Was I Ripped Off?

[Royale]

Last week a fuse blew causing my car stereo and cigarette lighter to stop so i called at Honda where they fixed it for a grand cost of 79B.

I tried to charge my phone today from the cigarette lighter causing it to blow again for some unknown reason. This time rather than drive all the way from Kathu to the Honda garage i called at the car audio shop on the corner by Big C.

The lady spoke good English and called a boy over to replace the fuse, this took a total of 5 minutes for him to unscrew the panel under the steering wheel replace the fuse and close it up. I asked him 'how much", he pointed to the lady at the counter and shouted to her that the fuse was 50B. Suddenly out of nowhere comes a young lad who tells me "200B" .

That makes the labour cost 1.800B per hour!! or 72.000B for a 40 hour a week.

Just a thought, if you're thinking of having a stereo fitted there i suggest you get a quote first.

[H2oDunc]

Here we go again

Take a car in the UK for the same problem and expect a bill of at least 50 pounds. Here 4 pounds or around 2500 baht against 200 baht yet people still think they are being ripped off <deleted>!!!!

Either learn to change a fuse yourself or count yourself lucky you are not having to get the same thing done back home.

Its raining !

[Royale]

Here we go again

Take a car in the UK for the same problem and expect a bill of at least 50 pounds. Here 4 pounds or around 2500 baht against 200 baht yet people still think they are being ripped off <deleted>!!!!

Either learn to change a fuse yourself or count yourself lucky you are not having to get the same thing done back home.

Its raining !

I think you're missing the point. HONDA where one would normally expect to be the most expensive was 79B, a quick and friendly job done along with a glass of water and a comfortable seat. The problem with people like you is that you don't know the value of the Baht, hence why many Thai people think farangs are stupid.I should have known better than to warn anyone on this forum, it ALWAYS brings out posters like you.

[katabeachbum]

Here we go again

Take a car in the UK for the same problem and expect a bill of at least 50 pounds. Here 4 pounds or around 2500 baht against 200 baht yet people still think they are being ripped off <deleted>!!!!

Either learn to change a fuse yourself or count yourself lucky you are not having to get the same thing done back home.

Its raining !

I think you're missing the point. HONDA where one would normally expect to be the most expensive was 79B, a quick and friendly job done along with a glass of water and a comfortable seat. The problem with people like you is that you don't know the value of the Baht, hence why many Thai people think farangs are stupid.I should have known better than to warn anyone on this forum, it ALWAYS brings out posters like you.

Yes you where ripped off, but as its legal to charge any price for any service and you forgot to ask the price before job started, you had it comming :lol:

Naming and shaming is against Forum rules, and the shop owner can claim you for major amount, so please dont tell us the name or location of this shop

Honda maindealer service is cheap, isnt it

[Somtamnication]

Yes

[Kernow86]

Here we go again

Take a car in the UK for the same problem and expect a bill of at least 50 pounds. Here 4 pounds or around 2500 baht against 200 baht yet people still think they are being ripped off <deleted>!!!!

Either learn to change a fuse yourself or count yourself lucky you are not having to get the same thing done back home.

Its raining !

Was he ripped off? Should the price be different for him? Whats the price for changing a fuse in India?

[nullx8]

honda did the job for free as Customer Service but charge you more for the Fuse itself,

where the Sound-shop did charge you some micro amount for a job my 11 year old son would do just fine ..

the amount charged is in relation to the work ... but may not calculated on a time base. so everything is allright.

i dont see the rip off at all.

as iam quite sure they would not charge you much more if it would have taken 1 hour to fix something else along the way.

anyway ... following your calculation .. you have been riped off by honda .. since they charge 150% of the fuse compared to the Sound company and about 300% of the actual cost of it.

besides if the sound shop staff take care you well .. there is no point for the topic at all, and you even had the chance to compare things since the staff announced the price over the air. (no room for cheat)

Edited January 5, 2011 by nullx8

[stevenl]

You were ripped of by Honda, by charging you for a repair but not fixing the underlying problem.

[katabeachbum]

You were ripped of by Honda, by charging you for a repair but not fixing the underlying problem.

a short phone charger to be fixed by Honda?

