Samlor hit my car - police want me to pay...

[jingjai9]

I had a motorcycle hit my car many years ago. It was explained to me by my Thai colleagues that neither of us wanted the accident to happen, but it did. My first obligation was to make sure the motorcyclist was OK. Then because I had the larger, stronger vehicle it was my obligation to pay him. Make whatever judgement you want, but that is what I was told. If you look at it this way you may be able to understand the logic of the police.

 

Sometimes it is easier to pay and write it off. It depends on what is asked of you. I paid the motorcyclist 5000 bath and he signed a notarized statement assuring me the incident was over and he would take no action in the future. My colleagues told me I would be better off in the long run avoiding stress and a long dragged out procedure by simpling paying. One colleague intimated that she had had a very similiar experience.

 

As a final note, when the motorcyle hit my car it was on my side of the road.

 

I am only trying to add food for thought. I

 

 

[phantomfiddler]

A complete absence of rational justice is probably the most unsettling aspect of a third world country. Let the insurance company handle the entire thing.

[davidst01]

16 hours ago, darksidedog said:

Other posters are correct. Do NOT go to the police station. They may well try throwing you in the cells to scare you into paying up. Get your insurance guy to go down there and make a counter demand to compensate them for the damage. Give him your witnesses details and let the samlor driver know if he wants to push his luck, that it will end up costing him amounts he can't afford. Many attempted shakedowns stop quite promptly when they realise you are not an idiot who will freely distribute cash.

i dont agree with the second sentence. going down to the cop shop with the ins guy by your side is a no brainer. 

 

'throwing you in a cell to scare you' ha ha.  come on. this is bar stool talk

[BritManToo]

11 minutes ago, davidst01 said:

i dont agree with the second sentence. going down to the cop shop with the ins guy by your side is a no brainer. 

'throwing you in a cell to scare you' ha ha.  come on. this is bar stool talk

You don't think calling you to the police station is a threat by a corrupt police officer then?

Over a matter that was already settled by a an insurance agent?

[stevenl]

10 hours ago, NanLaew said:

Samlors are waived from road tax and insurance requirements so good luck with that one.

 

In three separate car accidents that friends of mine have had where a drunk samlor driver was 'at fault', the police let the drunk samlor driver drive away so good luck with that one as well.

 

There's a few 'luh-mahk' farangs in Ban Nork that have a samlor so that they can go drinking for the very same reasons as stated above.

 

They are deemed as transportation for 'poor people' so they need compensated by people with more money whenever they are either incapacitated or damaged regardless if they caused the accident or otherwise.

 

 

"Samlors are waived from road tax and insurance requirements so good luck with that one."

No, they're not. But for yearly registration the sidecar has to be detached, because with sidecar it is an illegal contraption.

[manchega]

The fact that a Thai person said the other driver was in the wrong is very reassuring.

 

I have had people claim they saw everything from their window before when they would have had to be standing on a balcony actually watching if that was the case

I mean people actually streamed out to tell police and insurance I was in the wrong after someone crashed into my nose as they tried to squeeze through a gap while accelerating.

 

the only reason I did not take it any further was that the next step was going to the police station and the police man siad look we can do it will waste lots of time and now 10 people were pretending to have seen the accident on the empty road

 

However, if like me you pay your 1st class insurance he as other posters state will sort it all out, if not you can shout and demand to speak to manager, most thai don't bother with insurance - I mean a vast majority

[stevenl]

15 hours ago, KhaoYai said:

That has not been my experience - I even had to pay more for my bike insurance because the previous owner had made a claim.  When talking about car insurance in Thailand, I've often heard people say "in Thailand, you insure the car, not the person" - argue though I did, the insurance company would not ignore the fact that a claim had been made on my bike so I guess that there are benefits and disadvantages to a system where the vehicle is the major consideration rather than the person.

"I even had to pay more for my bike insurance because the previous owner had made a claim. "

Which has no relevance to my statement.

 

Your solution was easy though: change companies.

[myjawe]

Not a land rover ? 5555+

No dashcam ? 555555+

Still asking this kind of questions after 20 years in the country ? 55555+ 

Simon43 is a champion forever...

[andygrr]

 Yes this compulsory insurance is a farce it does not cover anything and the fact that even if you have class 1 insurance you still need it is a joke. This compulsory insurance should be scrapped and all bikes and cars should require the minimum of 3rd party coverage. 

[Tajasia]

18 hours ago, BritManToo said:

Send the police your insurance agent's phone number and contact details.

