Thai Driving permit.....

[chittchatt]

Hello all nice to meet you all.,...

Cant seem to find a topic on driving permits or driving on a uk driving license in Thailand with insurance

 

Just wondered if any 1 could point me in the right direction... >>>

 

I have a uk full driving licence and I am going on holiday for a few weeks I have a friend that has a car registered to them...

 

They said I can borrow there car so>> as I am on holiday and cannot get a driving permit issued how would I go about insuring the car for me to drive? is and how is this possible please?

 

Your input would be much appreciated

 

Kind Regards

[scubascuba3]

if you are already on holiday you can't get an International Driving Permit, which means you can't legally drive unless you get a thai licence. If your friends car has insurance it will cover you also but not with no valid licence

[Salerno]

Get yourself an IDP (UK so get it at a post office). Still debatable if actually required IMO, but if you want to be 100% for a few quid probably worth it. Or do you mean you are already overseas and heading to Thailand next?

 

Ask your mate what type of insurance he has already. If just the minimum by law it will cover everything but you as the driver (not sure how much for though). If he has First Class then he's basically got fully comp already.

 

 

[chittchatt]

1 minute ago, Salerno said:

Get yourself an IDP (UK so get it at a post office). Still debatable if actually required IMO, but if you want to be 100% for a few quid probably worth it. Or do you mean you are already overseas and heading to Thailand next?

 

Ask your mate what type of insurance he has already. If just the minimum by law it will cover everything but you as the driver (not sure how much for though). If he has First Class then he's basically got fully comp already.

 

 

Hi thank you for your quick replys….

 

Im not in Thailand at the moment no.. sooon will be.... so that sounds that would cover the car and the 3rd party but not me is that correct?

 

Kind Regards

[Salerno]

5 minutes ago, chittchatt said:

that would cover the car and the 3rd party but not me is that correct?

If just the minimum yes, here's a bit of info https://www.angloinfo.com/how-to/thailand/transport/vehicle-ownership/vehicle-insurance

 

Injuries to yourself would be covered by your travel insurance. How to bump up the cover for when you are there I wouldn't have a clue, sorry.

Edited February 12, 2020 by Salerno

[chittchatt]

1 minute ago, Salerno said:

If just the minimum yes, here's a bit of info https://www.angloinfo.com/how-to/thailand/transport/vehicle-ownership/vehicle-insurance

 

Injuries to yourself would be covered by your travel insurance. How to bump up the cover for when you are there I wouldn't have a clue, sorry.

Thank you very much for link my friend.. I will check that out right away...

much appreciated..

 

Kind Regards

[transam]

You can drive on your license for 90 days, the IDP is something the R.A.C. "advises" you have but bit of a gray area. The main thing is to get your pal to phone his insurance pointing out you want to drive their car with a UK license for a short period.. 

[scubascuba3]

30 minutes ago, transam said:

You can drive on your license for 90 days, the IDP is something the R.A.C. "advises" you have but bit of a gray area. The main thing is to get your pal to phone his insurance pointing out you want to drive their car with a UK license for a short period.. 

I think you are wrong on that, there has been several threads on it saying an IDP is required

[Kwasaki]

1 hour ago, scubascuba3 said:

I think you are wrong on that, there has been several threads on it saying an IDP is required

Several threads ???? more like 100 red herring ones, the following is based on my experience.

 

Thailand DLT allows a person to drive in Thailand with a valid UK DL but there are conditions.

 

Thai car hire firm are a good source of info not the police unless you end up at the police station for them to check out the law.

Usually because of police ignorants the consensus is that it's best to get a IDP as well to show to the police if stopped in Thailand.

 

If your here for any length of time other than a few weeks holiday again it's best to get a Thai DL, makes sense if you plan on return visits.

 

The following is noted :-

To drive or rent a car in Thailand, many car rental companies require a full driver's license with a photograph and be held for at least 2 years with no major endorsements.

Foreigners on short-term visit may rent a car and drive with a valid foreign driver's license in Thailand.

 

The other thing to note as many do not realise as westerners that with CTPL the car is insured DL or no DL.

When you have additional voluntary insurance some companies have conditions. 

 

Edited February 13, 2020 by Kwasaki
Additional info

[transam]

1 hour ago, scubascuba3 said:

I think you are wrong on that, there has been several threads on it saying an IDP is required

I stand corrected as the R.A.C. has now changed its advice to "you need an IDP".

