British woman seriously injured in Thailand taxi crash forced to pay £35,000 after wrongly believing she had travel insurance with bank

[stevenl]

22 minutes ago, Russell17au said:

There are a lot of comments been made on this thread that the young lady should have checked her insurance and that her being a travel agent she should have known better. I ask you that are making these comments since when have the insurance companies declared that you are not covered when traveling on public transport of which a taxi is. I suggest that you all go and check your insurance policies to see what else is exempted in the policies. This is not about her insurance but about how any vehicle is allowed on the road without the 3rd party insurance that is required by law for a vehicle to be registered and taxed. Also why a public passenger vehicle is allowed to operate without the proper public liability insurance that covers the passengers.

Most likely she had a Europe only cover.

 

Travel on bus, train, taxi etc. is covered on travel insurance.

[Just Weird]

22 hours ago, poanoi said:

sounds very strange a taxi dont have insurance to cover 3rd party,

is that really not enforced in thailand ?

Perhaps the word "taxi" in the OP should be in inverted commas?

[Bob in Pakchong]

40 minutes ago, khunPer said:

This is what I believe most folks think, when they enter a proper looking taxi – believe I also read in the news that all metered taxis shall have an extended insurance covering the passengers – however the article says "local taxi" only, which don't state if it was a Taxi-Meter or like company, or a private car driving for a fee; the latter could have only mandatory third-party insurance, which covers next-to-nothing; i.e. up to 70,000 baht in medical only.

 

I would expect a proper looking taxi to have an insurance covering the passengers, and me when I'm the passenger – especially important for those expats staying without a (huge) health insurance, but a typical Thai Personal Accident insurance only with fairly low medical cover – however I would never be travelling abroad as tourist without an insurance, as it's relative small money for a high value coverage compared to general travel costs. Furthermore, if offered something for "free" or as complimentary service, like a bank's MasterCard with insurance, I'll doublecheck the conditions for when I'm covered; i.e. with MC all (major check-able) travel expenses need to be paid for with the MC to be covered.

 

It's also not clearly reported about police report, and which part might be of fault; i.e. if it's the lorry, and about that vehicle's insurance cover.

The driver of the truck has been detained &  The Police report we have a copy off, the money offered was from the truck drivers family. the whole case is now in the hands of a lawyer  

 

Another sad go-fund-me story – which in the unbearably bright light of hinsigt could have been avoided – however, I sincerely wish the young couple to have a fast recovery, and that their financial troubles will be solved.

 

[tropo]

On 5/10/2018 at 3:42 PM, darksidedog said:

Stories like this really piss me off. If you are in a taxi and it has an accident, his insurance should cover any medical expenses, especially if you do not have your own. On that note though, I am continuously shocked how many stupid people, (and if you come somewhere dangerous like Thailand without insurance, you are stupid), either have no insurance or do not bother to check their coverage. Maybe time for the Government to force people entering the country to show proof of adequate coverage, or for them to be forced to buy a package at the point of entry to cover them.

You're being a bit harsh here. The problem here is not about tourists not having insurance. This is an issue where a public transport company in Thailand should have Public Liability Insurance to cover anyone injured in an accident. It's something Thailand needs to fix, not tourists. 

 

Let's be real here. I'll use Australia as an example. If a Thai tourist came to Australia and got <deleted> up in a taxi accident, all costs would be covered by public liability insurance... which covers up to many millions (maybe $10m) of AUD. A travel insurance company would not pay a cent.

 

Shaming the tourist for not being covered by travel insurance is wrong here. It overshadows the real point - that Thailand needs to do something about public transport companies and ensure they are all insured. They want to welcome tourists - well get on it! 

[Just Weird]

20 hours ago, cyberfarang said:

So what`s gone wrong in this case?

Maybe it was an Illegal, uninsured Uber car?

[chrissables]

On 5/10/2018 at 3:42 PM, darksidedog said:

Stories like this really piss me off. If you are in a taxi and it has an accident, his insurance should cover any medical expenses, especially if you do not have your own. On that note though, I am continuously shocked how many stupid people, (and if you come somewhere dangerous like Thailand without insurance, you are stupid), either have no insurance or do not bother to check their coverage. Maybe time for the Government to force people entering the country to show proof of adequate coverage, or for them to be forced to buy a package at the point of entry to cover them.

Maybe time for the government to make the people responsible for an accident pay for the medical treatment. 
It seems the majority of accidents are caused by Thais, make them pay through compulsory insurance.
Who would ever think of taking out insurance for riding in a taxi in the real world? Nobody I'm sure.

[khunPer]

30 minutes ago, Bob in Pakchong said:

It's also not clearly reported about police report, and which part might be of fault; i.e. if it's the lorry, and about that vehicle's insurance cover.

