Car Accident

[BigSkip]

Did I screw up? Tonight I was backing up out of parking spot in XXXXXXXXX City, on to a main road with a car to my left rear blocking the view from an exit of a small village. While I was waiting for the traffic to clear to enter the road a motorbike came barreling out of the village, He was not looking my way, He admitted to the insurance agent, police & myself that he could not see me and was looking at the oncoming traffic when he struck me from behind (I saw him coming and could do nothing). Both he and his girl slammed into the back of my car. After a heated debate and heading to the Police Station it turned into a 3 ring circus with all the Police, his Family and my agent telling me it's a 50-50 mistake and let the insurance co. handle it. No Big Deal, why am I making it a big deal. I insisted the kid's family should pay. To top matters off He has No Insurance, No Lic., and No Helmets. I was cornered and they said it would go bad for me if I continue wanting to go to court (the good old boy system at work here). When I finally broke down and gave in I realized I might have given my only edge away.(I tried to call 2 lawyers, neither would answer the phone….1700 on 16apr10.(Songkran in full swing). My agent said let it go, let the insurance co. handle it, your rates won't go up much,(a few sayings come to mind "The check is in the mail", etc., etc.) What's a man suppose to do?? Please help me with any pointers or previous situations.

6 years driving in thailand, past 3 years living here, 2 Accidents, both motorbikes hitting me. the first the kids Mom just paid.

V/R

Worried During Songkran.

p.s. first post.

[metisdead]

Let the insurance company take care of it.

[F1fanatic]

Impossible to say. He admitted it was his fault? But, he would have changed his story.

I was involved in a car accident a few years back and my husband was determined not to let the other party get away with it. They even lied about the driver according to my ex - presumably the driver was drunk so a passenger said he was driving.

I persuaded him to let it go for all the obvious reasons:- the insurance company would pay, the policeman told us the other party would take us to court (v frightening when you've only been here a few months), and I was far more interested in finding the dog we'd lost in the accident.

Looking back, it was a mistake. We never found our dog and we could have proved our case, regardless of what the other driver (?) said. I seriously doubt that he would have taken us to court.

[garyh]

Let the insurance handle it, you try to push the point it may come back to bite you harder.

[needforspeed]

Let the insurance company take care of it.

Agree, let them handle it and back up asap.

[Soutpeel]

Let the insurance handle it......thats what you pay the insurance money for...

[Heng]

Great advice, although I'd bet that about half the posters (and a good portion of people in general I mean) on here have 3rd class insurance who often don't even send a rep. out to the accident scene.

A tier one insurance representative would have been on the scene doing all the talking for the OP and we likely would not have heard of such a problematic incident. It'd be more along the lines of "I had a car accident today so I had to sit around for half an hour having some coffee and donuts while a bunch of locals and a traffic cop did a lot of pointing and spray painting outside. "

[Forkinhades]

you can be thankful that it has not cost you anything!

backing out on to a main road is illegal in the UK???? TiT

Recent experience of mine I had an accident here in LOS, cost me 30,000 baht, and I had first class insurance, got threatened with being taken to court and then deported!

The motorbike Taxi, had NO license and NO insurance! still my fault!! (which it was )

[Hssl]

Let the insurance take care of it AND also get the other party to sign off that they will not take any civil action

[mrbojangles]

Whats the estimate to fix your car?

[Loz]

I'm thinking of writing the next Expat best seller: Learning to live with Twunts

Edited April 17, 2010 by Loz

[Soutpeel]

Let the insurance take care of it AND also get the other party to sign off that they will not take any civil action

its the OP who was taking about taking Civil action against the guy who hit him, not the other way round and it was hinted at that he back off, not the other way round

[BigSkip]

Thanks for all the info..... In response to some of the comments, No Quote Yet, Songkarn weekend, Backing out onto the road was the only way, when you drive down the road you pull in on a angle right into the designated, Lined, Parking Spot.

I guess the thing that rubs me the wrong way the most is he was total wrong, admitted it, but changed his mind when he realized, that after each question "I" had him answer he was digging himself deeper and deeper. Thanks Again, Great website here!

[Forkinhades]

Good luck for you, please keep us posted on the outcome of this, they have a habit of turning nasty.

[Chunky1]

You should not be parking farang style in Thailand. Back into your parking space.

[TheLaughingMan]

Am I missing something? This is THAILAND. You mean to tell me, you are NOT being held responsible? The police are NOT trying to extort money from you at the threat of deportation or imprisonment? And you are complaining? I think you dont understand what usually happens in this situation here, you are extremely lucky.

[jackr]

I'll go against the grain and motion to take them to court, take em for all they're worth and redress the balance somewhat.

[WarpSpeed]

you can be thankful that it has not cost you anything!

backing out on to a main road is illegal in the UK???? TiT

Recent experience of mine I had an accident here in LOS, cost me 30,000 baht, and I had first class insurance, got threatened with being taken to court and then deported!

The motorbike Taxi, had NO license and NO insurance! still my fault!! (which it was )

That's the key here, in most first world country's it is ALWAYS the fault of the backing driver (improper backing) so if you are being offered any options here then you should take it and run like a thief as I also suggested in the case noted, never give them time to think it over..Settle and be done with it..

[billythefish]

If they had fallen off the motorbike, you should have continued to reverse and go forward and repeat until they were a mass of strawberry jam all over the road, only then will these people learn!

[PattayaParent]

you can be thankful that it has not cost you anything!

backing out on to a main road is illegal in the UK???? TiT

Recent experience of mine I had an accident here in LOS, cost me 30,000 baht, and I had first class insurance, got threatened with being taken to court and then deported!

The motorbike Taxi, had NO license and NO insurance! still my fault!! (which it was )

That's the key here, in most first world country's it is ALWAYS the fault of the backing driver (improper backing) so if you are being offered any options here then you should take it and run like a thief as I also suggested in the case noted, never give them time to think it over..Settle and be done with it..

There are some parking places designed for ONLY nose first parking and it's not possible to reverse park into them except from the other side of the road, difficult on a dual carriageway.

Also to leave them you would be driving out into oncoming traffic.

[gmac]

you can be thankful that it has not cost you anything!

backing out on to a main road is illegal in the UK???? TiT

Recent experience of mine I had an accident here in LOS, cost me 30,000 baht, and I had first class insurance, got threatened with being taken to court and then deported!

The motorbike Taxi, had NO license and NO insurance! still my fault!! (which it was )

That's the key here, in most first world country's it is ALWAYS the fault of the backing driver (improper backing) so if you are being offered any options here then you should take it and run like a thief as I also suggested in the case noted, never give them time to think it over..Settle and be done with it..

There are some parking places designed for ONLY nose first parking and it's not possible to reverse park into them except from the other side of the road, difficult on a dual carriageway.

Also to leave them you would be driving out into oncoming traffic.

Never have understood this type of parking space although I have seen them all over Thailand. They are especially dangerous when you are parked in a car and someone parks a pick-up or some such larger vehicle to your left which means backing almost to the centre of the road before you can see anything. Seems to me that the fault lies with the planners who design these parking areas but I can't see claiming that holding much water in court!

[jcbangkok]

Let the insurance handle it and be thankful they are not blaming you 100% as that is usually the case in a motorcycle vs. car accident and rarely ever not the case when it is a farang car driver and a Thai on a motorbike.