[stevenl]

You were ripped of by Honda, by charging you for a repair but not fixing the underlying problem.

a short phone charger to be fixed by Honda?

If that is the problem. 2 times the same fuse blowing out seems to be a problem somewhere.

[nullx8]

You were ripped of by Honda, by charging you for a repair but not fixing the underlying problem.

a short phone charger to be fixed by Honda?

If that is the problem. 2 times the same fuse blowing out seems to be a problem somewhere.

sounds logic, plug the charger in .. fuse blow's ... plug it in again .. fuse blows again .. coincidence ?

[ESB7]

Labour in he UK is about 75 quid an hour, a total of 3,000 quid a week but you can bet the guy is only on a few hundred....whats the point, businesses ned to make a profit, they charged you a little more, and yes probably because you are a foreigner...welcome to Thailand and especially Phuket

[pmgthailand]

Why is naming and shaming banned, if we can post things and places that are of good value to OP's why can we not warn the same OP's about places that charge to much or have poor quality services, which is most places. I thought that was the whole point of a forum and yes I was born yesterday!

Yes you where ripped off, but as its legal to charge any price for any service and you forgot to ask the price before job started, you had it comming :lol:

Naming and shaming is against Forum rules, and the shop owner can claim you for major amount, so please dont tell us the name or location of this shop

Honda maindealer service is cheap, isnt it

[LivinginKata]

Under Thai law name & shame can lead to very serious legal consequences. Therefore this is not allowed on Thaivisa.

[BangTaoBoy]

Why is naming and shaming banned, if we can post things and places that are of good value to OP's why can we not warn the same OP's about places that charge to much or have poor quality services, which is most places. I thought that was the whole point of a forum and yes I was born yesterday!

Because one of the many random things about Thailand, is they have very strict libel laws (is that the right word) and TV would be shut down very quickly if it flaunted them.

Edited January 5, 2011 by BangTaoBoy

[katabeachbum]

Under Thai law name & shame can lead to very serious legal consequences. Therefore this is not allowed on Thaivisa.

Up to one year in jail actually, in addition to financial claims in multi million baht league

[pmgthailand]

I thought it was only libelous if it was not true.

Does that include the written press and radio, if it does then doesn't that seems like a type of censorship?

Under Thai law name & shame can lead to very serious legal consequences. Therefore this is not allowed on Thaivisa.

Up to one year in jail actually, in addition to financial claims in multi million baht league

Edited January 5, 2011 by pmgthailand

[Tywais]

Under Thai law name & shame can lead to very serious legal consequences. Therefore this is not allowed on Thaivisa.

And to expand some on this, it can still be libel in Thailand even if it is true if it will affect a business or individual financially.

[katabeachbum]

Does that include the written press and radio, if it does then doesn't that seems like a type of censorship?

Under Thai law name & shame can lead to very serious legal consequences. Therefore this is not allowed on Thaivisa.

Up to one year in jail actually, in addition to financial claims in multi million baht league

at any level, level one is you tell 2 friends this person/company cheated you. Then your friends swap side and want to help the "cheating" person/company by witnessing. Sufficient for court to sentence you

naming and shaming can legally be used in criminal cases where police has arrested or issued warrant, which is what we usually see on telly or in newspapers. To protect the population, despite accused is not sentenced yet

This could lead to ainteresting discussion, but I think we should leave it here. naming and shaming is illegal for posters, and thus against Forum rules

[BangTaoBoy]

I thought it was only libelous if it was not true.

Does that include the written press and radio, if it does then doesn't that seems like a type of censorship?

Opinions of a service being bad or food being poor etc, are just that, opinions. Someones personal opinion damaging somebodies business is hardly fair, and could lead to underhand tactics against competitors. I'm not saying the law is perfect, but it's by no means the worst in Thailand.

[Spoonman]

So Royale, did you buy a bag of fuses so that you can perform this 2 minute task yourself next time round ?

[NamKangMan]

Under Thai law name & shame can lead to very serious legal consequences. Therefore this is not allowed on Thaivisa.

