Motorbike "business" On Samui?

[bubu]

hi all ...

it sounds crazy, i know, but i really wish to know if anybody here had ever heart about stolen motorbikes, which were stolen by the rental company or things like that ...

i rented motorbikes quite often in the past ... and they always say that i have to pay in case of damage or loss.

and they always ask where the renter lives.

that means it would be easy to steal the motorbike and ask for full payment!

i really wish to know if things like that happen on samui ...

i only experienced one bad thing ... we rented a motorbike, went out to a disco, and when we returned to the motorbike we found it with a big scratch on one site ... i think it happened because the songtaew drivers moved it ...

But who knows? all rental company's contract says that the renter is not allow to have the motorbike repaired on his.

they always tell that the renter has to return the motorbike.

of course, it would be much easier to have it repaired at a motorbike shop ...

has anbody done that before? did any problems with the rental company occure?

i guess there are numerous ways of doing a bad business in this field ...

and i opened this thread to talk about this.

i did not find a similar thread ...

i am sure that all of us use motorbike ... am i the only person with such thoughts?

[samui bill]

My mate rented a bike and came of it and damaged a few panels,he went to honda and got new ones for 1700b and took it back the rental people who where happy about that,if you take it back damaged they will charge you alot and remember they have your passport!

[PoorSucker]

If need to repair the rental company has a cousin/friend that repairs bikes.

Some greedy companies put +100% on all parts.

Try to find a falang to rent from.

PM me for suggestions.

[ClaudeFeller]

Try the french guy in Maenam, I forgot his name..

[homeless007]

We rented a couple of bikes from "Komedy Club" on the Central Lamai Rd. going up to the Ringroad. My friend had an accident with quite some damage. We brought the bike in for repairs ourselves. The English owner and his mother have been extremely friendly and correct with us. Can be highly recommended for rentals. Also the bike shop was very fair, charging about 30% less then we would have paid in Pattaya. Overall only positive experiences in Samui. Quite the opposite of Pattaya.

[MSingh]

Try the french guy in Maenam, I forgot his name..

There's only 1 French Guy in Maenam ??

[ClaudeFeller]

Try the french guy in Maenam, I forgot his name..

There's only 1 French Guy in Maenam ??

I suppose there is only one who has "Rent A Bike" business. Do you remember his name?

[MSingh]

Try the french guy in Maenam, I forgot his name..

There's only 1 French Guy in Maenam ??

I suppose there is only one who has "Rent A Bike" business. Do you remember his name?

Francois ?? Jaques ?? Pepe Le Peau ??

[bubu]

ok, now we have some replies regarding damages and their repair cost ...

but what about stolen motorbikes? has anybody heart about this?

[NHJ]

i'm speaking french but belgian and have a business of rental motorbike in maenam if interested PM me.

the bikes are yamaha mio btw not click and cheap price.

[Comehome]

Rent from John and Lee at "Easy Rider" in Lamai.

They have the best taken care of bikes on the island.

Bought the Honda vtr from them, never had a problem with them.

John is a trained mechanic from England and he has lived on the island for 13 year already.

You'll notice the difference when you get there.

[bubu]

I prefer Honda CLICK or - my favourite - Yamaha FINO.

What do you think is the monthly rate for a Click or Fino?

BTW, thanks for the recommendations.

[jeztennis]

havent heard about rental companies stealing motorbikes, go to Nemesis Bar in Soi reggae, next to laem din hotel they have a fino there for rent and are very fair, any damage they take you to a lcal guy who is very good and inexensive.

rent will be about 200 to 220 per day, i think they have mio's for 3000 per month

would urge you to stay away from thai rentals, as you leave they rub there hands n glee hoping you have an accident so they can rip you off and with the police and thai legal system you will be screwed.

[bubu]

havent heard about rental companies stealing motorbikes, go to Nemesis Bar in Soi reggae, next to laem din hotel they have a fino there for rent and are very fair, any damage they take you to a lcal guy who is very good and inexensive.

rent will be about 200 to 220 per day, i think they have mio's for 3000 per month

would urge you to stay away from thai rentals, as you leave they rub there hands n glee hoping you have an accident so they can rip you off and with the police and thai legal system you will be screwed.

3000 is a good price. but i can not accept mio. i hate mio :-)

thanks for telling me that you have never heart about stolen motorbikes ... i know that this is a bad and crazy way of thinking, but hmmm ... usually the rental companies ask for a passport and then they can do what they want because they know that you need your passport back.

by the way, is it common to ask for passport for a monthly rent?

e. g. in pattaya i found a company that asks for a copy only. this is much better.

because what can i do if i want to go to phangan for some days?

i have to return the bike ... this is quite "uncomfortable" ...

what about easy rider? are they asking for passport?

we are talking about monthly rent. not for a couple of days ...