Don't go to the police station yourself. Refuse all direct contact.

Only speak English with anyone/everyone, generally be as stupid and difficult as possible.

Yes and the cowboys will put it in the two hard basket and tell the patient to have another whisky. Just scammers having a go. Next

[cranki]

27 minutes ago, stevenl said:

"Samlors are waived from road tax and insurance requirements so good luck with that one."

No, they're not. But for yearly registration the sidecar has to be detached, because with sidecar it is an illegal contraption.

Umm....Samlors don't have a sidecar..

[Tajasia]

17 hours ago, Orton Rd said:

Similar accident a few weeks back, don't sign anything let the insurance man deal with it, unfortunately he might go against you as well. I imagine the cops never even interviewed the other party, just their opinion which the law will have little bearing on. In our case I only found out long after the guy who ran into us had no insurance which may be why we got the blame. Download the land traffic act 1979, there is a good chance neither the cops or the insurance man have ever read it.

Our affair is still going on weeks later as the little shit who was driving down the wrong side of the road is claiming permanent knee damage, so yet to be fined.

sue them

[moe666]

17 hours ago, soalbundy said:

My experience is different, I smashed into an old lady on a bike while driving my car, full side smash, she just pulled out in front of me without looking, I wasn't driving very fast and braked as well, so the old girl wasn't hurt, I had 80,000 Bahts worth of damage to the car. We were both taken to the police station, the police told the old dear that she was guilty and wanted to see her license, she didn't have one, the bike wasn't taxed or insured and she had no money. The officer charged her with careless driving and charged her 500 Baht (which he paid out of his pocket) she told the police that she had a daughter in Sweden and they even phoned the daughter to see if she would pay my damages (N0) so she had to sign an agreement that she would pay me 1000 Baht a month (which she never did) The officer told me to report her if she didn't pay and she would end up in prison, needless to say I didn't bother.

I was rear ended by an old lady similar to your accident no money, no insurance blah blah. We were driven around by the village headman a real nice guy, went to the police station after talking to police decided to let her skate. The insurance paid the bill on my car, the wife gave the old lady 500b for her xray. No need trying to get blood out of a turnip. The husband or some relative showed up when the insurance guy was looking at the car and the headman told him to go home or he could wind up paying thru the nose if the insurance guy got a hold of him. No problem from the police they were busy with all the petty crap that was walking into the office mostly local drama, he said she said stuff

[Pedrogaz]

DO NOT GO TO THE STATION. Let insurance deal with it. 

[cornishcarlos]

18 hours ago, simon43 said:

I have no intention of paying a satang to this idiot.....

 

Are you bored Simon ?? Why did you even bother to write this OP ?

You've been in this area long enough and read TVF for long enough.

You know the answer already and even state it in your OP ????

 

But let us know how it turns out for sure...

[BritManToo]

17 hours ago, soalbundy said:

I had 80,000 Bahts worth of damage to the car.

My pickups only worth 50k, no need for compensation in the event of a crash.

Just another dent or rusty patch.

[dlclark97]

My Thai wife was run into straight in on in the drivers side back door by and older man and his wife on a motorbike.  There were several witnesses, all said in was totally the mans fault.  The man was unconscious and was taken by rescue to the hospital.  Insurance man and police came quickly.  Police and insurance at the scene agreed it was totally his fault.  The man had no insurance, no drivers licenses, no road tax, no helmet and had run through a stop sign passing other stopped motorbikes to do so.  Wife's car was impounded and she had to pay 1000 baht to retrieve it.  Police also took her driving license and gave her a paper allowing her to drive until all was settled meaning the old man and his family had to sign a release form.  The man spent several weeks in the hospital much of it in ICU.  Over that time the family continually harassed my wife wanting money.  She had to get the police involved to finally stop the harassment.  Meetings with the police were attended by our insurance agent.  They would make no provision for any money as it was the mans fault.  The day he was getting out of the hospital the family called demanding we meet them there with 300,000 baht to pay his hospital bill.  We did not go there.  Further meeting with the family, police and insurance were not fruitful as they refused to sign any release without some payment.  Yes we could have sued but that might have caused everything to drag on for months or years, cost us a lot for lawyers etc.  And, they had no money to pay us even if we sued and won.  In the end my wife offered 25,000 and they signed.  Not right, not fair, but that's the way it is here.    

[Vacuum]

17 hours ago, KhaoYai said:

A hell of a lot of vehicles in Thailand, especially older vehicles (mainly driven by Thais), only have the compulsory insurance

One reason is that you can't get a 1 class insurance if you have an older car, I think the limit is 15 year old or more.

