Swiss driver faces charges after motorcyclist dies in Rawai

By Kritsada Mueanhawong

 

 

A motorbike driver has died after colliding into the side of a sedan whose driver was a Swiss man in Rawai over the weekend. The Swiss driver is facing charges.

 

Chalong Police were notified of the incident on Wiset Road in Rawai opposite the Macro Store, just south of the Chalong Underpass, on Saturday afternoon.

 

Police and emergency responders arrived to find the damaged motorbike on the road. Nearby the found 38 year old Sathit Soythong who had sustained a serious injury. He was taken to Chalong Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

 

Nearby they found a red BMW sedan whose driver was 71 year old Swiss man Juerg Christian Schwendener.

 

Witness told police that the motorbike driver was heading to Rawai. The BMW driver is alleged to have driven into the path of the motorbike, the motorbike collided into the side of the sedan.

 

Schwendener was taken to police station and is facing legal action whilst the investigation continues.

 

 

Source: https://thethaiger.com/news/phuket/swiss-driver-faces-charges-after-motorcyclist-dies-in-rawai

 

 

-- © Copyright The Thaiger 2019-06-24

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Sad. Tragic. Avoidable? RIP.

Swiss Farang? BMW?

 

Guilty!

It is the only logical source of money.

A cctv would be interesting

The family of the Thai will be coming for the Swiss guys bank account with cops as the referee.

What if a farang on a bike swiped a vehicle driven by a Thai and farang died?

Case closed most likely.Maybe a fine of 500 b which can be appealed.

BMWs are not cheap  and if his fault the family will ask him for alot.would not want to be In his shoes now

17 minutes ago, bristolgeoff said:

BMWs are not cheap  and if his fault the family will ask him for alot.would not want to be In his shoes now

 

I wouldn't either, but then again I wouldn't want to be in the shoes of the family of the deceased motorcyclist who it appears died at the hands of a driver who failed to see him coming and turned across his path (assumption I know, but it certainly looks that way in the photos).

 

That said, it looks like quite a shunt, how fast was the motorcyclist traveling? its possible the Swiss man did not judge his speed. 

Was the motorcyclists wearing a helmet, if not, did that contribute towards his death which may otherwise have been minor injury?

 

All speculation I know, but its possible that while the accident was caused by the Swiss man there are circumstances mitigating his actions and the outcome.

 

(and I'm not writing this in support of a 'faring' this is just an open observation / thought)

 

50 minutes ago, bristolgeoff said:

BMWs are not cheap  and if his fault the family will ask him for alot.would not want to be In his shoes now

Why not? Car looks nice enough so I presume he has insurance which will cover all.

1 hour ago, richard_smith237 said:

 

All speculation I know, but its possible that while the accident was caused by the Swiss man there are circumstances mitigating his actions and the outcome.

 

(and I'm not writing this in support of a 'faring' this is just an open observation / thought)

 

 

Fault does not necessarily have to be one party or the other, it can be shared 50:50 or 80:20 or whatever. 

 

One would think he would have first class insurance which should cover the costs,unless he had been drinking.

A WAI + BIG brown envelope = redemption.  It's the Thai wai of life!  Accept it!

Unfortunately he is not a Thai and is now in the world of shit no matter who's fault it will be his????RIP

6 minutes ago, sammieuk1 said:

Unfortunately he is not a Thai and is now in the world of shit no matter who's fault it will be his????RIP

Nonsense on both counts.

1 hour ago, stevenl said:

Nonsense on both counts.

Looks like there's an expert in the house again????

Interesting that a "SWISS" driver makes the news. In all fairness, can we - for matter of good order - have the figure of ALL accidents between bikes and cars with a dead bike driver FOR THIS VERY DAY? Is it really newsworthy or is it just once more again the alien bashing going on by "The Thaiger"?

You would be surprised how many lives are absolutely unnecessarily lost. Needless to say, that CCTV and dash camera of the BMW will be of help and, irrespective of fault - a sad day for those surviving the dead bike driver - RIP. 

A motorbike driver has died after colliding into the side of a sedan whose driver was a Swiss man in Rawai over the weekend.

 

  Why was he only a weekend long Swiss? With all seriousness, shouldn't you always ride that you can stop, no matter what's in front of you?

