Koh Tao Motorbike Issue

[sbk]

Doesn't seem that unreasonable to me that if someone posts asking for advice that they would check back to see responses.

[chopperbopper]

This is good info. But you dont even need to do that much. Forget about going to the local polcie yourself ( most of them are useless and dont like farangs who wont pay them more money.)

This passport is Property of the US Goverment. Just contact them and tell them the truth the man at the moterbike rental shop has stolen your passport. If possible try to get a picture of him and his shop. Take these thing to the US embaasy in BKK. Make sure you see and speak to a American person who works there ( not a thai who works there ). If they who let you see a Amercian dont be put off by them. remember the US embassy in BKK is US land and US law. You have more right to be there than them and demand to thai's who work there to let you speak to a american and have to let you.

As soon as you tell them this man at the moterbike shop has stolen your passport they will sort it all out for you.

How can he tell them the truth, that they stole his passport? This is not the truth, he gave them the passport. So why compound the issue with a lie? So all of a sudden this guy that rents & damages a bike is an angel & the guy that rents it out to to him is a passport thief?

Love to see the US navy moored off Koh Tao in the near future perhaps.

Yes ROO, this guy is a passport thief. Will he give the passport back to this guy ? NO. So that means he has now stolen the passport from this guy. If you lend your friend your car and he doesnt ever give it you back does that means hes not a thief ! ?? i dont think so.

Someone need to tell this Koh Tao hillbilly that even throw he may be married to his cousin whos borther is the local mayor or something !! That he has stolen a US passport not he a Thai id card or something like that.

Becuase he is a local doesnt mean you have to worship the ground they walk on Roo. They are rich ( threw land ) yes but very poorly educated these island folk. I think his wife/cousin need to give if some advice and tell him to give the passport back and the nice farang man can buy him some wiskey. Imported from another country. All the way from Hua Hin. i am sure he has never heard of there !!!. 2 hour from Koh Tao ... might as well be the moon for island folk like him.

[angiud]

[Rooo]

This is good info. But you dont even need to do that much. Forget about going to the local polcie yourself ( most of them are useless and dont like farangs who wont pay them more money.)

This passport is Property of the US Goverment. Just contact them and tell them the truth the man at the moterbike rental shop has stolen your passport. If possible try to get a picture of him and his shop. Take these thing to the US embaasy in BKK. Make sure you see and speak to a American person who works there ( not a thai who works there ). If they who let you see a Amercian dont be put off by them. remember the US embassy in BKK is US land and US law. You have more right to be there than them and demand to thai's who work there to let you speak to a american and have to let you.

As soon as you tell them this man at the moterbike shop has stolen your passport they will sort it all out for you.

How can he tell them the truth, that they stole his passport? This is not the truth, he gave them the passport. So why compound the issue with a lie? So all of a sudden this guy that rents & damages a bike is an angel & the guy that rents it out to to him is a passport thief?

Love to see the US navy moored off Koh Tao in the near future perhaps.

Yes ROO, this guy is a passport thief. Will he give the passport back to this guy ? NO. So that means he has now stolen the passport from this guy. If you lend your friend your car and he doesnt ever give it you back does that means hes not a thief ! ?? i dont think so.

Someone need to tell this Koh Tao hillbilly that even throw he may be married to his cousin whos borther is the local mayor or something !! That he has stolen a US passport not he a Thai id card or something like that.

Becuase he is a local doesnt mean you have to worship the ground they walk on Roo. They are rich ( threw land ) yes but very poorly educated these island folk. I think his wife/cousin need to give if some advice and tell him to give the passport back and the nice farang man can buy him some wiskey. Imported from another country. All the way from Hua Hin. i am sure he has never heard of there !!!. 2 hour from Koh Tao ... might as well be the moon for island folk like him.

Not defending locals or foreigners. The guy uses a passport which belongs to his government as collateral, which the person renting him the bike takes in good faith.

