in Thailand only allow up to 50k baht transfer per day into those bank account, so best look into that and if your wife has a bank a/c with SCB, I believe 2 mil baht per day is the limit, but best be checking, that's all I can offer.

You should be a priority at your age and condition, and yes it is 3 months as far as I can recall. I had my 3rd shot with Pfizer on the 5th month, my choice, but could have had it at 3 months. If your local hospital is saying 6 months with your conditions then they are truly behind the times, that or I am not up to date. Two things you can do, talk to the Ministry of Health Department and see what they say, surely your wife can look at their Facebook page if she cannot get through, as mine had trouble, appears people don't want to answer the phones, that or phone Bangkok Hospital and pay for your 3rd shot, might have to be Moderna, but they may also have Pfizer ? Hope to it and good luck. I am in the Udon Thani area and had no problems.

I'm pretty sure you can apply 45 days before the extensions expiry date. Shouldn't have an issue as far as I know, as they will provide you with a stamp in the passport for when to return to get the 12 month extension, and on that day they will also renew your 90 days.

That would depend on your country of birth's tax rules, e.g. if you leave Australia and are deemed a non-resident for tax purposes, your Capital Gains Tax bill when you sell your property can be as high as 42%, not from the time you exited the country, but from when you purchased the country. The CGT is on top of the 32% tax you pay on every dollar collected from rent, and you cannot negatively claim any losses, e.g. council/water rates, agent's commissions, vacancy, interest from mortgage, if any, however when you do sell those losses can be added up and taken off the CGT amount. In other words, you do not want to own property back in Oz, unless you intend on returning someday, either way, you will be up for CGT when you sell for the years you were a non-resident. I do hear they are changing the way they consider you being a non-resident, and to be honest, from what little I read, didn't look any better for ex-pats, suffice to say they still can't vote or use Medicare until they have re-established residency for at least 6 months, all this for those who have worked their rear ends off and paid taxes for year, but if you haven't and didn't leave the country and are unemployed and want to sit on your rear, they will look after you, go figure, ah, I recall the days when my old man used to say, Australia the lucky country ????