 

   With all respect, but you can't find a better one to ask for some good money. Swiss- BMW- Rich. The perfect combination. RIP< poor guy. 

I don't know in this case, but from experience motorbikes on that stretch of road are mostly flying at warp speed.

50 minutes ago, sammieuk1 said:

Looks like there's an expert in the house again????

Exactly, so when you write nonsense you'll be called out.

14 minutes ago, Isaanbiker said:

A motorbike driver has died after colliding into the side of a sedan whose driver was a Swiss man in Rawai over the weekend.

 

  Why was he only a weekend long Swiss? With all seriousness, shouldn't you always ride that you can stop, no matter what's in front of you?

 

   With all respect, but you can't find a better one to ask for some good money. Swiss- BMW- Rich. The perfect combination. RIP< poor guy. 

Drove 120 km today around Chok Chai and Korat town.

Happy to say I avoided at least four potential crashes. I only saw two that where in the clean-up stage. The ABS working overtime. Not a bad outing.

Madness!!!

yet again, the need for dash cams front and back is made.  They are essential for anyone driving on these roads. He may or may not be at fault, but a dash cam video usually provides definitive  evidence one way or the other. 

3 hours ago, stevenl said:

Why not? Car looks nice enough so I presume he has insurance which will cover all.

If the car is less than 7 years old he must have a "class 1 insurance" which should cover vehicle damage & injuries.

After 7 years the Thai system drops the insurance to "class 2" which only covers vehicle damage, personal injuries have to be claimed for by the injured party!

1 hour ago, sammieuk1 said:

Looks like there's an expert in the house again????

Expert or not, his comment was reasonable and factual, as opposed to the comment made by the poster he responded to.

2 hours ago, sammieuk1 said:

Unfortunately he is not a Thai and is now in the world of shit no matter who's fault it will be his????RIP

 

1 hour ago, sammieuk1 said:

Looks like there's an expert in the house again????

Looks like there's another expert in the house again.

1 hour ago, Sydebolle said:

Interesting that a "SWISS" driver makes the news. In all fairness, can we - for matter of good order - have the figure of ALL accidents between bikes and cars with a dead bike driver FOR THIS VERY DAY? Is it really newsworthy or is it just once more again the alien bashing going on by "The Thaiger"?

You would be surprised how many lives are absolutely unnecessarily lost. Needless to say, that CCTV and dash camera of the BMW will be of help and, irrespective of fault - a sad day for those surviving the dead bike driver - RIP. 

"In all fairness, can we - for matter of good order - have the figure of ALL accidents between bikes and cars with a dead bike driver FOR THIS VERY DAY?" 

If those figures are reported in the media, as this accident was, Thaivisa will let you have them.  Maybe this was the only one that happened on Saturday.

5 hours ago, Lucius verus said:

The family of the Thai will be coming for the Swiss guys bank account with cops as the referee.

What if a farang on a bike swiped a vehicle driven by a Thai and farang died?

Case closed most likely.Maybe a fine of 500 b which can be appealed.

Most know that in Thailand, if you get involved in an accident, you do not speak to anyone or sign anything ever! Just call your insurance and get them to deal with it. Full stop! Never give up your passport or visit a police station without your insurance and ideally with a lawyer.

33 minutes ago, stevenl said:

Exactly, so when you write nonsense you'll be called out.

You haven't got past the generalization yet and countered with your expert facts to say its a call out ????

21 minutes ago, hotchilli said:

If the car is less than 7 years old he must have a "class 1 insurance" which should cover vehicle damage & injuries.

After 7 years the Thai system drops the insurance to "class 2" which only covers vehicle damage, personal injuries have to be claimed for by the injured party!

No requirement for class 1 insurance, your coverage comprehension is incorrect and also after 7 years first class can be maintained.

2 minutes ago, stevenl said:

No requirement for class 1 insurance, your coverage comprehension is incorrect and also after 7 years first class can be maintained.

Thank you for that, you beat me to it, some people have no idea.

I believe the guilt of the Swiss man only when CCTV or dash cam proves it.

More Thais drive awfully and dangerous than farangs.

and about the Thai witness "Thai rak Thai". Thai are not famous for their honesty - especially when it is about money and farang and farang money