He damages bike, refuses to negotiate by the sounds of it & screams blue murder. NO ONE stole his passport, he took it upon himself to use his countrie's official issued ID as security.So what do you want to do now? Bring down the force of the law to retrieve his passport even though he is not capable of fulfilling his responsibility, compensation, whatever that may be.

He left himself open with no better attitude then the people you are criticizing, a passport good enough , doesn't matter, but when it comes to the crunch it does matter, because he failed to take adequate steps to protect himself , by understanding the consequences if he caused damage.

The police won't file a report, because he is shrugging off the blame, just wants his passport back, afraid it don't work this way.

There is a way with dealing with people,this person said he rented bikes all over Thailand, so that's not his first interaction,he hasn't just landed & got taken advantage of.

I agree with you, the greedy people will try & fleece him,but there is always more then one way to skin a cat.(ooops).

[Rooo]

[limbos]

This is good info. But you dont even need to do that much. Forget about going to the local polcie yourself ( most of them are useless and dont like farangs who wont pay them more money.)

This passport is Property of the US Goverment. Just contact them and tell them the truth the man at the moterbike rental shop has stolen your passport. If possible try to get a picture of him and his shop. Take these thing to the US embaasy in BKK. Make sure you see and speak to a American person who works there ( not a thai who works there ). If they who let you see a Amercian dont be put off by them. remember the US embassy in BKK is US land and US law. You have more right to be there than them and demand to thai's who work there to let you speak to a american and have to let you.

As soon as you tell them this man at the moterbike shop has stolen your passport they will sort it all out for you.

How can he tell them the truth, that they stole his passport? This is not the truth, he gave them the passport. So why compound the issue with a lie? So all of a sudden this guy that rents & damages a bike is an angel & the guy that rents it out to to him is a passport thief?

Love to see the US navy moored off Koh Tao in the near future perhaps.

Yes ROO, this guy is a passport thief. Will he give the passport back to this guy ? NO. So that means he has now stolen the passport from this guy. If you lend your friend your car and he doesnt ever give it you back does that means hes not a thief ! ?? i dont think so.

Someone need to tell this Koh Tao hillbilly that even throw he may be married to his cousin whos borther is the local mayor or something !! That he has stolen a US passport not he a Thai id card or something like that.

Becuase he is a local doesnt mean you have to worship the ground they walk on Roo. They are rich ( threw land ) yes but very poorly educated these island folk. I think his wife/cousin need to give if some advice and tell him to give the passport back and the nice farang man can buy him some wiskey. Imported from another country. All the way from Hua Hin. i am sure he has never heard of there !!!. 2 hour from Koh Tao ... might as well be the moon for island folk like him.

Not defending locals or foreigners. The guy uses a passport which belongs to his government as collateral, which the person renting him the bike takes in good faith.

He damages bike, refuses to negotiate by the sounds of it & screams blue murder. NO ONE stole his passport, he took it upon himself to use his countrie's official issued ID as security.So what do you want to do now? Bring down the force of the law to retrieve his passport even though he is not capable of fulfilling his responsibility, compensation, whatever that may be.

He left himself open with no better attitude then the people you are criticizing, a passport good enough , doesn't matter, but when it comes to the crunch it does matter, because he failed to take adequate steps to protect himself , by understanding the consequences if he caused damage.

The police won't file a report, because he is shrugging off the blame, just wants his passport back, afraid it don't work this way.

There is a way with dealing with people,this person said he rented bikes all over Thailand, so that's not his first interaction,he hasn't just landed & got taken advantage of.

I agree with you, the greedy people will try & fleece him,but there is always more then one way to skin a cat.(ooops).

Well said Roo. I also very much doubt what the US Embassy is going to do about a case IF the passport would be stolen on Koh Tao. As already portrayed, send the US Navy in? I wonder if anybody in the US Embassy can point out Koh Tao on a map, let alone go down there and threaten some local hillbillies.

