alex88

I urgently need to move this month but I can't find any trains or buses running. Is Udon completely cut off from land travel? I can't fly because I have a lot of luggage/appliances etc. I'm moving to another part of Thailand. Does anybody know of any transport options available? I'm at a complete loss as to how I can get out of here. 

I see discussions here about vaccine certificates etc. But nobody seems to have covered what the requirements are for traij travel. Can you travel by train if you haven't been able to get the vaccine? What are the requirements?

Hi,

Does anybody know where I can get a PCR test in Udon Thani or Nong Khai? I want to take the train and not sure if they will need to see a covid test result before they allow me to travel. 

Just now, Liverpool Lou said:

What are the "scam" and the "liabilities", they're not asking you to pay anything now are they?   

 

It doesn't matter if you dispute their valuation as long as the couch, television, curtains and wardrobes are still there, undamaged, when you leave (which is perfectly reasonable to expect).    You won't be paying anything unless you're planning on damaging all those things.

 

Why did you sign the contract accepting the "old, falling apart wardrobes" and what makes you think that the couch is "40-years old"?  It's not unlikely that the television did cost B35k if it's an older model.

We signed the contract on the premise that these things were all covered by the deposit (as would he the case anywhere else in the world). I've never seen a list lie this, even in Thailand. 

1 minute ago, rumak said:

 

judging by one of his "red flag" remarks it seems that he has lots of experience:

 

"We have sought extensive legal advice already this year due to the frequency of scammers here. "

Personally I haven't had many problems over the years. But my friend who just moved here is renting more expensive places than I usually would, and seems to get gouged as a result. 

10 minutes ago, RichardColeman said:

Not really scammers, but they seem to like to keep your deposits in a lot of cases to ensure they have money for the two months in finding someone to rent it to after you leave and making up reasons why all the faults in the building are your fault, even though they were there when you moved in !

Yeah I've seen a lot of that. But the list was 178,000 baht extra in addition to deposit. 

3 minutes ago, rumak said:

well, you did not KNOW  the law regarding deposits....... as many here do....... so i guess there are also other things you do not know.

 

Actually a new law was made recently that specifically says they can't charge more than a month if they have more than 5 properties. We have sought extensive legal advice already this year due to the frequency of scammers here. 

Legal or not it's incredible to expect 2 months deposiut and then demand someone sign a liability of 178,000 baht for old cheap <deleted>, without prior warning. Obviously we ripped up the list. 

Just now, Ralf001 said:

"We just moved into a house in Udon Thani.".

 

why are they putting up prices for included item ?

We just moved in and this was the inspection list they wanted us to sign. 

1 minute ago, blackcab said:

 

Another way of doing it would be to sign the lease and pay the deposit at same time.

 

Charging 2 months rent as a deposit (or any amount at all as a deposit) is not illegal if the owners rent less than 5 properties/houses/condos/apartments in total.

This is two weeks after lease signed and deposits and rent paid. 

Just now, cornishcarlos said:

 

Those same laws will also prevent you making a successful complaint against them... If you really have nothing else to do, then crack on for a bit of fun, otherwise just forget about it...

Start with the police or army and see where you go from there !

Yeah that's what I thought.

How can I make an official complaint about a bus company? I'm thinking I can't name them here because of defamation laws. Is there any avenue for making official complaints about false advertising and abuse of passenger?

The funniest part is the claim that farang men in Thailand are living a life they earned. Coming from Western countries where high salaries are paid in return for minimal effort and where real estate booms have turned ordinary baby boomer generation people into owners of extremely overinflated real estate. Very interesting.

BTW I am not being a Thai apologist. I have been in Thailand long enough to be aware of the faults of Thai society. But I just thought it was a bit much to suggest asset rich farangs are financially comfortable entirely through effort alone.

An English teacher at my school tried to charge 200 baht per hour for tutoring. The parents all got together and made a complaint about him being 'greedy' and threatened to all cancel immediately if he didn't reduce the rate to 100 baht. So now he charges 100 baht per hour for private tutoring. The parents were quite furious that he dared to attempt to charge them 200.

It would be pretty naive to think you have rights in Thailand. Either do what you're told or find a new employer.

He can probably pay his way out, if he wants to do it make sure he brings plenty of "get out of jail" free cards with him............but again really he'd be a pratt to do it.

Im not talking about doing it in Thailand, Im talking about doing it in Europe and coming to Thailand. Since it stays in the system for a month or so, what if they piss test him while he is at the airport randomly. Im wondering the consequence for this.

If he tests positive for drugs then he will be charged for using illegal drugs according even if no drugs are found on him.

He should not visit Thailand until his system is clear of drugs. If he can`t do that then it`s up to chance. Not sure of the exact law but the penalties are harsh, that`s all you need to know.