[stevenl]

23 minutes ago, cranki said:

Umm....Samlors don't have a sidecar..

A samlor is a motorbike with a sidecar.

[Shoeless Joe]

18 hours ago, worgeordie said:

I would advise you to get car camera, if someone crashes into you

it explains everything, you even get discount from insurance co.

if you have one.

regards worgeordie

Oh, can he get one that can show the accident retrospectively? File under "useless advice" please

[Jeffrey346]

Two weeks ago, a guy with his GF on a motorbike ran into my trucks right fender.

He hit it so hard that I thought they were both dead. To my surprise, they both stood up and said they were not hurt.

In a matter of minutes I was surrounded by at least 10 street vendors all yelling things I could not understand.

I called my wife who said stay there, she will call the insurance company and would be there in 10 minutes.

Next thing I know an ambulance shows up. Seems one of the locals called hoping for a payoff. 

The guy who hit my truck told the ambulance people that they were fine and should leave.

My wife and insurance guy arrived. The ins guy advised the couple that they can file a police report and go to the hospital if they wish. They declined.

The ins guy offered the 2 B3000 each, but had to sign a release stating they are fine and have no recourse. He told them in the future if they have a medical problem that they feel was caused by this accident, they have no recourse and will need to pay their own medical bills. Both agreed and took the B3000 each.

The ins guy told us to take the truck to the shop and the insurance company will pay for all repairs.

My point.. there are people out there that do the right thing. People that don't decide that the foreigner is always wrong. 

[sherwood]

9 minutes ago, stevenl said:

A samlor is a motorbike with a sidecar.

Or it can be anything with three wheels, TukTuk, push bike whatever.

Saling is the word I prefer for a motorbike with a sidecar.

Edited May 30, 2019 by sherwood

[worgeordie]

Just now, Shoeless Joe said:

Oh, can he get one that can show the accident retrospectively? File under "useless advice" please

Unbelievable,did you think I was advising him to buy a  car camera,

AFTER the accident ?,it was for him and others that having a camera,

prevents hassel like Simon is in now,and you get 5% discount off the

insurance ,so pays for itself.     thanks Shoeless for your "useless post"

regards Worgeordie

[freedomnow]

No doubt, that is because they are dirty ***s who hold a position which should demand a higher level of ethics than normal jobs.

I got the shakedown for a spot fine recently when I should not have.

God I love swearing out loud in their presence though. Thieving *******s collecting dirty money for the number 1 chair.

Heard all about the money chain from someone who knows.

[stevenl]

14 minutes ago, sherwood said:

Or it can be anything with three wheels, TukTuk, push bike whatever.

Saling is the word I prefer for a motorbike with a sidecar.

Yes, it can, that is the translation. Which was not my point in either of the posts about this.

 

And you may have your preferences, here locally when we say samlor, we all know what it means. The word saling is hardly ever used.

[evadgib]

43 minutes ago, Vacuum said:

One reason is that you can't get a 1 class insurance if you have an older car, I think the limit is 15 year old or more.

Presumably unless you've had it from new?

Edited May 30, 2019 by evadgib

[The Deerhunter]

18 hours ago, worgeordie said:

I would advise you to get car camera, if someone crashes into you

it explains everything, you even get discount from insurance co.

if you have one.

regards worgeordie

Only a few hundred baht now.  All Farangs should have one

[evadgib]

32 minutes ago, worgeordie said:

Unbelievable,did you think I was advising him to buy a  car camera,

AFTER the accident ?,it was for him and others that having a camera,

prevents hassel like Simon is in now,and you get 5% discount off the

insurance ,so pays for itself.     thanks Shoeless for your "useless post"

regards Worgeordie

Fully agree. Front and rear Dashcams should now be normal for everyone and are considerably cheaper than ALL of the sums mentioned in this thread, as are body worn variants for when you're out of the car (Road rage? Treating someone? Plod?) or no longer have power after an accident.

 

This is NOT a pop at the OP. I wish him well and look fwd to reading the outcome.

Edited May 30, 2019 by evadgib

[NoshowJones]

I would do the exact same as you, give them nothing.

Just another reason I leave the largest bulk of my money in the UK.

How can you possibly trust the Thai government who treat us retirees like criminals.

[bert bloggs]

17 hours ago, stevenl said:

Undertaking is legal in Thailand.

Not when your indicating to turn left .