Must be something new as the UK Gov. now says the same.. ????

[BRUFC]

12 minutes ago, transam said:

I stand corrected as the R.A.C. has now changed its advice to "you need an IDP".

Must be something new as the UK Gov. now says the same.. ????

Yes, absolutely correct. Now only available from the Post Office but since RAC and AA stopped issuing them many smaller Post Office branches are able to do so. Previously it was only available from major Post Offices.

Edited February 13, 2020 by BRUFC
grammar

[tweedledee2]

In Dec. of 2015, we bought a new car with the financing/insurance thru Tisco Bank. The car was registered in my wife's name and my US drivers license was accepted as the insured driver. From the purchase of the car up until last Sept, when I obtained my 2-year Thai DL, I had driven thru numerous police checkpoints (record 4 in 3-hrs) and had never once when I produced my US DL was I asked to show an IDP or admonished for not having a Thai DL.  

[transam]

6 minutes ago, tweedledee2 said:

In Dec. of 2015, we bought a new car with the financing/insurance thru Tisco Bank. The car was registered in my wife's name and my US drivers license was accepted as the insured driver. From the purchase of the car up until last Sept, when I obtained my 2-year Thai DL, I had driven thru numerous police checkpoints (record 4 in 3-hrs) and had never once when I produced my US DL was I asked to show an IDP or admonished for not having a Thai DL.  

Lucky chap...????

[stevenl]

On 2/13/2020 at 4:01 AM, scubascuba3 said:

if you are already on holiday you can't get an International Driving Permit, which means you can't legally drive unless you get a thai licence. If your friends car has insurance it will cover you also but not with no valid licence

Incorrect on both points.

 

Car insurance will normally still be valid, and a UK license (provided with photo) is legally all that is required.

[stevenl]

21 hours ago, scubascuba3 said:

I think you are wrong on that, there has been several threads on it saying an IDP is required

Legally IDP is not required.

[scubascuba3]

17 minutes ago, stevenl said:

Legally IDP is not required.

So try arguing that to police in Pattaya they will just laugh in your face, all for circ £5 for an IDP

[Bredbury Blue]

21 hours ago, BRUFC said:

Yes, absolutely correct. Now only available from the Post Office but since RAC and AA stopped issuing them many smaller Post Office branches are able to do so. Previously it was only available from major Post Offices.

The AA not long ago stopped allowing postal applications and the only option was from a UK post office however they have recently reintroduced postal applications if you can't get to a post office or overseas

 

 

https://www.theaa.com/driving-advice/driving-abroad/idp

 

[transam]

1 hour ago, stevenl said:

Legally IDP is not required.

According to the UK Gov. website, an IDP is now required in LOS, even the R.A.C. now says it is... 

[JAS21]

24 minutes ago, transam said:

According to the UK Gov. website, an IDP is now required in LOS, even the R.A.C. now says it is... 

TA ...Sometimes it's best to ... try discussing anything with my wife!

[Peterw42]

In theory an IDP is not required, you drive on your home license. This is clearly stated in the Thai Motor Traffic Act.

 

Section 42-2

In case there’s a treaty between the Thai government and a foreign government regarding mutual acceptance of driver’s license, an alien who doesn’t have an immigrant visa may drive a motor vehicle with a driver’s license issued by such a foreign government,

 

In practice some police and insurance companies may ask for an IDP,

In theory, if you had a major accident and went to court armed with a team of lawyers and the Thai Traffic act, you would win the case driving on only a home license.

In practice, police can issue a ticket for anything and insurance companies may have an IDP requirement in the fine print.

 

[BRUFC]

13 hours ago, Bredbury Blue said:

The AA not long ago stopped allowing postal applications and the only option was from a UK post office however they have recently reintroduced postal applications if you can't get to a post office or overseas

 

 

https://www.theaa.com/driving-advice/driving-abroad/idp

 

Thank you, sir, for adding this to my 'still correct' post regarding issuance only from the Post Office. This was news to me. The AA , with this pricing, obviously subscribe to 'Rip-Off Britain'. Much cheaper and easier to get a Thai licence.

BTW, are Angela Rippon and Gloria Hunniford still alive?