On the other hand, I know of a case in which the local recompression chamber on Samui had the US passport of a patient as collateral since the patient didn't have insurance upon which the US Embassy called the chamber and demanded the passport to be handed over, to which the chamber complied. Doubt that a local hillbilly will follow suit.

[screamingeagle]

This is good info. But you dont even need to do that much. Forget about going to the local polcie yourself ( most of them are useless and dont like farangs who wont pay them more money.)

This passport is Property of the US Goverment. Just contact them and tell them the truth the man at the moterbike rental shop has stolen your passport. If possible try to get a picture of him and his shop. Take these thing to the US embaasy in BKK. Make sure you see and speak to a American person who works there ( not a thai who works there ). If they who let you see a Amercian dont be put off by them. remember the US embassy in BKK is US land and US law. You have more right to be there than them and demand to thai's who work there to let you speak to a american and have to let you.

As soon as you tell them this man at the moterbike shop has stolen your passport they will sort it all out for you.

How can he tell them the truth, that they stole his passport? This is not the truth, he gave them the passport. So why compound the issue with a lie? So all of a sudden this guy that rents & damages a bike is an angel & the guy that rents it out to to him is a passport thief?

Love to see the US navy moored off Koh Tao in the near future perhaps.

Yes ROO, this guy is a passport thief. Will he give the passport back to this guy ? NO. So that means he has now stolen the passport from this guy. If you lend your friend your car and he doesnt ever give it you back does that means hes not a thief ! ?? i dont think so.

Someone need to tell this Koh Tao hillbilly that even throw he may be married to his cousin whos borther is the local mayor or something !! That he has stolen a US passport not he a Thai id card or something like that.

Becuase he is a local doesnt mean you have to worship the ground they walk on Roo. They are rich ( threw land ) yes but very poorly educated these island folk. I think his wife/cousin need to give if some advice and tell him to give the passport back and the nice farang man can buy him some wiskey. Imported from another country. All the way from Hua Hin. i am sure he has never heard of there !!!. 2 hour from Koh Tao ... might as well be the moon for island folk like him.

Not defending locals or foreigners. The guy uses a passport which belongs to his government as collateral, which the person renting him the bike takes in good faith.

He damages bike, refuses to negotiate by the sounds of it & screams blue murder. NO ONE stole his passport, he took it upon himself to use his countrie's official issued ID as security.So what do you want to do now? Bring down the force of the law to retrieve his passport even though he is not capable of fulfilling his responsibility, compensation, whatever that may be.

He left himself open with no better attitude then the people you are criticizing, a passport good enough , doesn't matter, but when it comes to the crunch it does matter, because he failed to take adequate steps to protect himself , by understanding the consequences if he caused damage.

The police won't file a report, because he is shrugging off the blame, just wants his passport back, afraid it don't work this way.

There is a way with dealing with people,this person said he rented bikes all over Thailand, so that's not his first interaction,he hasn't just landed & got taken advantage of.

I agree with you, the greedy people will try & fleece him,but there is always more then one way to skin a cat.(ooops).

I agree with Roo! He hasn't PMed me for help. I think this American guy was so "in your face" that he lost all hope of a peaceful outcome. Has he read or responed to any posts on this forum? NO! Roo: close this.....

[samuicanuk]

A new bike is not 11,600 baht. not even remotely close.

Negotiate, they will most likely come down if you approach this in a civil manner without losing your temper. If you have already lost your temper and shouted obscenities at them, then negotiation will be that much more difficult.

but. then neither is 11,600 anywhere remotely close for scratches.

make clear to them you will not pay that.

yes, wrong move to give your passport, to anyone, hotels too...

[sonchaiJ69]

Wrote a letter to the US State Department. So sorry some of you are so jaded that you think the theft of a US passport is not an issue. Guess you've been here too long. Extortion sucks, period. the US government owns that passport, not myself.