So half the farangs who come here probably shouldn't?

Possibly around half of the adult population in most Western countries smoke weed so you'd think it would come up pretty often if having it in your system was a huge problem in Thailand.

Some of the teachers at my school tried to point out things they disagreed with in the contract and all hell broke loose and we were all accused of disrespecting the school by not trusting them.

Some of the conditions included that if you leave during the academic year you have to pay a fine of 50,000-60,000 baht but the school reserves the right to cancel your contract at any time without reason and without compensation.

I haven't signed a new contract yet, but I'm sure it will be a pain in the but. My wife's always telling me what she hears from Thai news and these news aren't really good news.

A fine of 50, or 60 K sounds harsh. The contract does not overwrite the Thai labor act and they'll have to compensate you.

I believe that many of us are on sinking ships, but just don't know it yet. Filipinos are friendlier, call everybody Ajarn and do a good broom work.

There may be Thai labour laws but we are not really in the position to implement them. We get threatened with blacklisting if we make trouble.

Please forget the "blacklisting trick" bs. When i quit my job at my former school, I gave them a six week notice, but they still screwed me..

When an Aussie resigned two years later at the same school, the director was trying all to get him "blacklisted." that he wouldn't be able to find another job in the Kingdom of Why's.

But there's no way that a school can make it happen that you're blacklisted, it's just a tool to keep you guys "handy".

I was really polite and the coordinator told me that I could stay on the visa until i started my new job. But my wp and visa were cancelled on the same day and I had to leave the country immediately.

Don't let them screw you. Best of luck.

Yeah I don't really believe in the likelihood of the blacklisting threat either. It certainly appears to be a threat they use to try and keep the foreign teachers working under less than desirable conditions.

Some of the teachers at my school tried to point out things they disagreed with in the contract and all hell broke loose and we were all accused of disrespecting the school by not trusting them.

Some of the conditions included that if you leave during the academic year you have to pay a fine of 50,000-60,000 baht but the school reserves the right to cancel your contract at any time without reason and without compensation.

I haven't signed a new contract yet, but I'm sure it will be a pain in the but. My wife's always telling me what she hears from Thai news and these news aren't really good news.

A fine of 50, or 60 K sounds harsh. The contract does not overwrite the Thai labor act and they'll have to compensate you.

I believe that many of us are on sinking ships, but just don't know it yet. Filipinos are friendlier, call everybody Ajarn and do a good broom work.

There may be Thai labour laws but we are not really in the position to implement them. We get threatened with blacklisting if we make trouble.

Some of the teachers at my school tried to point out things they disagreed with in the contract and all hell broke loose and we were all accused of disrespecting the school by not trusting them.

Some of the conditions included that if you leave during the academic year you have to pay a fine of 50,000-60,000 baht but the school reserves the right to cancel your contract at any time without reason and without compensation.

Pretty good price at 990 baht one way, and laung prabang is a lovely place to visit.

Agreed but AA is not the way to go, try BKK Air, far better service.

How would one know if they havent flown BOTH services to compare ?

Personally I have tried them all and Air Asia is at the very bottom of the pile

Air Asia is also the cheapest in this case. What difference does it make as long as you get there? You take what you can afford.

The point is my friend has already had 3 waivers. Each time you have a new job you lose your old waiver so he has already used 6 years worth of waivers and is starting on his fourth 2 year waiver. It is the same as if he had been working in Thailand for the full 8 years.

Yes in most schools that is typical. ...at some point you just say no. Or if you get lucky your schedule shows 22 hours a week, but you work it smart and teach for 10 or less.

Do not share a class with a Thai teacher one hour each......You do the first 9 or 10 weeks of the term and then let the Thai teacher do the last 9 or 10 weeks.

My last schedule showed 22 hours per week, midway thru the term I was teaching 3.5 hours a week, a wast of the schools money and my time educating the students. Up to them salary remained the same.

If they will not let you leave school for lunch or in free time between classes, or want you to meet and greet the students and parents on the street at 7:30 am find another school.

We used to go out for coffee between classes but the Director became angry about that and now the gates are locked between 7:30am and 4:30pm. The Director claims that parents complained when they saw us outside of school during school hours and consequently we are now forbidden from leaving the school between 7:30am and 4:30pm. On gate duty days I need to arrive at 7am and attend the gate for an hour. Most days I only have 2-3 hours of classes but I am still stuck at school for 9 hours.

Were you also smoking in front of the school?

None of us smoke. They said they want us with the students for the full day and if we are outside school it means we are not with the students. We don't have a staffroom, we have to sit in the classroom with the students all day. We are supposed to be there all day in case any student decides they want to practice English.