German Man Still In ICU After Dispute With Phuket Tuk-Tuk Driver

[shunima]

100B is perfectly fair, too much even. 200B is just a rip-off.

Who can say this is a rip off ??? Who are you to judge that ??? If you don't like the price, you don't use tuk tuks, that s it... As well since they don't have meters, you should always agree on the price before jumping in a tuk-tuk.

I wonder how much this guy would have paid in Germany for the same trip ? 10 or 15 EUR ?? Would he dare to say he does not pay the bill in his own country ???? I don't think so.

I don't caution the behavior of the tuk tuk drivers, it is unacceptable to beat someone to death for that but I am sure those kind of incident could be avoided with a bit of diplomacy...

First, in Germany an 800 meter trip will be less than 5 Eur and that is less than 200 baht for an airconditioned Mercedes or BMW. In Bankgok I pay 160 baht for a 18 km trip with a bit of traffic jam included. Ergo... It is ok if you call a rip-of what it is.

[pete66]

Wifes interview on the 'not named' site states she didnt see him hit the driver..

It also seems like there was just an 'insta-mob' at the scene not further away as previously sounded.

i do believe the other paper has better reporters then the PG, but thats a personal opion

anyway, now she has been interviewed, the turn of events seem to be alot different

1) the fare was 100 THB, paid for by the Thai to the Thai , but then 200 was asked for

2) she nver sw the assult

3) it happen directly after they got out

4) The Camera's - I find it hard to believe the camera's didnt pick anything up, are there operators on these camera's???????? or are they just there? , as CCTV do work, take the london riots as an example , they caught everything, plus Tai Pan has camera's, and there is even CCTV covering that spot !

I think more will come out, but they are protecting the TUK TUK scum

when they do, or if they do catch these animals, do what the UK done with the riotors and set an example on these Men, Attempted murder, thats 20 years in the monkey house

so where did the stuff about "happening to chance upon her brother who tried to sort it out, failed, and then a gang set upon the guy" go to? Must have come from somewhere ...

Has she changed her story, perhaps sobered up and realized getting her brother in the equation was a very bad idea?

How did she not see the assault if it happened just as they got out of the Tuk-tuk? Tieing up her shoelaces presumably ....

[cup-O-coffee]

Rip-off or not, the question is, "How much does it cost for the satisfaction of a shove, not paying a price, and trying to walk away?"

Answer: 100 THB

What are the consequences of such behavior?

Answer: A full on beating, a trip to the ICU, the pain of eating your food through a straw for the rest of your life, and having a constant dribble out of the corner of your mouth.

I don't like it anymore than the others. One can say all they want about the reaction; but we should all know by now that the fuel is on the ground and the fumes are thick in the air.

DON'T Light a match. Pay and don't do it again. In any other country similar to this, this man would be very very lucky to be alive indeed. Moreover, a little bit further South and he probably would have been shot. Unless you are with a group of Special Forces or S.A.S., do not ever, ever shove or touch a Thai man when out and about and vulnerable.

As the prior poster listed the many articles citing violence with people in this occupation, it should come as no surprise that you WILL get ripped off. But to pay 200 THB to get home in an expensive and cheating environment is a small price indeed, when the alternatives are the ICU. Walk and play the odds with pneumonia, or ride and pay and smile! The veneer of civilization here is often as thin as the membrane of a soap bubble's.

Geez. I feel embarrassed for this man.

[LivinLOS]

I don't like it anymore than the others. One can say all they want about the reaction; but we should all know by now that the fuel is on the ground and the fumes are thick in the air.

Ahh but heres the rub.. When some of us post things like this.. A certain sub section of the Phuket posters will be out in force.. Claiming how everythings fine.. nothings amiss... etc etc etc.. Even in the face of such constant evidence.

Its this vibe, this constantly having to be guarded and careful, the knowledge that of something did happen I would not have anyone rushing to my defense to restrain or stop an attacker.. That they can shove you but you better not shove back.. It was those reasons why I left. But if and when I said those opinions, it was all hyperbole or my attitude etc..

Thais in other parts of the country simply are not like this.. They arent..

[Boater]

so where did the stuff about "happening to chance upon her brother who tried to sort it out, failed, and then a gang set upon the guy" go to? Must have come from somewhere ...

Has she changed her story, perhaps sobered up and realized getting her brother in the equation was a very bad idea?

