Shop Destroyed Birth Cert. Won't Pay For New One.

[TomBrown]

We decided to get our baby's birth certificate laminated to keep it in pristine condition, this turned out to be a complete disaster and costly too.

So we went to a shop that does laminating of documents, the staff put it through the machine, it got stuck in the machine and as a result a melted crumpled up completely unusable birth certificate. They did try to unpick the mess, but it was really just them trying to show effort to fix something they must have known was now completely unfixable.

Unbeknown to us at that time, the staff who did the job was apparently new, so really she shouldn't have been doing the job unsupervised. To make matters worst, they claimed that the birth certificate paper was too thin and that was what caused the problem. Of course you can put a completely empty A4 laminate pocket through a laminating machine with no problems. I believe that the problem was that the machine temperature was too hot coupled with putting the laminate pocket in the machine without a protective card sleeve, hence the hot rollers coming in direct contact with the plastic.

We wanted to speak with the owner of the shop, the staff initially said they had no contact and that the owner visited on occasion, but after our persistence we got his number. After a couple of days now, the upshot is that he will only pay 1,000 Baht, stating that the problem was our fault, even though we were the customer and had nothing to do with the actual process of laminating.

The cost of a replacement birth certificate is 4,130 Baht, EMS delivery is 100 Baht, as well as travel costs to Bangkok and back to Pattaya.

I will of course be speaking to a lawyer tomorrow and see what advise he has, but wondered what people here thought I could do? Would the police even have time for this?

We have the ruined Birth Certificate and a photo of the staff trying to unpick the mess in the shop.

Tom.

[Mario2008]

A lawyer might cost more than you will gain from persuing it. Why don't you contact the tourist police and see what they can do for you.

Edited August 3, 2008 by Mario2008

[tlsdk]

you are in thailand and 5000 baht no problem for you just make a new BC thats all

[dingdongrb]

Mai pen rai

[jumnien]

Jai yen yen! Cool down. Just forget about it. Bad day, tomorrow's another day!

[pumpuiman]

Take the 1000....buy some beers and relax.

Enjoy your trip to Bangkok....do some shopping...take a river cruise.

Life is short.....to forgive is divine.

To forget completely, even better.

[mizzi39]

Is this true? 4,130 baht for a new BC? I only payed 20 baht for my sons original! Anyone else out there who has had a similar experience?

[roygsd]

A lawyer might cost more than you will gain from persuing it.

Why don't you contact the tourist police and see what they can do for you.

roy gsd

[mikethevigoman]

You farang ,you have money, no problem!,. imagine this in any western country ,..however it isnt so cough up and realise this is normal for thailand,.

[lannarebirth]

You farang ,you have money, no problem!,. imagine this in any western country ,..however it isnt so cough up and realise this is normal for thailand,.

If it were a western country they would have had you sign a release form holding them not responsible for any damage. Then you would pay the equivalent of 4,130 baht for a new certificate, but they wouldn't issue it to you until you took the state mandated course on good parenting and were fingerprinted.

[CCCP]

You farang ,you have money, no problem!,. imagine this in any western country ,..however it isnt so cough up and realise this is normal for thailand,.

If it were a western country they would have had you sign a release form holding them not responsible for any damage. Then you would pay the equivalent of 4,130 baht for a new certificate, but they wouldn't issue it to you until you took the state mandated course on good parenting and were fingerprinted.

Now that is true in the UK especially. Get ready to be vetted wanna be parents.

[torrenova]

Don't just cough up if it realy is that much as the buggers will just continue shirking responsibility. Shame on those of you who say mai pen rai and just to take it on the chin.

That said, I don't see how it costs that much. The numbers you are stating seem more like a copy of the birth registration not the birth certificate. I'd check your facts first.

[shielded220011]

you are in thailand and 5000 baht no problem for you just make a new BC thats all

It's interesting to hear how so many westerners will take this stance and chalk it up to being a guest in Thailand. I dont think it's the right attitude ,but might save a future heart attack if every time something doen't go your way , you get angry. better to say mai pen rai and forget it.

Well it is probably the easiest way to just move on, but not the most sense able, because when you display this attitude like the thai's do; then you just show that yes its ok I'm farang and i can afford the extra100$. Well, I am rich and mai pen rai.

What if it happened to a local, would they take that stance if they had to shell out half a months salary or more in order to make a copy of a delicate document, hel_l no! they would demand satisfaction and more then likely get some satisfaction in the end.

