Welsh Father Faces Life-changing Reality After Thailand Holiday Accident

[AgMech Cowboy]

3 hours ago, hotchilli said:

The accident also served as a harsh lesson in safety and preparedness.

True what your follow on statement made, but one that is not learned or followed by most tourist who rent motorbikes in Thailand is that 'driving a motorbike in thailand is not like your home country'. It is 3-4 times more dangerous on a motorbike in Thailand than in any western or Australian/New Zealand country.

 

I wish the best for Lee, but on top of the insurance and promotion of it is the fact the motorcycles and car drivers are just plain crazy here. A foreigner on holiday should not be driving one.

[lordgrinz]

Lesson one, don't ride a motorcycle in a foreign country while on vacation unless you've been there for quite awhile, thus understanding the dangers of doing so.

 

There really should be a warning to all tourist coming to Thailand, highlighting that 80% of road deaths are from those riding on motorcycles. In fact, I am surprised any insurance company would even have coverage for tourist riding motorcycles here.

[Sig]

38 minutes ago, Cabradelmar said:

At least he had enough sense to wear a helmet. No mention of if he had a proper motorcycle endorsement or if the accident was operator error. For far too many tourist the answer is no license, and no experience (and unusual no helmet).

I think assuming the best is nice, although not always accurate.
I know what it's like having everyone assume the worst. I survived, not unscathed by any stretch of the imagination, but survived an accident thanks to wearing my riding jacket with body armor, riding gloves, boots and good Italian helmet (ECE standard). Pretty much everyone assumed the accident was due to recklessness or just some sort of ineptitude or lousy abilities. In fact, it was due to an unavoidable (unless you had some kind of super-human abilities) horrific road condition, of which are occasionally seen on some of the lesser maintained Thai roads.
Assuming the best until one knows better is a decent way to treat our fellow humans.
Yes, I had insurance too. All worked out well in the end. It just took a good number of months to recover.

[RobU]

19 minutes ago, bunnydrops said:

I don't know what is considered "necessary" but remodeling bathrooms, widening doorways for wheelchair access, lifts in multi-story houses, and ramps to enter exterior doors comes to a pretty penny. I find that most government "necessary" have quite a few limits.

No they don't have limits. My friend who had Multiple Sclerosis had the whole house remodeled by the local authority with an extra downstairs bedroom and en suite bathroom, ramps and special motorised bed.

[Woof999]

3 hours ago, RobU said:

It's a tragedy but the family is milking the Gofundme community.

 

Rather, he's using the GoFundMe community for exactly the reasons it exists. The guy has had an accident which will change his life forever. I'm prepared to give him a break even if you wont.

[WHansen]

1 hour ago, RobU said:

Good, don't be taken in by their bull. He was an occupational therapist (OT) and knows all of this, they specialise in assessing for home and mobility adaptations and recommend them for patients to the relevant authority to provide them for free. I am disabled so I know a bit about this. This Gofundme scam  is aimed directly at people like yourself and able bodied UK citizens who don't know how the UK social care system works. There is also 'Carer's Allowance' which effectively gives his full time carer (wife or other family member) a salary because it's cheaper than him going into a nursing home. The NHS also supplies the wheelchair. There is also a scheme where he can be supplied with an adapted car if he gives the money from the mobility component of his Disability Living Allowance (DLA) as rental. It can take a little time for everything to be put in place but all monies are backdated to the date of submission of the claim. Plus if he was employed by the NHS or the local authority (as most OT's are) he will receive a generous lump sum payment and a disability retirement pension.

Not sure if a working guy with his own home and savings would qualify for all you mention.

Yes,a registered disabled person on benifits with no savings would get everything for free including a suitably adapted home to live in. Having a certain amount of "assests and savings" would exclude him from most help although i am unsure of the savings amount.

Look at what happens to elderly property owners that have paid into the system all their life,if they require care home help they are expected to sell their property to pay for the care home bills.

 

 

 

 

[chasboyuk]

3 hours ago, RobU said:

From the Pattaya news:

"he finds himself in a cruel twist of fate, struggling to secure the necessary modifications for his own home. A GoFundMe page has been established by his family to bridge this gap, "

Bull***t, the local authority will do all necessary adaptations for free. He is also entitled to disability living allowance at the higher rate for mobility and care to the tune of over £300 per week. It's a tragedy but the family is milking the Gofundme community.

Not necessarily true, he will be Firstly assessed and IF he meets the requirements then yes he may receive the modifications. 

 

If he owns the property outright, they be forced to liquidate it to pay the for the modifications.

 

Of course if you were an illegal or dole waller then this would be done instantly without question 

[Kaopad999]

4 hours ago, phil2407 said:

Guessing he had bike licence

Doubt he has a big bike licnce when he's managing to crash a 125cc moped. 