People need to be warned. Putting up flyers in local shops. DO NOT GIVE PASSPORT AS COLLATERAL ON A BIKE. EVER.

Scratches on fairing extremely minor. Otherwise model citizen here. Looking to other nations in SE Asia to vacation in. Local cops no help. Fine.

Thailand is a funny beast. So many ways to make money here and want to cheat instead. Lame.

[screamingeagle]

I ask again, has this guy responded to any posts on this thread? No. So close it...............

[Rooo]

Wrote a letter to the US State Department. So sorry some of you are so jaded that you think the theft of a US passport is not an issue. Guess you've been here too long. Extortion sucks, period. the US government owns that passport, not myself.

People need to be warned. Putting up flyers in local shops. DO NOT GIVE PASSPORT AS COLLATERAL ON A BIKE. EVER.

Scratches on fairing extremely minor. Otherwise model citizen here. Looking to other nations in SE Asia to vacation in. Local cops no help. Fine.

Thailand is a funny beast. So many ways to make money here and want to cheat instead. Lame.

Let's get this clear, it is NOT a theft. You took it upon yourself to leave it as part of a bargain, that being returning the goods in good condition, which you failed to do.

They did not twist your arm & wrestle the passport out of you.We are not that jaded or naive either.

Funny how you turn the tables & blame everyone else.Look at what you are writting, you used it as collateral & then with the same breath acuuse them of stealing it.

[dom samui]

Yes not theft .... can it be called ........rétention ?

However , got the feeling that a lot here seem to ''agree''(exorbitants overchargings) with this kind of practice.....

I don't agree with the following( don't need to comment please , i repeat :I don't agree with the following)

9 years ago (So it's a long time ago, and a kind of "way of life" in tao, happened exactly the same to two guys i was diving with(not friends).They simply throw away the 2 bikes to the sea and went away ....made new pass in bkk.......Cannot win all the time.

[SeanMoran]

Lucky thing that the OP who crashed the rent-a-bike didn't wind up wounded in hospital, which might have cost a fair bit more than 12,000 baht. Most fortunate to get through a crash so cheaply in financial and somatic terms.

[chopperbopper]

Wrote a letter to the US State Department. So sorry some of you are so jaded that you think the theft of a US passport is not an issue. Guess you've been here too long. Extortion sucks, period. the US government owns that passport, not myself.

People need to be warned. Putting up flyers in local shops. DO NOT GIVE PASSPORT AS COLLATERAL ON A BIKE. EVER.

Scratches on fairing extremely minor. Otherwise model citizen here. Looking to other nations in SE Asia to vacation in. Local cops no help. Fine.

Thailand is a funny beast. So many ways to make money here and want to cheat instead. Lame.

Let's get this clear, it is NOT a theft. You took it upon yourself to leave it as part of a bargain, that being returning the goods in good condition, which you failed to do.

They did not twist your arm & wrestle the passport out of you.We are not that jaded or naive either.

Funny how you turn the tables & blame everyone else.Look at what you are writting, you used it as collateral & then with the same breath acuuse them of stealing it.

Roo, Why do you keep claiming this it NOT theft. It has clearly turned into a theft of a passport.... If what you was saying is ture, that means people could go and rent car's then not return them keep them and would you still say that is not a theft ? This Koh Tao reject has took this guys passport and will not give it back it is now a theft from the US goverment. Yes i have not doubt that most americans wont no where Koh Tao and some even thailand is on a map. But it doesnt matter becuase Koh Tao is a nothing place just a rock. So really who gives SH*T where it is on the map ! and the same for thailand it is not a important international country so why do people from america ( one of the most if not the most powerful countys in the world ) need to know were thailand is on the map. I dont see people in the US watching Thai tv programs and Thai movies. But i see many Thai's dressed in american style clothes and watching american movies and programs. Listen if the US embassy in BKK says to any thao offical we want this passport back they will have it back in a matter of days. he even knew.

and whos talking about the US NAVY ??? I think the US could send the Boy Scouts in on a canoe to deal with Koh Tao ( and proabley thailand to )

Dont start beliving thailand is the centre of the world just becuase you live here..