[stevenl]

On 2/14/2020 at 6:54 AM, scubascuba3 said:

So try arguing that to police in Pattaya they will just laugh in your face, all for circ £5 for an IDP

Din;t pay the fine and go to court. And yes, I know not very practical.

 

As I said 'legally IDP is not required'.

Edited February 15, 2020 by stevenl

[stevenl]

21 hours ago, Peterw42 said:

In theory an IDP is not required, you drive on your home license. This is clearly stated in the Thai Motor Traffic Act.

 

Section 42-2

In case there’s a treaty between the Thai government and a foreign government regarding mutual acceptance of driver’s license, an alien who doesn’t have an immigrant visa may drive a motor vehicle with a driver’s license issued by such a foreign government,

 

In practice some police and insurance companies may ask for an IDP,

In theory, if you had a major accident and went to court armed with a team of lawyers and the Thai Traffic act, you would win the case driving on only a home license.

In practice, police can issue a ticket for anything and insurance companies may have an IDP requirement in the fine print.

 

Very much true, I only doubt there is one insurance company in Thailand with the IDP requirement in the fine print.

[richard_smith237]

The IDP is not a permit per-say, it is just a translation of your national driving licence into various languages.

 

Thailand accepts national licences in English, there is no need for a translation (IDP) & the IDP has no ‘Thai page’ anyway making the whole point of an IDP in Thailand somewhat moot. 
 

So, I don’t need an IDP with my UK driving licence, but I do need an IDP if I’m driving in Thailand on my UAE driving licence as that is in Arabic. 

Edited February 15, 2020 by richard_smith237

[transam]

2 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

The IDP is not a permit per-say, it is just a translation of your national driving licence into various languages.

 

Thailand accepts national licences in English, there is no need for a translation (IDP) & the IDP has no ‘Thai page’ anyway making the whole point of an IDP in Thailand somewhat moot. 
 

So, I don’t need an IDP with my UK driving licence, but I do need an IDP if I’m driving in Thailand on my UAE driving licence as that is in Arabic. 

The UK Gov. website seems to disagree with you...

 

https://www.gov.uk/driving-abroad/international-driving-permit

[jackdd]

On 2/14/2020 at 9:16 AM, Peterw42 said:

In theory an IDP is not required, you drive on your home license. This is clearly stated in the Thai Motor Traffic Act.

 

Section 42-2

In case there’s a treaty between the Thai government and a foreign government regarding mutual acceptance of driver’s license, an alien who doesn’t have an immigrant visa may drive a motor vehicle with a driver’s license issued by such a foreign government,

You forgot section 42:

"[...]he must carry documents specified by the treaty between the Thai government and the government which issued such driver’s license, and show them to competent officers upon request. "

 

4 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

Thailand accepts national licences in English, there is no need for a translation (IDP)

In which law or regulation is this stated?

 

4 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

So, I don’t need an IDP with my UK driving licence, but I do need an IDP if I’m driving in Thailand on my UAE driving licence as that is in Arabic. 

There is no special regulation which mentions the language of the license. If you would not need an IDP for your UK license you would also not need one for your UAE license, the regulations are identical.

 

 

The law is not 100% clear if an IDP is required as explained in my other thread, to be safe better carry one.

 

Edited February 15, 2020 by jackdd

[Lancashirelad]

On 2/13/2020 at 11:35 PM, stevenl said:

Legally IDP is not required.

That is correct, but it can can make your day much easier (and cheaper) if stopped by the BIB and asked to produce one, as they are known to do.

[Airbagwill]

The British D/L is in English and has a photo, so it SHOULD be OK for Thailand .... however trying to tell that to a local police officer is an uphill task.

It is best to get you IDP at home beg\fore leaving....the ones on the internet have highly dubious legality.

 

It is worth remembering that under Thai law you need a Thai driving license after 3 months in the country.

[Airbagwill]

21 hours ago, jackdd said:

There is no special regulation which mentions the language of the license.

Geneva conventions do and Thailand whilst not a signatory to all of them has agreed to honour them in principle.

[jackdd]

32 minutes ago, Airbagwill said:

Geneva conventions do and Thailand whilst not a signatory to all of them has agreed to honour them in principle.

Can you point me to the relevant section? I didn't see it.

Here the convention: https://treaties.un.org/doc/Treaties/1952/03/19520326 03-36 PM/Ch_XI_B_1_2_3.pdf