The driver of the truck has been detained &  The Police report we have a copy off, the money offered was from the truck drivers family. the whole case is now in the hands of a lawyer  

Thanks for your comment, are you replying to the Opening Post "Woman seriously injured in Thailand taxi crash..."?

[Get Real]

3 hours ago, elgenon said:

I was hit by a motorcycle taxi. He gave me a free ride to the hospital.

How generous.

[ukrules]

On 10/05/2018 at 3:21 PM, Dmaxdan said:

Its a shame but you would think a travel agent would be up to speed on whether she was covered by her banks travel insurance or not. As they say, assumption is the mother of all cock ups. 

Exactly, if a travel agent can't get it right then there's very little hope for the average traveller.

 

[smileydude]

As Thai’s we are forced to purchase travel insurance before we are issued visas to the UK and EU so that’s probably the only good thing we have going besides our crappy passport which allows visa free travel to only 90+ countries compared to our neighbor Malaysia which allows visa free travel to +130 which includes most of EU, UK and the US.

 

Then again our long history of voluntary and involuntary human trafficking is to blame.

 

Once again a lesson to always buy travel insurance which is actually relatively affordable.

 

I hope she finds some help after her mistaken assumption.  35K in hospital bills would seriously set back most of us.

[scorecard]

On 10/5/2561 at 3:50 PM, 2008bangkok said:

What about all the Thais they probably dont have insurance so whats the difference?  On this case she thought she did have insurance. Apart from that surely the taxi must have insurance, liability etc

 

Then don't forget that it's easy enough to buy fake insurance stickers / documents etc. 

[smileydude]

1 hour ago, stevenl said:

Most likely she had a Europe only cover.

 

Travel on bus, train, taxi etc. is covered on travel insurance.

 

1 hour ago, chrissables said:

Maybe time for the government to make the people responsible for an accident pay for the medical treatment. 
It seems the majority of accidents are caused by Thais, make them pay through compulsory insurance.
Who would ever think of taking out insurance for riding in a taxi in the real world? Nobody I'm sure.

Thailand does have a serious problem about compulsory vehicle insurance.  The part that is compulsory costs about 200 baht for motorcycles and 670 baht for cars.  It covers an initial 30,000 baht for treatment costs and another 70,000 baht for passengers and those not at fault.  Problem is 30-70,000 baht is hardly enough to cover the hospital bills especially if your involved in a serious accident and are admitted to a private hospital.

 

The voluntary vehicle insurance which usually starts coverage at 300-500K up to millions of baht costs anywhere from a few thousand baht/year for a Toyota to hundreds of thousands of baht for supercars.  Most private owned cars purchase them as it is mandatory for the first year in leased/financed vehicles.  Public transport are usually insured also.

The problem is taxi’s and private transport like those minivans.  They usually are willing to take the risks and go only compulsory though I have been involved in an accident with those expensive Prius ALL THAI TAXI’s and they got full coverage.

 

Problem is stats point to about 80% of accidents involve motorcycles and pickups and the rest mostly public transportation.  This group (especially the motorcyclists) often neglect to purchase even the relatively cheap compulsory insurance even though it is required for vehicle registration.

 

Hospitals can still reimburse 30,000 for treatment of non-insured individuals but that would probably only cover scrapes and bruises so a lot of the negligent drivers get a free ride and the vicious cycle goes on.

 

They tried to raise the compulsory fee to 500 baht for motorcyclists because that’s how much it was actually costing them to cover for all the accident costs but there was concern that with an even more expensive fee they would go AWOL even more so the compulsory insurance agency shelved the plan.  The AWOL rate for motorcycles is currently around 30-40% believe it or not.

 

A lot of Thai’s still really have no grasp of the concept of “social responsibility” or “public-mindedness” and our enforcement system and mindset that being poor is an excuse not to and being rich makes us exempt doesn’t help either.

 

 

Edited May 11, 2018 by smileydude

[Redline]

BS the taxi's insurance, and the truck companie's insurance need to pay.  The land of no accountability keeps society at the level of children.  It's seriously time to grow up Tland

Edited May 11, 2018 by Redline

[KevinboyCM]

When is the Thai government gonna demand their drivers have insurance?  Answer: never.  

 

So when you go to a shithole country where they don't give a sheet about the tourists this is what you get.  

 

She made a mistake but Thailand is a joke when it comes to anyone being responsible for anything.  

 

 

They could solve the helmut problem in a heartbeat decreasing motorcycle injuries but the corruption would then end.  Can't have that can we?  

[Mac98]

5 hours ago, Andrew65 said:

As someone else pointed out, surprised that there's no public liability insurance with the taxi company, but then again, TIT.

 

Hope this works our for her eventually.

The truck owner should pay.

