Tourist police to the rescue - British pensioner has no relatives left and owed 17,000 baht to the hospital

[webfact]

Tourist police to the rescue - British pensioner has no relatives left and owed 17,000 baht to the hospital

 

Picture: Siam Rath

 

Siam Rath reported on the case of a 75 year old British man who said that he had been on his way to visit a friend in Petchabun when he started feeling sick in Lopburi.

 

Ian M.H. had driven from Chonburi at the weekend and was admitted to Phra Narai Maharat Hospital for four days.

 

When he was a bit better he had racked up a bill of 17,100 baht but had no money to pay.

 

The tourist police came and contacted the British embassy but they had no record of the man and proved unhelpful.

 

So the tourist police under the leadership of Pol Maj-Gen Narongrit Yortwichai decided to help with food and a resort bed for the night as the pensioner was in no state to drive anywhere.

 

They planned to see him back to his home in Chonburi the next day when he was feeling better. They did not want him to drive as he was so poorly. 

 

The Brit told the police that he had been in Thailand for 15 years and had no relatives left either in the kingdom or in his home country.

 

His Thai wife Wanphen wife whom he lived with in the Huay Yai area of Pattaya died two years ago leaving him all alone.

 

Siam Rath did not report what happened to the hospital bill or if contact was made with the friend in Petchabun where the pensioner was heading.

 

The story left the reader hanging, notes Thaivisa.

 

Source: Siam Rath

 

 

-- © Copyright Thai Visa News 2020-05-21

 

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[Canuck1966]

I'm just reading his tea leaves

I see a man called Big Oud in his future and he will send him to a lovely big hotel called the IDC Bangkok 

Where he will see out the rest of his days in peace, harmony & tranquillity

The END

Edited May 21, 2020 by Canuck1966

[Wiggy]

10 minutes ago, webfact said:

The tourist police came and contacted the British embassy but they had no record of the man and proved unhelpful.

No surprise. It has ceased being an embassy and has become a trade mission.

[Relocated]

So relocating to Thailand is not a solution for loneliness and peaceful retirement. 

[sanuk711]

It's not a fortune is it....& the Thai's have acted quite well with him.

But it is another brick in the wall of people who have the opinion that all non Thai residents should have insurance. Sometimes its hard to argue the case against it.

[keith101]

3 minutes ago, sanuk711 said:

It's not a fortune is it....& the Thai's have acted quite well with him.

But it is another brick in the wall of people who have the opinion that all non Thai residents should have insurance. Sometimes its hard to argue the case against it.

At 75 he would be unlikely to get insurance let alone be able to afford it .

[steven100]

so he has been here 15 yrs and has no money and no relatives. geeeze .... 

he certainly didn't plan his exit.  Go fund me ... here we go again.

I say raise $800 and throw him on the plane to the UK.  One way ticket. 

[steven100]

9 minutes ago, Retarded said:

So relocating to Thailand is not a solution for loneliness and peaceful retirement. 

having enough money helps

[dcsw53]

The hospital should pursue him for the money. What about seizing the vehicle he was driving ?
Too many people over here chancing their arm by not having insurance. Make insurance mandatory, and provide cover at reasonable cost. Premiums would depend on the hospital you want to go to, high for the fancy internationals, lower for the basic municipal.

[asiaexpat]

How is it that a foreigner with a car traveling out of province has no money? Why is it anytime an old Brit gets ill and ends up in the hospital they have no money and need help? At my age I can understand the inability to procure medical insurance but can not understand the lack of emergency funds if without insurance. 

[Keyser Soze666]

10 minutes ago, steven100 said:

so he has been here 15 yrs and has no money and no relatives. geeeze .... 

he certainly didn't plan his exit.  Go fund me ... here we go again.

I say raise $800 and throw him on the plane to the UK.  One way ticket. 

Or he could sit on the outside of the plane if he has no money?

[Somtamnication]

I love it how the armchair judges look down on this guy. Maybe he did have an exit plan but it failed? He lost his wife 2 years ago. A million things could have happened to him between his wife's death and today. 

 

[sanuk711]

8 minutes ago, keith101 said:

At 75 he would be unlikely to get insurance let alone be able to afford it .

I know Kieth101 I am around the same age with no insurance cover...(but enough savings if needed) ........17K it really isn't a lot of money, but he is paying none of it---and saying he has nothing. There's No, I get a pension can I pay 500 baht a week?.....or I have money for my visa can I pay some back latter--- he just drove himself there and checked in and ended up getting a bed & food after.