If we keep this attitude that is expected of us then when you come into a serious problem of your own, you will start demanding justice, and don't think it wont happen long timers of the old days the way the government keeps changing shirts and thai's there is a possibility you will feel the same bad helplessness as others that post here.

God willing we all can enjoy the LOS and all it has to offer, but it doesn't mean we cant question something here we would naturally question at home.

Like I read in these posts before; We all have a common goal as people, maybe with different cultural backgrounds but we are still vying for a common goal that is to live peacefully and happily with our loved ones..

Maybe it's a farce, well and good for those with sorted lives living the dream, but there are others not so fortunate.

Keep that in mind

S

[simon43]

I can confirm that a new birth certificate costs 20 baht from your amphur office. Add on a bit for EMS postage if you can't go in person. You will also need to get a police report (free) to confirm why you need a new certificate.

Who has told you that it costs 4,130 baht??

Simon

[think_too_mut]

you are in thailand and 5000 baht no problem for you just make a new BC thats all

It's interesting to hear how so many westerners will take this stance and chalk it up to being a guest in Thailand. I dont think it's the right attitude ,but might save a future heart attack if every time something doen't go your way , you get angry. better to say mai pen rai and forget it.

Well it is probably the easiest way to just move on, but not the most sense able, because when you display this attitude like the thai's do; then you just show that yes its ok I'm farang and i can afford the extra100$. Well, I am rich and mai pen rai.

What if it happened to a local, would they take that stance if they had to shell out half a months salary or more in order to make a copy of a delicate document, hel_l no! they would demand satisfaction and more then likely get some satisfaction in the end.

If we keep this attitude that is expected of us then when you come into a serious problem of your own, you will start demanding justice, and don't think it wont happen long timers of the old days the way the government keeps changing shirts and thai's there is a possibility you will feel the same bad helplessness as others that post here.

God willing we all can enjoy the LOS and all it has to offer, but it doesn't mean we cant question something here we would naturally question at home.

Like I read in these posts before; We all have a common goal as people, maybe with different cultural backgrounds but we are still vying for a common goal that is to live peacefully and happily with our loved ones..

Maybe it's a farce, well and good for those with sorted lives living the dream, but there are others not so fortunate.

Keep that in mind

S

What utter rubbish the above post is.

[mgjackson69]

you are in thailand and 5000 baht no problem for you just make a new BC thats all

It's interesting to hear how so many westerners will take this stance and chalk it up to being a guest in Thailand. I dont think it's the right attitude ,but might save a future heart attack if every time something doen't go your way , you get angry. better to say mai pen rai and forget it.

Well it is probably the easiest way to just move on, but not the most sense able, because when you display this attitude like the thai's do; then you just show that yes its ok I'm farang and i can afford the extra100$. Well, I am rich and mai pen rai.

What if it happened to a local, would they take that stance if they had to shell out half a months salary or more in order to make a copy of a delicate document, hel_l no! they would demand satisfaction and more then likely get some satisfaction in the end.

If we keep this attitude that is expected of us then when you come into a serious problem of your own, you will start demanding justice, and don't think it wont happen long timers of the old days the way the government keeps changing shirts and thai's there is a possibility you will feel the same bad helplessness as others that post here.

God willing we all can enjoy the LOS and all it has to offer, but it doesn't mean we cant question something here we would naturally question at home.

Like I read in these posts before; We all have a common goal as people, maybe with different cultural backgrounds but we are still vying for a common goal that is to live peacefully and happily with our loved ones..

Maybe it's a farce, well and good for those with sorted lives living the dream, but there are others not so fortunate.

Keep that in mind

S

What utter rubbish the above post is.

yep....it must be interesting to live up in that ivory tower

[GarryP]

Why not laminate birth certificates? I laminated my children's birth certificates, my marrriage certificate and several other documents that I need to use from time to time. Luckily lamination went well. In Thailand you not only have very humid weather but also all kinds of creepy crawlies and lamination prevents damage. Paper does tend to deteriorate very fast here.

[torrenova]

I can confirm that a new birth certificate costs 20 baht from your amphur office. Add on a bit for EMS postage if you can't go in person. You will also need to get a police report (free) to confirm why you need a new certificate.

Who has told you that it costs 4,130 baht??

Simon

Agreed. Whilst laminating might be a solution, getting another copy costs even less than laminating it !

I still think the high price is for a copy of the birth registration (which you don't need anyway).