Edited February 12 by Kaopad999

[RobU]

26 minutes ago, WHansen said:

Not sure if a working guy with his own home and savings would qualify for all you mention.

Yes,a registered disabled person on benifits with no savings would get everything for free including a suitably adapted home to live in. Having a certain amount of "assests and savings" would exclude him from most help although i am unsure of the savings amount.

Look at what happens to elderly property owners that have paid into the system all their life,if they require care home help they are expected to sell their property to pay for the care home bills.

 

 

 

 

 

13 minutes ago, chasboyuk said:

Not necessarily true, he will be Firstly assessed and IF he meets the requirements then yes he may receive the modifications. 

 

If he owns the property outright, they be forced to liquidate it to pay the for the modifications.

 

Of course if you were an illegal or dole waller then this would be done instantly without question 

Disability benefits are not means tested. A multi millionaire can claim DLA and associated benefits such as home modification the entitlement to local authority modifications is automatic if he receives DLA also entitled to disability Energy payments. He will be assessed for needs but the amount of money or property he has does not enter the equation. Selling the house when permanently moving into a care home is an entirely different kettle of fish. 

Edited February 12 by RobU

[lordgrinz]

12 minutes ago, RobU said:

 

Disability benefits are not means tested. A multi millionaire can claim DLA and associated benefits such as home modification the entitlement to local authority modifications is automatic if he receives DLA also entitled to disability Energy payments. He will be assessed for needs but the amount of money or property he has does not enter the equation. Selling the house when permanently moving into a care home is an entirely different kettle of fish. 

 

I'm a US citizen, and fairly conservative, but the one thing I think we should have in the USA is universal healthcare, instead we spend way more for way less, not to mention the long waits for just about anything. At least you guys have something to fall back on, in the US, you're on your own.

[charleskerins]

2 hours ago, Tropicalevo said:

A fairly naive statement.

Would you also ban tourists from crossing roads, renting cars, being passengers in tour buses, climbing waterfalls and so on ad nauseam.

People are responsible for their own actions.

The lad did everything correctly. Wore a helmet, had a licence, took out the proper insurance.

the way they ride motorcycles /scooters here is vastly different from the US  ,in America the motorcycle is required to follow the same rules of the road as a car/truck.Here it is mayhem

[hotchilli]

1 hour ago, AgMech Cowboy said:

True what your follow on statement made, but one that is not learned or followed by most tourist who rent motorbikes in Thailand is that 'driving a motorbike in thailand is not like your home country'. It is 3-4 times more dangerous on a motorbike in Thailand than in any western or Australian/New Zealand country.

 

I wish the best for Lee, but on top of the insurance and promotion of it is the fact the motorcycles and car drivers are just plain crazy here. A foreigner on holiday should not be driving one.

I agree with you totally, even those with prior motorcycle skills it's still not worth the risk.

They may be confident but other roads users just don't give a rats about safety or etiquette....

This gentleman had insurance which is a god-send, but his life is forever changed... for what?

Taking a motorcycle for a spin in Thailand... 

 

[lordgrinz]

7 minutes ago, charleskerins said:

the way they ride motorcycles /scooters here is vastly different from the US  ,in America the motorcycle is required to follow the same rules of the road as a car/truck.Here it is mayhem

 

Exactly, unless people have experience riding motorcycles in a 3rd world country, I would suggest avoiding getting on a motorcycle here. Anyone fresh from Australia, UK, US, Europe will be like a fish out of water on the roads in Thailand.

[RobU]

1 hour ago, Woof999 said:

 

Rather, he's using the GoFundMe community for exactly the reasons it exists. The guy has had an accident which will change his life forever. I'm prepared to give him a break even if you wont.

More likely the family has been approached by a professional funding agent. These Agents work with charities and individuals to secure funding. The receive 50% or more of the funds they raise on behalf of the client. They know all the routes to gain funding (including national lottery and Gofundme)and how to exploit them. If you want to give 50% of your donation away to one of these people, then be my guest.

Edited February 12 by RobU

[Cabradelmar]

1 hour ago, Sig said:

I think assuming the best is nice, although not always accurate.
I know what it's like having everyone assume the worst. I survived, not unscathed by any stretch of the imagination, but survived an accident thanks to wearing my riding jacket with body armor, riding gloves, boots and good Italian helmet (ECE standard). Pretty much everyone assumed the accident was due to recklessness or just some sort of ineptitude or lousy abilities. In fact, it was due to an unavoidable (unless you had some kind of super-human abilities) horrific road condition, of which are occasionally seen on some of the lesser maintained Thai roads.
Assuming the best until one knows better is a decent way to treat our fellow humans.
Yes, I had insurance too. All worked out well in the end. It just took a good number of months to recover.