[goldfinger]

...salowly it is getting away from the pont.

1) i give you my motorbike- you give me your passport---okay-nobody forced him to give his passport.he could have gone away easy.but he agreed.

2) you give me my motorbike back(as it was before-undamaged- i give your passport back-okay-agreed.

3)oh-motorbike damaged-please pay for the damage-as long as not-i keep your passport.business as usual.

(chopperbopper- nothing else to claim about the taxidrivers....???)

should be closed now really- not funny anymore

[angiud]

Now you understand why many people are not so happy with this kind of bushesque american attitude....

C'mon, take it easy, is just a passport, is Koh Tao, not Bin Laden

[BasementCat]

I guess OP will spend more than THB 11'600 on accommodation, food, transportation, etc. awaiting for his new passport from the US embassy. No?

[kosh]

A new Honda Click is 46,000 baht.

Change all plastic costs 2500 baht.

Best post! Now we know to go to bike brand dealer after any small accident....

[sinplyred]

It is illegal for them to retain your passport, end of story

[stiggy]

If its been surrendered as collateral In fact the illegal act is by the person surrendering.

however the police need a letter from the embassey then they will act.

Edited January 15, 2010 by stiggy

[PoorSucker]

A new Honda Click is 46,000 baht.

Change all plastic costs 2500 baht.

Best post! Now we know to go to bike brand dealer after any small accident....

The OP does not tell how much damage it was.

Today one of my bikes came in crashed.

Had to change all plastic, all lights, front wheel.

Basically a new front.

The renter was a Samui born lady and repairshop also Samui born.

Total cost 6500 baht + 500 baht for not be able to rent out.

[Martian]

A new Honda Click is 46,000 baht.

Change all plastic costs 2500 baht.

Best post! Now we know to go to bike brand dealer after any small accident....

The OP does not tell how much damage it was.

Today one of my bikes came in crashed.

Had to change all plastic, all lights, front wheel.

Basically a new front.

The renter was a Samui born lady and repairshop also Samui born.

Total cost 6500 baht + 500 baht for not be able to rent out.

"Loss of use" charges are one of the biggest scams by rental companies. One shouldn't be able to claim loss of use unless proof can be provided that for the period of "loss of use" claimed, demand for said item exceeded the rental company's supply. I've yet to see a motorcycle rental shop in Thailand empty of motorbikes. Why should a customer have to pay for an item to sit in a repair shop when it would have been sitting at the rental company, producing no income........sham.

Regards

[Rooo]

A new Honda Click is 46,000 baht.

Change all plastic costs 2500 baht.

Best post! Now we know to go to bike brand dealer after any small accident....

The OP does not tell how much damage it was.

Today one of my bikes came in crashed.

Had to change all plastic, all lights, front wheel.

Basically a new front.

The renter was a Samui born lady and repairshop also Samui born.

Total cost 6500 baht + 500 baht for not be able to rent out.

"Loss of use" charges are one of the biggest scams by rental companies. One shouldn't be able to claim loss of use unless proof can be provided that for the period of "loss of use" claimed, demand for said item exceeded the rental company's supply. I've yet to see a motorcycle rental shop in Thailand empty of motorbikes. Why should a customer have to pay for an item to sit in a repair shop when it would have been sitting at the rental company, producing no income........sham.

Regards

Maybe the wording should be , loss of opportunity. You can't call it a sham, look at Samui in peak times, decent rental places, don't have any bikes left.

