Caddie Injured by Expat’s Golf Ball

 

Injured caddie Pairin Kantawongs. Photo: supplied

 

Many of you will have read recently about a Thai caddie who was injured by an Expat golfer.

 

It poses the question should golfers take out insurance cover?

 

The case here was when Pairin Kantawongs, 56, a caddy working in an undisclosed Chiang Mai golf club, reported to police, after a 67-year-old Italian client whose golf ball hit her in the eye causing her injury earlier this year.

 

According to Pairin, she was standing between 150-200 metres away when the Italian’s ball hit her in the eye socket. 

 

She has been negotiating with the Italian since January but neither can agree to a sum. She has therefore come to the police to report this incident, demanding 500,000 baht in compensation.

 

Pairin told police that her eye socket was cracked, and she has not been able to see properly since the operation, requiring sunglasses while out in the sun.

 

She said that while it was an accident, it was still the client’s fault and he must take responsibility.

 

As to the Italian, he has reported to the police but says that caddies must always stand behind the golfer, but Pairin did not do so and went to stand in the fairway, which lead to her accident. He said that he has paid 5,000 baht already towards her medical cost, but insists that half a million is too much.

 

Who is Responsible?

 

This news story has now gone viral and brings up the topic, who is responsible?

 

Some will say the golf club should take out some insurance policy to cover their staff. Others might say it is up to the player to have adequate cover.

 

No one intentially wants to hurt anyone when playing a round of golf, except that accidents can happen. Which is why for example we all know to beware when we hear ‘FORE” being shouted out during a round of golf.

 

Golf related injuries can result from errant shots, reckless swings, overturned golf carts and thrown clubs. 

 

Few people associated with golf courses are immune from the hazards of the golfing accident…. players, caddies, spectators, passing motorists and even adjacent homeowners, they are all at risk. 

 

There is Cover in Thailand

 

With insurance becoming increasingly expensive or largely unavailable, “the legal implications of such accidents are vitally important to golfers, golf courses and insurers.”

 

According to Pattaya based broker Jack Levy of Macallan Insurance, there are insurance policies just relating to golf in Thailand for under THB1,000 per year.

 

These include Public Liability cover for Death or Bodily Injury to a Third Party and Loss or Damage to Third Party Property arising whilst playing or practicing golf at any golf course in Thailand up to THB500,000. 

 

Bodily Injury to the Insured from any Accident or unforeseen event whilst playing or practicing golf at any golf course in Thailand. 

 

Loss of or Damage to Golf Equipment from any Accident or unforeseen event whilst playing or practicing golf at any golf course or driving range in Thailand or during transit directly between the golf course/range and the Insured’s residence. 

 

These policies would have been handy for this Italian player in Chiang Mai, but perhaps the golf clubs themselves should consider taking out cover for their staff and players too.

 

What do you think?

 

 

 

Golf insurance is NOT a new thing, it has been around for many years

The majority use it for other players/caddies and property as well, cars, house windows any property damage etc

As we ALL know insurance is a great thing when you need it.

Mistakenly, many golfers think they are insured by the golf course (included in their green fee) That is quite simply NOT the case generally. Highlighting this with my fellow golfers, (by the way I am insured on a worldwide policy from the UK) it seems they will still take a cavalier approach and not bother with any third party or any type of golfers insurance. Lack of insurance in any way is OK if you are prepared to take the risk, but woe betied when lack of insurance comes back to bite you. My UK policy costs (valid worldwide) . around £50 (2000 baht ish) and covers me for allsorts, (personal liability, loss of clubs and even the most impossible scenario which is getting a "hole in one!"

18 minutes ago, Thaivisa Golf said:

As to the Italian, he has reported to the police but says that caddies must always stand behind the golfer, but Pairin did not do so and went to stand in the fairway, which lead to her accident.

If this is true then entirely her fault and he should not be held accountable for her negligence . Caddies must at all times stand away or behind the players so as to avoid accidents like these .

Just now, Thaivisa Golf said:

These policies would have been handy for this Italian player in Chiang Mai, but perhaps the golf clubs themselves should consider taking out cover for their staff and players too.

 

A Golf course could not operate, unless it had insurance for this very reason in most countries. Only in Thailand would a golf club not have insurance, deny all responsibility and liability. It is good thing golfers know that now. Golfing in the kingdom is not the bargain people thought.

26 minutes ago, keith101 said:

If this is true then entirely her fault and he should not be held accountable for her negligence . Caddies must at all times stand away or behind the players so as to avoid accidents like these .

Many times I’ve played and the caddie gives you the driver and they don’t walk all the way up to the Tee box, they say it’s to watch for your ball, but they are really too lazy to walk all the way up( and then walk all the way back down again)

But who’s to blame, it has to be the Golfer, he hit the ball.

Caddies should of course be covered by their employer, the golf course. This is normal practice for most work places.

21 hours ago, keith101 said:

If this is true then entirely her fault and he should not be held accountable for her negligence . Caddies must at all times stand away or behind the players so as to avoid accidents like these .