 

I assumed nothing. In fact, he has the benefit of all my doubts as I made no direct aspersions to his actual skills or licensing status. However, I do pine for better news reports on these types of events. As facts do matter. And I did, in fact, give him credit for his safety sense for wearing a helmet. My aspersions are reserved for all the "other" tourist who frequently ride without skills, knowledge, licensing, or safety sense. Moreover, even those who are foolish deserve to recover their health well. Without exception. But I will not give anyone a free pass who fails so miserable at self responsibility that they need to open a beggers banquet on GoFundMe.

[Chongalulu]

5 hours ago, kwilco said:

THis needs to be explained. It sounds like he did everything right -so which insurance company laid on the "complexities"???

Why the confusion? I expect it simply means contacting the claims department answering the questions they would have legitimately asked,forwarded any supporting documentation and liased with the hospital. Pretty standard stuff

Edited February 12 by Chongalulu

[Thumbs]

Tragic but on the plus side he was savvy enough to ensure he had full medical insurance coverage, Thailand is not the place to holiday and just wing it, the roads are perilous to put it politely, footpaths aren't much safe, a dispute with locals or other tourists can quickly turn deadly, and low railings on hotel balconies seem to take several visitors lives each year.

[Chongalulu]

1 hour ago, Woof999 said:

 

Rather, he's using the GoFundMe community for exactly the reasons it exists. The guy has had an accident which will change his life forever. I'm prepared to give him a break even if you wont.

I think he's had enough "breaks ” to last a Lifetime...!

[impulse]

Leaving aside all the judgment on skills and smarts, this case is yet another data point. 

 

Had the guy been driving 4 wheels and 2 tons of steel, he'd be looking at repair costs and and maybe some formalities.  Instead, his life will never be the same.

 

[Kerryd]

4th case in less than 2 weeks of someone having a motorcycle accident that no one has heard of until it shows up in a UK "newspaper". What is with the media in Phuket/Krabi these days ? Sheesh, if it wasn't for "online media sites" and places like the Mirror and Sun, we'd have no idea about what's happening literally in our own backyards !

Of course, this story already had a convenient GoFundMe set up and linked in the story (it's in the linked article).

However, it this case he apparently had the accident in Krabi when he and his wife were there visiting his daughter who was travelling in Thailand at the time.

It says he and his wife were on the scooter when he crashed into a metal barrier.

But he apparently did have insurance that paid his bills in Thailand and flew him back to the UK, despite it being a "motorcycle" accident.

Accident apparently happened on 19 Jan. He spent "weeks" in the hospital in Thailand before being flown back to Wales on a stretcher and he spoke to the (online) media site 5 days later. (The article is dated 11 Feb so he returned on the 6th ?).
So he gets back to the UK on the 6th and in less than 3 days they already know the renovations he wants to do "probably" won't be covered because they are "means tested" and he thinks he won't pass the test.
So they set up the GoFundMe on the 9th. (Only looking for £30,000 though.)

(Got to start bookmarking all these stories. It's happening so often maybe they should stop renting motorcycles to people in Phuket/Krabi altogether !)

[kimamey]

5 hours ago, RobU said:

From the Pattaya news:

"he finds himself in a cruel twist of fate, struggling to secure the necessary modifications for his own home. A GoFundMe page has been established by his family to bridge this gap, "

Bull***t, the local authority will do all necessary adaptations for free. He is also entitled to disability living allowance at the higher rate for mobility and care to the tune of over £300 per week. It's a tragedy but the family is milking the Gofundme community.

It does say it's to cover the gap until things are sorted out. My late wife needed adaptions to our house and I received financial help, carers allowance and supplementary benefit I think. That was around 2003 I think and the local authority was better funded then. Now things aren't so easy from what I can tell.

[charleskerins]

1 hour ago, lordgrinz said:

 

Exactly, unless people have experience riding motorcycles in a 3rd world country, I would suggest avoiding getting on a motorcycle here. Anyone fresh from Australia, UK, US, Europe will be like a fish out of water on the roads in Thailand.

So true    is it a third World Counrty?   

[RobU]

38 minutes ago, Kerryd said:

4th case in less than 2 weeks of someone having a motorcycle accident that no one has heard of until it shows up in a UK "newspaper". What is with the media in Phuket/Krabi these days ? Sheesh, if it wasn't for "online media sites" and places like the Mirror and Sun, we'd have no idea about what's happening literally in our own backyards !

Of course, this story already had a convenient GoFundMe set up and linked in the story (it's in the linked article).

However, it this case he apparently had the accident in Krabi when he and his wife were there visiting his daughter who was travelling in Thailand at the time.

It says he and his wife were on the scooter when he crashed into a metal barrier.

But he apparently did have insurance that paid his bills in Thailand and flew him back to the UK, despite it being a "motorcycle" accident.