[Boo]

Friend arrived last week, tried to find a bike today in all the places we know in Ban rak & all rented out. She will be taking over the monthly rental on Friday as friends are leaving for a few months but nearly everywhere we know the bikes (clicks, dreams, waves) are fully rented out at the moment every single day. The shop next to ours doesn't even do monthly rents anymore as she gets all her bikes rented on a daily basis & makes a lot more money.

[BigC]

normally i take pictures of the bike before i rent it. agree where the damage is bfore i rent. then if i damage it i get a quote from another shop.

if they over charge u and u have signed a contract then u r liable. end of the day they are a business and they do want t make a profit. they might insist u pay them what they want annd not what the garage wants. it is there bike and there prices. sometime they make more money out of the damage. So if u have signed a contract then they have got u. if not then u can go to the tourist police.

[ralph02]

People need to be warned. Putting up flyers in local shops. DO NOT GIVE PASSPORT AS COLLATERAL ON A BIKE. EVER.

Scratches on fairing extremely minor. Otherwise model citizen here. Looking to other nations in SE Asia to vacation in. Local cops no help. Fine.

Passport must be collected for security and have been forever, it's standard practice as a 150 baht rental on a 30000 baht scooter is nothing.

The owners make nothing on the rental but rely on tourists damaging the bike so they can make a wedge on the repairs, standard fee on Koh Tao is 5000baht for scratches. Dent the tank or frame and the sky's the limit.

Only answer is to not drop the bike and you will have no problem, our friend must have done more damage than just scratches as the Thais usually don't extort to that extent , police will not get involved its so its up to the renter to resolve the issue.

Loose your cool and its game set and match to the Thais, this guy just lost.

[screamingeagle]

The OP has never made post since the first one.. He has probably gone home with his tail between his legs.

[Rooo]

The OP has never made post since the first one.. He has probably gone home with his tail between his legs.

He did post # 39.

[newbie83]

In the south Islands best is to Rent bikes and Bungalows from Foreigners (They call us Farangs...)( doesn't mean you'll not be scamed but percentage will be certainly lower. ) After more than ten years here, i now think it's best (for :price, security, clean, service etc...) to use Foreing management , services etc. than Local ones(some don't see you as a human but as a stupid walking wallet). I didn't used to think the same few years ago , but times are changing here.... sometime not for the best.

absolutely not true for me, i was overcharged also in ko tao by some fat uk or australian(judging by accent) slob....he ripped me off for like 50 euros...

i rented bike in indonesia, did some scratches on the back, and i had to pay like 10 usd....honest indonesian lady....

[travellife]

Why are you not insured? Or why did you not check to see the insurance for the bike.

It is crazy to ride a bike or car without proper insurance in any country especially Thailand. What would have happened if you ran over and killed someone. I have no sympathy for you

keep your horses mate, it's not a question of insurance here, all the vehicules must have an insurance and tax paid and you need to put the sticker where it can be easily seen.

the CTPL will give to the family 100.000 thb if you kill someone.

I will be going to Koh Tao next month so this post is interesting. After reading it, here are my conclusions:

1) If I rent a bike and it is damaged, it is best to get it repaired first before returning it. I assume the repair job will be good enough so the rental place can't tell it was damaged. The 2,500/3,000 baht to replace the plastics on the bike is a deal given that the person got in an accident and damaged the bike and is only paying about $90. I doubt it would be that cheap in the states.

2) As long as the bike has a current sticker that means the rider/renter is covered by CTPL (Compulsory Third Party Liability). I think the bodily injury is 50,000 baht per person and 100,000 baht per death. This is probably inadequate for injuries to a third party so I would expect to pay some additional, maybe significant baht.

3) If a Thai motorcycle driver hits my rental bike and damages both his and the rental bike, I assume I have to pay for both (irrelevant of who is at fault). Again it is best to go to a repair shop and get it fixed before returning it.

As long as I am aware of this things beforehand, I am ok with them. It is part of the cost of traveling and being able to rent a motorcycle. There are risks involved. To avoid these, I could just take public transportation.