Very convenient. Very nice attitude. To hell with the Caddies, my game is more important.

Sportsmanship at it's best.

????

Edited August 2, 20205 yr by ravip

26 minutes ago, ravip said:

Very convenient. Very nice attitude. To hell with the Caddies, my game is more important.

Sportsmanship at it's best.

????

So you don't play golf then or understand what the caddies job really is then. A caddie never moves far from the player as it is there job to not only carry the bag, but to clean the ball, check the distance, locate the ball after it is struck by the player, and off course hand them the proper club as well as possibly give course advise. So to be far down the fairway, unless caddying for another player already on the fairway, and then was stuck by another players errant ball struck either from another tee box or from an adjacent fairway, it is her fault 100% if her own players ball struck her because she was not where she was supposed to be.

Insurance should be provided by the Golf Club/Pro Shop.  That way everyone would have financial protection.  Proper training for Caddies should also be provided.

23 hours ago, ThailandRyan said:

So you don't play golf then or understand what the caddies job really is then. A caddie never moves far from the player as it is there job to not only carry the bag, but to clean the ball, check the distance, locate the ball after it is struck by the player, and off course hand them the proper club as well as possibly give course advise. So to be far down the fairway, unless caddying for another player already on the fairway, and then was stuck by another players errant ball struck either from another tee box or from an adjacent fairway, it is her fault 100% if her own players ball struck her because she was not where she was supposed to be.

No, I don't play golf.

Your post is quite informative, but I still standby my original view.

On 8/1/2020 at 9:26 AM, Thaivisa Golf said:

Thai caddie who was injured by an Expat golfer

Would this have been pursued by the caddie or indeed have made news if the golfer was not an expat? At least they didn't call him a foreigner!!! 

On 8/1/2020 at 9:50 AM, Dcheech said:

It is good thing golfers know that now. Golfing in the kingdom is not the bargain people thought.

Indeed. World class destination for high quality tourists, huh?

 

Golfing insurance. What other insurance must you need? I saw another boat has capsized, boating insurance right? Motorcycle insurance, even if you're never a rider. Who knows when one will come flying at you! Might as well take that health insurance they've been talking about making mandatory. But man, those deductibles. Do you really want to make a claim? Maybe just stay in your hotel room. Hah! Only the highest quality tourism here.

25 minutes ago, american2 said:

Insurance should be provided by the Golf Club/Pro Shop.  That way everyone would have financial protection.  Proper training for Caddies should also be provided.

We, as golfers, are required to pay for and use a caddie provided by the course. So my thoughts are that the course should be responsible for the insurance for the caddie. 

2 minutes ago, LNKDES1 said:

We, as golfers, are required to pay for and use a caddie provided by the course. So my thoughts are that the course should be responsible for the insurance for the caddie. 

A portion of the fees paid should be to offset any insurance costs the course would have to pay regardless if it was a employee or another player. As a homeowner on a Golf Course in the US, I made the course put up a windscreen to catch errant balls at the fence of my property and the course, this greatly reduced the cost of replacing windows the course and I had to pay for, as this was also a part of the HOA fee's paid monthly. Sold that house when I moved here, but kept a few others as rental properties but none directly backing to the golf course.

At my course, in Chiang Mai, the caddie fee was increased to cover insurance for the caddies.  I am assuming this cover accidents on the course.

On 8/2/2020 at 7:27 AM, pattjock said:

Caddies should of course be covered by their employer, the golf course. This is normal practice for most work places.

Caddies are casual labour and not employed by the course hence no insurance.

Edited August 3, 20205 yr by Darkside Gray

Hey Ryan, show me in thailand where a caddy carries a bag?

 

the golf course should be responsible for having insurance for caddy injuries...

 

Are they not the employer for their employees? OSHA should be all over this case....oh wait.....
 

if she took a ball in the eye 150 yards away, she was negligent for not watching her own client’s ball which is in her job duties...had it been another golfer, she was negligent when it comes to personal safety....

 

She had her eye on the ball doesn’t hold water in this case...

On 8/2/2020 at 2:27 AM, pattjock said:

Caddies should of course be covered by their employer, the golf course. This is normal practice for most work places.

On most of Thailands golfcourses the caddies are not employed by the course. They are selfemployed with the right to work on the course. So following your reasoning it is the caddy who should  pay the insurance, just like they have to pay the golf trolley.

On 8/1/2020 at 4:26 AM, Thaivisa Golf said:

What do you think?

In my opinion it must be the golf lanes responsibility to insure caddies working on their lane for work related accidents and damage; that would be the rule in many, if not most, countries with well organized labor rules.

 

If an accident insurance for caddies is available for around 1,000 baht a year, as mentioned in the article, it's a small amount – not even relative small – equaling 100 baht a month. How often is a caddie working? It might be a very modest fee on top of the caddie fee in the range of 10 to 20 baht or less.