Accident apparently happened on 19 Jan. He spent "weeks" in the hospital in Thailand before being flown back to Wales on a stretcher and he spoke to the (online) media site 5 days later. (The article is dated 11 Feb so he returned on the 6th ?).
So he gets back to the UK on the 6th and in less than 3 days they already know the renovations he wants to do "probably" won't be covered because they are "means tested" and he thinks he won't pass the test.
So they set up the GoFundMe on the 9th. (Only looking for £30,000 though.)

(Got to start bookmarking all these stories. It's happening so often maybe they should stop renting motorcycles to people in Phuket/Krabi altogether !)

Local authority adaptations are not means tested

[spidermike007]

5 hours ago, newnative said:

Another day, another tourist suffering a devastating injury in a motorcycle accident.  Another preventable tragedy, simply by banning tourists from renting motorcycles.

Motorcycles and scooters are like guns, it is the user who is dangerous not necessarily the instrument. I've been driving motorcycles my whole life. I've been driving a scooter for well over a decade on Samui and on the mainland without an incident. What it requires is great skill, a lot of experience and the willingness to drive very carefully.

 

Many come here to Thailand without any skill, and end up driving a motorbike and just think what could possibly go wrong? The answer is alot. 

[BigStar]

5 hours ago, Cabradelmar said:

At least he had enough sense to wear a helmet.

 

The accident also served as a harsh lesson in safety and preparedness. Lee credits his survival to wearing a helmet and wisely choosing comprehensive travel insurance.

 

His smashed helmet looks like a typical plastic Thai pot. Amazing what a good job it did. Not quite as worthless as our helmet snobs claim.

 

He probably didn't expect such an accident. 'Course, nobody does. Wear the best helmet available to you, better, hopefully, than the plastic pot.

[NoshowJones]

8 hours ago, hotchilli said:

The accident also served as a harsh lesson in safety and preparedness. Lee credits his survival to wearing a helmet and wisely choosing comprehensive travel insurance.

He now advocates for these precautions to other travellers, hoping to prevent similar tragedies.

 

Check your insurance cover and stay off the motorcycles.

An insurance company's interpretation of comprehensive travel insurance will be a lot different from anyone else's as they are the experts on legal jargon, but I would think the main point is, was he licensed to ride the type of motorcycle he was riding when he had the accident?

Even if he is, I would bet that the insurance company would  still refuse his claim. Comprehensive Travel Insurance could mean so many things, positive and Negative.

[Trip Hop]

7 hours ago, RobU said:

From the Pattaya news:

"he finds himself in a cruel twist of fate, struggling to secure the necessary modifications for his own home. A GoFundMe page has been established by his family to bridge this gap, "

Bull***t, the local authority will do all necessary adaptations for free. He is also entitled to disability living allowance at the higher rate for mobility and care to the tune of over £300 per week. It's a tragedy but the family is milking the Gofundme community.

 

Have personal experience of dealing with Taff Ely CBC regarding disability adaptations have we?  I have as I'm originally from not far from this guy and whilst in theory what you say is correct, the reality is far from it, especially if you want to remain in your own home.  Due to the time that it takes to get everything approved and budget allocated, people often end up paying for it themselves.  Keep your nasty comments and bull***t to yourself until you know what you're talking about!

[kwilco]

6 hours ago, PremiumLane said:

 

they all do that

I've had to claim a couple of times and they settled over the phone in the hospital and I never paid a thing.

[RobU]

25 minutes ago, Trip Hop said:

 

Have personal experience of dealing with Taff Ely CBC regarding disability adaptations have we?  I have as I'm originally from not far from this guy and whilst in theory what you say is correct, the reality is far from it, especially if you want to remain in your own home.  Due to the time that it takes to get everything approved and budget allocated, people often end up paying for it themselves.  Keep your nasty comments and bull***t to yourself until you know what you're talking about!

If you want more than the Occupational Therapist recommends you have to pay for it yourself. Not bull***t but the honest truth and as I said all benefits are backdated to the date of application using Gofundme is scamming good hearted people who think there is no support

[paul545]

8 hours ago, RobU said:

From the Pattaya news:

"he finds himself in a cruel twist of fate, struggling to secure the necessary modifications for his own home. A GoFundMe page has been established by his family to bridge this gap, "

Bull***t, the local authority will do all necessary adaptations for free. He is also entitled to disability living allowance at the higher rate for mobility and care to the tune of over £300 per week. It's a tragedy but the family is milking the Gofundme community.

And you know they from experience? I’m on higher rate living and mobility allowance and my carer gets an allowance to take care of me and we don’t get even £250 a week. In addition I’ve been waiting for adaptations to just my bathroom for over a year so far and no date in sight of when it will be done. You know what I would prefer to not to be disabled and make a much higher living like I was previously and being independent and not rely on anyone to take care of me. Think you should get your facts right before

posting.