[BusyBee123]

'We rented a couple of bikes from "Komedy Club" on the Central Lamai Rd. going up to the Ringroad. My friend had an accident with quite some damage. We brought the bike in for repairs ourselves. The English owner and his mother have been extremely friendly and correct with us. Can be highly recommended for rentals. Also the bike shop was very fair, charging about 30% less then we would have paid in Pattaya. Overall only positive experiences in Samui. Quite the opposite of Pattaya.'

Gilda is very fair on the repair side too, if you damage the bike she will get the repairers to come out and get a price rather than the usual charge a fortune nonsense that goes on, good for repeat business. As for stealing bikes she had 4 stolen opposite the bar during songkran this year never to be seen again, so it happens to everyone.

[NHJ]

<br />

havent heard about rental companies stealing motorbikes, go to Nemesis Bar in Soi reggae, next to laem din hotel they have a fino there for rent and are very fair, any damage they take you to a lcal guy who is very good and inexensive.<br />rent will be about 200 to 220 per day, i think they have mio's for 3000 per month<br /> would urge you to stay away from thai rentals, as you leave they rub there hands n glee hoping you have an accident so they can rip you off and with the police and thai legal system you will be screwed.

<br /><br /><br /> 3000 is a good price. but i can not accept mio. i hate mio :-)<br /><br />thanks for telling me that you have never heart about stolen motorbikes ... i know that this is a bad and crazy way of thinking, but hmmm ... usually the rental companies ask for a passport and then they can do what they want because they know that you need your passport back.<br /><br />by the way, is it common to ask for passport for a monthly rent?<br />e. g. in pattaya i found a company that asks for a copy only. this is much better.<br />because what can i do if i want to go to phangan for some days?<br />i have to return the bike ... this is quite "uncomfortable" ...<br /><br />what about easy rider? are they asking for passport?<br />we are talking about monthly rent. not for a couple of days ...<br />

it's a shame that you don't like mio because this is my price also and i don't take the passeport

anyway, taking your passeport is not allowed, technically your passeport needs to be carried by its owner all the time, if the police does ask to see your passeport you can be arrested for such reason.

on the other side taking the passeport is not an interesting thing, if you were bad and sold the bike to a garage for parts or give it to a friend, then go to bkk and claim a new passeport, the owner could just use your passeport as toilet paper...

[baco]

Well I rent bikes on phangan, I've 2 times people didn't want to pay for the damage caused by an accident.

I send an e mail to the embassy that I had their passport and we went to the police and called the immigration and they were put in the system so they could not leave the country.

they came back because the embassy didn't issue him a new passport.

so taking the passport can help

and we were not way overcharging them we showed them the prices on the contract and said okay you pay half or you bring it yourself to a shop to get it fixed didn't want to do anything.

[NHJ]

<br />Well I rent bikes on phangan, I've 2 times people didn't want to pay for the damage caused by an accident.<br /><br />I send an e mail to the embassy that I had their passport and we went to the police and called the immigration and they were put in the system so they could not leave the country.<br /><br />they came back because the embassy didn't issue him a new passport.<br /><br />so taking the passport can help<br /><br />and we were not way overcharging them we showed them the prices on the contract and said okay you pay half or you bring it yourself to a shop to get it fixed didn't want to do anything.<br /><br /><br />

interesting story but can't they also complain because you kept their passeports wich is not allowed(i think).

in fact i'm afraid people can make more trouble, for the time being i'm taking a deposit that i refund if no damage is seen on the bike.

[jeztennis]

i think the guys at nemesis bar take either driving licence or copy passport, at he end of the day they are very accomodating and very fair, spoke to them yesterday, they might have a honda click back for rent soon, i think 3200 for the click, the fino is 3500 but is almost brand new, good luck, might see you in the bar for a cold one

[bubu]

many recommendations in this thread ... thanks a lot.

i will be on samui not before november, but for sure, i will visit some of the here mentioned rental companies and ask for prices and conditions. renting a fino without passport would be great ... i think i would pay 10.000 for a fino, because i love it

ok, to be honest, in pattaya i always rented a light blue or a pink fino ... this looks gay, but who cares?

[NHJ]

<br />many recommendations in this thread ... thanks a lot.<br /><br />i will be on samui not before november, but for sure, i will visit some of the here mentioned rental companies and ask for prices and conditions. renting a fino without passport would be great ... i think i would pay 10.000 for a fino, because i love it <img src="style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="" border="0" alt="biggrin.gif" /> <img src="style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="" border="0" alt="biggrin.gif" /> <br /><br />ok, to be honest, in pattaya i always rented a light blue or a pink fino ... this looks gay, but who cares? <img src="style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="" border="0" alt="biggrin.gif" /> <img src="style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="" border="0" alt="biggrin.gif" /><br />

if you come in november you'll need a jetski to go around, motorbike can't swim unfortunately...