 

On the other hand, it would be wise of golfers – and many others – to have a third party responsibility insurance (or whatever it's called in English), for their own sake. Often that is included in a travel insurance, but it might exclude certain activities.

 

Loss of sight – presumably on both eyes – covers from 200,000 baht to 600,000 baht on my PA insurance plan, amount depending of what level, and thereby fee, is chosen. Might be different in other insurances' plans, I just checked for comparison. Even the 500,000 baht claim might seem high, it might also be within certain range of cover.

Edited August 3, 20205 yr by khunPer
typo

She should have turned the other cheek? 

 

Caddies should turn their back on players hitting balls in their general direction? 

 

Just like hopefully people cover their eyes when walking past someone welding or using a grinder.

 

Et al..

 

As they say common sense is not very common.

Once this scam gets going for half a million, next up will be ball boys at football club suing for a million for being hit on the head with a ball during a match

41 minutes ago, cardinalblue said:

Hey Ryan, show me in thailand where a caddy carries a bag?

 

the golf course should be responsible for having insurance for caddy injuries...

 

Are they not the employer for their employees? OSHA should be all over this case....oh wait.....
 

if she took a ball in the eye 150 yards away, she was negligent for not watching her own client’s ball which is in her job duties...had it been another golfer, she was negligent when it comes to personal safety....

 

She had her eye on the ball doesn’t hold water in this case...

I played in Phuket 2 weeks ago at the Laguna golf course 3800 baht for 18 holes.  Caddie fee was 350 baht, and she carried the bag as the clubs were rentals and not mine, and I walked the course electing out of renting a cart as well.  Gave the caddie an additional tip for the good course advice, even though I shot a lousy 87, but then I am a true hacker and not a par player.

Lets get a few things straight here, as many of you commenting don't appear to be golfers or have any idea what you're waffling on about.

 

1. The only time a player is required to have insurance to cover injuries is if the player's ball hits another player when being called up on a par 3. Incidentally, calling up on par 3's was banned back in the mid 90's by both the R&A, the USGA and most other international golf associations when insurance companies started refusing to make payments related to injuries sustained on par 3's and being claimed on the golf course's insurance policies. 

2. Golf courses MUST have insurance that covers the following:

a. damage to property adjoining a golf course that is the result of errant golf balls, e.g broken roof tiles, windows etc.

b. public liability to cover ALL persons on a golf course, whether player, caddy or course employee who may be injured by errant golf balls etc. The ONLY exception to this is if the injury is the result of some bad tempered idiot throwing his clubs. Then the club thrower is responsible for the costs to the injured player.

3. What on earth was the caddy doing that far ahead of the player. As stated in another post, too lazy to go to the tee with the player. Therefore caddy is 100% at fault.

4. The caddy straight out demanded 500k baht as compensation. To ask for that amount she obviously is well aware of the maximum payout for injury under the types of insurance that players can take out. So even though she may have legitimately been injured, she's scamming the player.

5. If the caddy continues to insist that the player has to pay and he does, then the player is well within his rights to sue the golf club to recover the amount he pays the caddy for her injury.

 

I've been involved in amateur & professional golf internationally as an administrator and inside the ropes at pro tournaments, so these are the facts, NOT an opinion.

 

In saying all the above, I do have to say that amateur golf in Thailand is very poorly organised and run both by the golf courses and the TGA, so I'm not at all surprised that this has occurred.

1 hour ago, VocalNeal said:

She should have turned the other cheek? 

 

Caddies should turn their back on players hitting balls in their general direction? 

 

Just like hopefully people cover their eyes when walking past someone welding or using a grinder.

 

Et al..

 

As they say common sense is not very common.

You just have proof the truth in your last sentens. As your idea of turning the back to the player is as smart as walking on the wrong side of the road so you not could see the closest danger.

Edited August 3, 20205 yr by Parsve
wrong word

We are told from a very high profile Golf Course in Bangkok that they cover all caddies & staff (contracted or not) while working on the course, but not the players

Having managed a golf course overseas all players are covered for injury or death the moment there is a financial transaction. Many players getting a free round still have to pay $2 to ensure covered.

This is not the case in Thailand (unfortunetely)

Tiger and Dog. Totally wrong mate! Unless the golf course specifically has insurance or includes it in the green fee then the golfer is liable on many counts. Your experience may be true in the good old USA but def not in the UK and as far as I know not Thailand either.! 

 

Hence companies like this one. https://www.golfcare.co.uk/

5 hours ago, ravip said:

No, I don't play golf.

Your post is quite informative, but I still standby my original view.

you can stand by whatever you want. you don't play golf so you have no clue. maybe best you sit this one out seeing as you have a huge handicap. 

5 minutes ago, mr mr said:

you can stand by whatever you want. you don't play golf so you have no clue. maybe best you sit this one out seeing as you have a huge handicap. 

Brilliant advice. Keep on at it!

  In Thailand there are no rules for anything but sometimes these rules which do not exist are however firmly applied for the farangs ????