For future reference, can you tell me how/why one of the biggest print media for farang on the island (we all know the one) can get away with front page headlines such as:

"Tourist assualted by tuk-tuk drivers."

"Police intervien in jet ski dispute."

Headlines like these, and the following stories, bring disrepute to all tuk-tuk drivers, and jet ski operators, and therefore their industry. Is this not a bit of "name and shame" or do you have to specifically name the person and/or the business name to be in breach? (there has been many threads criticizing these two industries)

Eg. If I said on TV: "All bars in Soi Tiger charge 100 baht a beer." Is that ok? But, if I said, "Bar XYZ on Soi Tiger charges 100 baht a beer." Is that a name and shame and how can it be a name and shame if it is a fact, not an opinion - they actually charge 100 baht a beer.

As a previous poster mentioned, I thought the charge of liabel could only be acted upon if you were publicly stating false information about a business or individual.

Hypothetically, let's say the OP refused to pay the 200 baht and the incident turned nasty with fists flying, the police being called and people being charged. Why can the newspaper report on that, and we can discuss it on TV, but because it didn't esculate to a physical altercation, it's off limits to discuss - dispite him being overcharged.

What is the difference between "name and shame" and hotel, restaurant, cafe, bar, nightclub etc etc - "REVIEWS" which are all on TV and everywhere over the internet?

Why can't we, "review" car servicing centres, and their costs, in the same manner?

Edited January 5, 2011 by NamKangMan

[thaiwanderer]

Where's the rip off?

The 79thb fix didn't work, OP wanted to avoid driving the distance back there as well and didn't want to fix it himself or ask the prices before hand.

[NamKangMan]

Where's the rip off?

The 79thb fix didn't work, OP wanted to avoid driving the distance back there as well and didn't want to fix it himself or ask the prices before hand.

The overcharge came after he didn't ask the price first.

He was basically charged the equivilant of the average national days wage in Thailand, for a 2 minute job.

There was a thread recently about a similar situation.

Everyone, everytime, anywhere and for everything should ask the price first, or you may be confronted with a similar situation.

[Spoonman]

The overcharge came after he didn't ask the price first.

He was basically charged the equivilant of the average national days wage in Thailand, for a 2 minute job.

The fuse was 50b, he was charge 200b.......... where in Thailand is the national days wage 150b ?

[Tywais]

The fuse was 50b, he was charge 200b.......... where in Thailand is the national days wage 150b ?

The new minimum wage law taking effect January 1, 2011 shows the lowest provinces at 151 Baht/day. Previously it was 148 Baht/day.

151 Payao, Pichit, Phrae and Mae Hong Son

List of minimum wage by province for 2011

[Jimi007]

The overcharge came after he didn't ask the price first.

He was basically charged the equivilant of the average national days wage in Thailand, for a 2 minute job.

The fuse was 50b, he was charge 200b.......... where in Thailand is the national days wage 150b ?

What does rent, utilities etc cost to have a shop open everyday? It's not just the wage... But yes, he was taken a few baht....

I had my rear brakes replaced on my motor bike for the same pice he paid to get a fuse installed...

[thaiwanderer]

The overcharge came after he didn't ask the price first.

He was basically charged the equivilant of the average national days wage in Thailand, for a 2 minute job.

There was a thread recently about a similar situation.

Everyone, everytime, anywhere and for everything should ask the price first, or you may be confronted with a similar situation.

How much was the OP's time worth in avoiding the longer journey or doing it himself?

He was charged appropriately for not having asked beforehand and even then not having queried it afterwards - instead he starts a thread asking whether he was ripped off.

While I assume his sarcasm in posing the thread title as a question, slightly OT - is it a rip off if you don't feel or know you've been ripped off?

[thaiwanderer]

He was basically charged the equivilant of the average national days wage in Thailand, for a 2 minute job.

Many people seem willing to repeatedly pay more than the national minimum wage for the services of Thais for far shorter time than a full days work.

[Valentine]

Many people seem willing to repeatedly pay more than the national minimum wage for the services of Thais for far shorter time than a full days work.

It would be extremely hard for anyone in Phuket to live on the minimum wage unless they have housing & transport provided.