Etaoin Shrdlu

Ask the condo for the original PEA bill for your unit. What did you agree to when you signed your lease?

Usually this means the floor area of the dwelling itself, but you should clarify with the insurer as to exactly what they expect you to declare. If you have external items like carport awnings, outdoor kitchen and the like which are not typically included in dwelling measurements, you may need to state so and give values or dimensions in addition to the area of the house itself. This is especially true if they were built as add-ons. The more detail you provide, the less the chance that an insurer can try to deny a claim based upon non-declaration of property or values.

Outbuildings and carport awnings can usually be insured. Check to see what the prospective policy says about things like foundations, driveways and perimeter walls. Some policies may exclude things like this. A homeowner's policy will exclude damage to motor vehicles, so if you are concerned about damage to your car and bike as a result of a fire or other peril occurring while they're parked at your home, check the auto and bike policies you already have. If this is an issue, you may need to upgrade them to get this cover. One thing that comes up frequently is that of electronics, jewelry, fine arts, antiques and other high-valued items. Insuring these items can be expensive and there may be rather low limits on offer from insurers for such items. Again, check with the proposed policy to see how the insurer handles these items and what your declaration requirements are and what restrictions to cover may exist.

It can be difficult to get property valued for insurance purposes in Thailand. You might wish to contact one of the loss adjustors here, perhaps Crawford or Sedgwick, and ask if they will do valuations for residential properties. If they can't, perhaps they can refer you to someone who will. If you aren't able to find someone to do a professional valuation, you can submit values based upon your estimates. Most homeowners policies will require the insured to report replacement value. RV is the estimated cost to repair or replace the lost or damaged property with like kind and quality. Check to make sure that the policy on offer is for replacement value. If you know a contractor, you may be able to ask what the cost would be to replace the buildings. For furniture, fixtures, and other contents, you can make an inventory and find costs for identical or similar items either in stores or online. This can be a rather time-consuming task as one often has many more possessions than one thinks. But if you do this, you'll have a good basis for submitting proof of loss in the event you need to file a claim. Land is not insurable, so do not include the value of land in the values you submit to insurers.

Yes, It is necessary to register with the Immigration Department's office at Suvarnabhumi. It is located in the departures area after clearing immigration on the way out.

I think the usher/attendants may not be familiar with PR holders' use of the Thai lane. I'm sure that was the case when I exited from Suvarnabhumi last month.

I have only used the auto gates at Suvarnabhumi. The only time I exited and re-entered at Don Mueang, the auto gates were not set up to accept registered PR holders, only Thai nationals. I exited and re-entered at Suvarnabhumi about a month ago and used the Thai lanes. When exiting, I was directed to the foreigner queue by one of the attendants in spite of showing my TM17. I asked the attendant to check with the immigration officer about using the Thai lane. The immigration officer then told the attendant that I should use the Thai lane. Who told you that PR holders could no longer use the Thai lanes?

A few years ago, when the Immigration Department was starting to enforce the TM30 rule (I think that's what it was), they set up camp with a couple of tables and two or three officers in the lobby of the condo building where we own a unit. I think this was the only time in over thirty years I have been asked to produce my passport by a police officer while simply out and about.

Government hospitals are supported at least partially by the taxpayer, so the fees charged are less than what would be charged if they were required to break even or make a profit.

General Ripper!

I have seen goong chae nam pla described in English as "fresh prawn salad" when in fact it is raw prawn salad. Perhaps when the diner says "too fresh" it means undercooked.

I think it is because of aspirin's link to Reye's Syndrome.

I think that even the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act differentiates between an informal "expediting fee" for quicker service and a bribe for obtaining something that one is not entitled to. The former is ok, the latter not. So, for me, a "tip" to get things done quicker is fine.

Well, at least you managed to put this off until she was 17! I wasn't so lucky with my children.

Two things to be grateful for: Only one child wanting an iPhone and she managed to get to 17 before asking for one. One thing to rue: iPhones are expensive. Will you be able to give one to your daughter without giving one to your wife, too?

Thai Life can only provide medical coverage by issuing an extension to a life insurance policy. If your wife wants life insurance along with medical cover, that's ok. Thai Life will likely only offer whole life cover, meaning one with a cash value. Some of the annual premium will go towards the life insurance portion of the policy, some towards the cash savings portion and some towards the medical cover. But if she wants all of her premium going towards medical insurance, she may wish to look at medical insurance policies from non-life insurance companies.

Thailand requires that any insurance company that sells insurance to the Thai public be licensed and regulated by the Office of The Insurance commissioner. The "Thai public" is anyone physically in Thailand. When it comes to foreigners, the OIC is not terribly concerned and some offshore insurers will take the risk and sell insurance to foreigners residing in Thailand. When it comes to Thai citizens, the OIC may take a different view and offshore insurers are more cautious. Companies such as Cigna, which have operations in Thailand, could be particularly vulnerable if the OIC were to come to the conclusion that Cigna's offshore offices were actively selling insurance to Thai citizens. This isn't something specific to Thailand. Almost all countries have similar restrictions on cross-border insurance transactions.

Insurance for classic cars has long been a problem in Thailand. Third party liability isn't an issue, but cover for loss or damage to the vehicle itself is. Insurers are reluctant to insure do to lack of spare parts in case of an accident and no formal way of determining the value of a classic car. ThaiSri Insurance touted an insurance product for classic premium cars (Porsche, Benz, etc.) some years ago. I think they targeted those with a collection of several cars that weren't daily drivers. Best to contact a broker and ask if ThaiSri is still offering this product, but I think that a jeep would be outside of their risk appetite.

I think Chuwit is acting on the direction of someone higher up the political food chain and this is part of the jockeying for position in advance of the upcoming elections. I can see how it would be advantageous to have your man at the top of the RTP and its money volcano when elections are at hand. I can't see Chuwit doing this without cover from those well above his station.

Jackfruit tree.

Perhaps you have drain flies: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychodidae They don't come from outside. They reproduce in the muck in the traps in the drains.

Insurers in Thailand issue separate policies for each line of coverage. You won't find medical insurance bundled in one policy along with motor or homeowner's cover. Usually premiums are payable annually at policy inception. I don't think Thai insurers have started offering monthly or quarterly premium payment options, especially for personal lines insurance. Find a good insurance broker and ask, however.

Back in the 1960s and 1970s it was common for many motorcycle enthusiasts in my area to refer to all motorcycles as scooters. I always thought it was kind of a local thing, but perhaps not.

There are a few states in the US that only recognize a non-US license if it is accompanied by an IDL, even if the license is in English. Some rental car companies require an IDL because they are concerned that the renter could drive in one of those states which might then affect insurance coverage.

The portion of Thailand's GDP attributed to exports pre-pandemic was about 65%: https://tradingeconomics.com/thailand/exports-of-goods-and-services-percent-of-gdp-wb-data.html#:~:text=Exports of goods and services (% of GDP) in Thailand,compiled from officially recognized sources. International tourism is considered an export and it comprised about 18% of Thailand's GDP pre-pandemic: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1143467/thailand-share-of-tourism-to-gdp/ If the above is roughly correct, in pre-pandemic years Thailand's total exports, less tourism, would be almost half of total GDP. Non-tourism exports would therefore be more than twice the value of tourism.