 

Then we have to read page after page of how evil and untrustworthy the Thai's are.....

[BobBKK]

24 minutes ago, Retarded said:

So relocating to Thailand is not a solution for loneliness and peaceful retirement. 

It is if you planned finances correctly.

[jonwilly]

31 minutes ago, Wiggy said:

No surprise. It has ceased being an embassy and has become a trade mission.

How very true. 

 

john

[jimmjam]

17 minutes ago, steven100 said:

so he has been here 15 yrs and has no money and no relatives. geeeze .... 

he certainly didn't plan his exit.  Go fund me ... here we go again.

I say raise $800 and throw him on the plane to the UK.  One way ticket. 

Where would he go once he gets to the uk?

The streets?

He has no family, so obviously no house in the u.k.

And the housing department wouldnt be very helpful in finding him a place to stay.

If he only has a pension he wouldnt be able to live in the u.k anyway unless he gets free housing which would take forever.

[Oldie]

If he doesn't even have 17000 Baht how did he get a visa? Time to send this guy home before he becomes an even bigger problem. His situation here will be not get better without money. In the end such people create problems for the rest of us here. 

[Traubert]

8 minutes ago, jimmjam said:

Where would he go once he gets to the uk?

The streets?

He has no family, so obviously no house in the u.k.

And the housing department wouldnt be very helpful in finding him a place to stay.

If he only has a pension he wouldnt be able to live in the u.k anyway unless he gets free housing which would take forever.

They have killed all the pensioners in the UK so there'll be plenty of accommodation.

[Oldie]

7 minutes ago, jimmjam said:

Where would he go once he gets to the uk?

The streets?

He has no family, so obviously no house in the u.k.

And the housing department wouldnt be very helpful in finding him a place to stay.

If he only has a pension he wouldnt be able to live in the u.k anyway unless he gets free housing which would take forever.

What do you expect now? That Thailand cares for him? 

[Canuck1966]

26 minutes ago, dcsw53 said:

The hospital should pursue him for the money. What about seizing the vehicle he was driving ?
Too many people over here chancing their arm by not having insurance. Make insurance mandatory, and provide cover at reasonable cost. Premiums would depend on the hospital you want to go to, high for the fancy internationals, lower for the basic municipal.

Provide cover at a reasonable cost

Hit the nail on the head there

Huge premiums for tiny amounts of coverage with caveats galore

[Canuck1966]

Just now, Oldie said:

What do you expect now? That Thailand cares for him? 

Assist him getting back to the UK, do you have zero empathy?

[Canuck1966]

2 minutes ago, Oldie said:

If he doesn't even have 17000 Baht how did he get a visa? Time to send this guy home before he becomes an even bigger problem. His situation here will be not get better without money. In the end such people create problems for the rest of us here. 

Utter rubbish, the immigration take all their guidance from a junta govt, who are completely xenophobic

[anterian]

43 minutes ago, Wiggy said:

No surprise. It has ceased being an embassy and has become a trade mission.

I think this is true of most British embassies.

[4reaL]

2 minutes ago, Canuck1966 said:

Assist him getting back to the UK, do you have zero empathy?

 

It seems the norm for this forum, really a place full of nasty bitter people.

[sanuk711]

2 minutes ago, Canuck1966 said:

Assist him getting back to the UK, do you have zero empathy?

Isn't that the job of your splendid British Embassy.........

[Canuck1966]

Just now, sanuk711 said:

Isn't that the job of your splendid British Embassy.........

They are truly dreadful, it would be the very last place I would look for help

[Canuck1966]

He will probably be on the basic pension of say 650 quid per month

If he lives frugally he can live on that, especially if he has a cheap room and eats locally

He will obviously struggle with larger bills as he's living month to month

17k is approx 435 quid so it would be most of his income

[Canuck1966]

deleted

Edited May 21, 2020 by Canuck1966

[robblok]

51 minutes ago, keith101 said:

At 75 he would be unlikely to get insurance let alone be able to afford it .

Yes but if he had started 15 years back and kept up payments then there would have been no problem. These guys make it that immigration forces us to have insurance. When i got here first thing I did was arrange insurance. Its a matter of priorities.

[sanuk711]

18 minutes ago, Canuck1966 said:

They are truly dreadful, it would be the very last place I would look for help

Yes I think we all agree on that Canck1966................