[a_classic_cigar]

<br />many recommendations in this thread ... thanks a lot.<br /><br />i will be on samui not before november, but for sure, i will visit some of the here mentioned rental companies and ask for prices and conditions. renting a fino without passport would be great ... i think i would pay 10.000 for a fino, because i love it <img src="style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="" border="0" alt="biggrin.gif" /> <img src="style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="" border="0" alt="biggrin.gif" /> <br /><br />ok, to be honest, in pattaya i always rented a light blue or a pink fino ... this looks gay, but who cares? <img src="style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="" border="0" alt="biggrin.gif" /> <img src="style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="" border="0" alt="biggrin.gif" /><br />

if you come in november you'll need a jetski to go around, motorbike can't swim unfortunately...

Good one NHJ! Sooo true!

[bubu]

there will be no rain on samui this november

btw, i would come at the end of november!

[PoorSucker]

there will be no rain on samui this november

btw, i would come at the end of november!

No, It's probably snowing.

[loiner100]

Look at any Government website, never, Never, NEVER leave your passport ANYWHERE with ANYONE as security for ANYTHING.

In any case, it is illegal in Thailand not to carry your passport at all times.

[mattias33]

Look at any Government website, never, Never, NEVER leave your passport ANYWHERE with ANYONE as security for ANYTHING.

In any case, it is illegal in Thailand not to carry your passport at all times.

I´ve runned a motorbike renting buisness for the last 2 years and during this time i rented a motorbike without passport deposit only once (except for people i know very well), and that is the one rental during this time i did not get paid for. Infact i think i was lucky to even get the bike back. Leagal or not, anybody leaving expensive products to unknown people without a proper deposit is an idiot. And the only fair deposit from a tourist is the passport. The alternative would be taking the value of the bike as deposit and i seriously doubt anyone would prefer this.

And another thing. Carry your passport on you at all times???

Are you serious?

I sometimes brought a copy with me i my pocket when i was a tourist but never for the life of me would i walk around with my passport in soi green mango or at a market. I seriously doubt the general tourist would do that either. I know on a policemans request you are supposed to show your passport, i´ve been asked to do so myself and they never had any problems with me not carrying it around. Even Bangkok police. I´ve had costumers that came to me with the police because they needed to show their passport. Showed them and leave it back to me. No problems.

[loiner100]

Look at any Government website, never, Never, NEVER leave your passport ANYWHERE with ANYONE as security for ANYTHING.

In any case, it is illegal in Thailand not to carry your passport at all times.

I´ve runned a motorbike renting buisness for the last 2 years and during this time i rented a motorbike without passport deposit only once (except for people i know very well), and that is the one rental during this time i did not get paid for. Infact i think i was lucky to even get the bike back. Leagal or not, anybody leaving expensive products to unknown people without a proper deposit is an idiot. And the only fair deposit from a tourist is the passport. The alternative would be taking the value of the bike as deposit and i seriously doubt anyone would prefer this.

And another thing. Carry your passport on you at all times???

Are you serious?

I sometimes brought a copy with me i my pocket when i was a tourist but never for the life of me would i walk around with my passport in soi green mango or at a market. I seriously doubt the general tourist would do that either. I know on a policemans request you are supposed to show your passport, i´ve been asked to do so myself and they never had any problems with me not carrying it around. Even Bangkok police. I´ve had costumers that came to me with the police because they needed to show their passport. Showed them and leave it back to me. No problems.

I do not presume to tell anyone what they must do, I was merely trying to help by stating what government websites advise and my understanding of what the Thai law is.

You are of course free to do what ever you wish.

[mssabai]

Many rental companies see accidents as a standard way of increasing profits. I know many people who get commissions for sending people to various bike shops, and if they get in an accident, they will get a cut of that too! Same goes for Jetskis...it's how many operators make their money.

But also from their point of view, that particular bike will also be off the road whilst being repaired, it is fair to mark up repairs to a degree, however it is not fair to complain if repairs are done (well) before the bike is brought back, as that is just greed.

Best thing is to find someone you trust and always go back to them. I have three people in Samui I use, and they don't even bother to look at the bike when I bring it back...or ask for my passport.

[bubu]

Many rental companies see accidents as a standard way of increasing profits. I know many people who get commissions for sending people to various bike shops, and if they get in an accident, they will get a cut of that too! Same goes for Jetskis...it's how many operators make their money.

But also from their point of view, that particular bike will also be off the road whilst being repaired, it is fair to mark up repairs to a degree, however it is not fair to complain if repairs are done (well) before the bike is brought back, as that is just greed.

Best thing is to find someone you trust and always go back to them. I have three people in Samui I use, and they don't even bother to look at the bike when I bring it back...or ask for my passport.

you should tell us the names!

[bubu]

at the moment the best offer is 4000 for a click, 30 days.

is there any farang-owned rental company that offers fino?