[BEVUP]

14 minutes ago, Mac98 said:

The truck owner should pay.

Some one should pay as she had been brought in as a casualty due to someones negligence 

Say if she turned around & said " not paying " you better go after the guilty party. 

 

Also she may have to raise more money on the Go Fund Me for Medivac 

Edited May 11, 2018 by BEVUP

[dunroaming]

On ‎5‎/‎10‎/‎2018 at 9:20 AM, KittenKong said:

You would think that the taxi would have commercial insurance to cover passengers, wouldn't you?

It's illegal not to!

[crazyk]

Surely the mayor gave her a basket of fruit & 10000 baht towards the costs giving a big wai & large fake smile for the cameras

[janclaes47]

On 10/05/2018 at 4:22 PM, tropo said:

On 10/05/2018 at 4:19 PM, Blackheart1916 said:

Well as she is a travel agent obviously people do still use them. I am like you, haven't used one since about 2002, and every time I buy a plane ticket two reminders come up to buy insurance before I pay. One would expect a travel agent to be on top of this. Hope they recover, but I won't be contributing.

I've never been offered a comprehensive travel insurance package when buying tickets with LCC's. I get them from an independent insurance broker.

He also didn't say he was offered insurance, only that he was reminded to buy one

[bwpage3]

23 hours ago, Jeremia Juxtaposed said:

Makes no sense at all?...It is a perfect example of why you should have full insurance IMHO...

Is the issue insurance or getting into an accident that was not your fault and having to pay for it?

[Blackheart1916]

22 minutes ago, janclaes47 said:

He also didn't say he was offered insurance, only that he was reminded to buy one

Sorry I should have been clearer, it is an actual policy offered when booking a ticket, priced as a standard policy to destination and duration.

[stevenl]

10 minutes ago, bwpage3 said:

Is the issue insurance or getting into an accident that was not your fault and having to pay for it?

That unfortunately is inherent to life. Sometimes you're not to blame for something, but will still be held responsible.

[thurien]

I would suggest the girl to simply go for crowd- funding: Anybody in a miserable situation (mostly self- inflicted) does today. It is the easiest way to overcome your own mental shortcomings and in many a case even present you with an unexpected bonus

[stevenl]

12 minutes ago, thurien said:

I would suggest the girl to simply go for crowd- funding: Anybody in a miserable situation (mostly self- inflicted) does today. It is the easiest way to overcome your own mental shortcomings and in many a case even present you with an unexpected bonus

Did you read any of the thread, or maybe even the OP? I know it is asking a lot.

[DavisH]

On 10/05/2018 at 3:19 PM, mercman24 said:

why should she pay, she was an innocent passenger in a public service vehicle a TAXI, oh silly me of course it is her fault, she should have walked, only in Thailand.i think the only way to get to a destination safely here is to say to the driver, i drive , you sit in the back lol,, 

I can count on two hands the number of times I've used public transport in nearly 20 years. I'll take my chances behind the wheel myself, thanks. 

[richard_smith237]

2 minutes ago, DavisH said:

I can count on two hands the number of times I've used public transport in nearly 20 years. I'll take my chances behind the wheel myself, thanks. 

Which means you either don't drink, or you do and someone else drives you home, or you drink drive...  or you never leave your home... 

 

 

 

 

[richard_smith237]

31 minutes ago, stevenl said:

That unfortunately is inherent to life. Sometimes you're not to blame for something, but will still be held responsible.

 

Agreed... unfortunately we have to be responsible for the actions of those who are unable to take responsibility themselves. Sometimes the law steps in, sometimes the law is infective, or more commonly in Thailand a more fatalistic approach is taken and those at a financial advantage may bear the brunt of the costs even when not at fault.... 

 

This thread is a good lesson for anyone considering medical and accident insurance.... 

[wabothai]

If every travel agency would know and properly inform customers they would not sell one ticket to thailand.

Its easy to be deceived in LOS.

[jenny2017]

4 hours ago, Bob in Pakchong said:

My daughter of 18 years old was struck by a truck & died instantly last week, the truck driver was uninsured, so far to add insult to us we have been offered 100,000 baht , we are still in mourning & will never ever get over this sad tragedy   

Really sorry to hear of your misfortune and the loss of your daughter. A life here isn't worth much and no money in the world could bring her back.

 

   100,000 baht will barely cover the expenses, I know. I hope you'll get over it one day. Kind regards. 

[jenny2017]

Most taxi drivers in Bangkok are actually from Isaan. Those who are lucky drive their own taxi, but many of them have to pay a lot of money to rent the taxi from somebody.

 

   I do not blame the taxi drivers for not having an adequate insurance for the passengers (and themselves), I'd start to blame the government for it with the relaxed and often useless laws and regulations.