How did she not see the assault if it happened just as they got out of the Tuk-tuk? Tieing up her shoelaces presumably ....

it could just be bad chinesse whisper reporting and not getting any facts straight..... remember the 12 thais who killed the sweede ? .......

i think we should wait untill the CCTV footage is ' released ' or it is being hidden due to the nature of the incedient

[LivinLOS]

Isnt it interesting, how the Pol Major is so sure the german is in the wrong, asking the media to 'accurately report the incident' as the police now have so prcisely and that they intend to take action. Hes firmly positive, they know, "This is a clear cut case and Mr Trotnow faces action because he did the wrong thing" so obviously have evidence quality information..

Yet on the topic of who hit the german, who it could possibly be ?? that theres no witnesses, no one saw anything and the CCTV doesnt work.

How are they sure enough to be taking 'action' on one hand.. but so unsure on the other.. Baffling that one !!

[FrankieDimes]

How factual is this story. I would actually like to know from the victim if he pushed the tuk tuk driver or not. Most likely he just walked away. I just returned from a 4 day stay in Phuket. I don't care for Patong at all, but I was there to visit a few friends that arrived with the U.S. Navy. It was reported that one U.S. Marine prepaid for a tailor made suit. The day his suit was supposed to be ready, he goes to pick it up with receipt in hand. There is a different tailor in the store that says he didn't order a suit or pay for a suit at his tailor shop. Although the Marine has his receipt with the store's name and everything and knows this is the shop he had measurements and paid money to, the tailor refused to honor his receipt. The tailor pushes the Marine, as the Marine is falling backwards, he grabs the tailor and they both fall through the shops store front window. Last I heard, was that the Marine was taken to the hospital to receive sutures and that he would be responsible for paying for the window. No mention of the tailor made suit.

My advice is to stay away from Phuket altogether.

[dude007]

42 baht in a Bangkok aircon cab even factoring traffic jams = 200b in Phuket !!!!! Still amazes me why people go there?

The bit about the Patong Taxi Federation was rather cute !!!! A group of mafia tuk tuk drivrrs that call them selves a federation.

Amazing Thailand

Miracle Thailand

a bunch of thugs they are... How many times I have already warned this forum!? This maffia is clearly protected from higher hands who turn a blind eye on what they are doing. Please authorities, whether you are red shirts or Phue Thai: this Tuk Tuk maffia in Phuket is the reason why this place goes down: it used to be a nice place but since the tuk-tuk maffia took over, it's finished and will never be the same again. Ban them; buy their red/yellow cabs at fair prices: burn them all at Loy Kratong and get rid of these things for their loud noisy and disturbing appearances on the streets of Pathong and Phuket. If you are serious in saving tourism in Phuket: start with square one: the Tug Tug maffia! All the rest is sheer nonsense and peanuts compared to this major problem!

[kirk0233]

200 baht equals approximately 4 and a half Euros. A German paying anything less than ten euros for such a trip in Germany would be lucky indeed. While this is not Germany, the foreigners come here expecting everything for cheap and to push people around, just like that German just pushed the tuk-tuk driver to the ground because there was an argument. We don't have the whole story, because as was noted, the German couple were drunk, it is possible they are putting themselves in a much better light than they have behaved, and the Tuk-tuk driver cannot be located because 200 baht is not an incredibly high price to pay for a taxi ride in the rain in the middle of the night.

What we have is a story without a source describing a German who did not want to be scammed by a tuk tuk driver and be charged the maximum fare in Phuket for less than a kilometer ride. A drunk wife who cannot remember anything despite her husband almost being killed. The other actor is the compassionate and reasonable Thai brother-in-law who wanted to pay the 100 baht to the driver that the stingy German would not pay. Unfortunately, the unreasonable German foreigner refused the kind gesture and rudely walked away after manhandling the tuk tuk driver for no apparent reason. The friends of the driver then almost kill the German for 3 dollars while his wife and brother-in-law do nothing. The Thai brother-in-law doesn't remember anything regarding the incident other than the German's bad behavior and his generous gesture to pay the 100 baht that was declined. Of course, could he have possibly insisted on paying the money to protect his naive and money grubbing relative when the situation escalated to a life threatening level? Nice piece of fiction.

[pete66]

Rip-off or not, the question is, "How much does it cost for the satisfaction of a shove, not paying a price, and trying to walk away?"

Answer: 100 THB

What are the consequences of such behavior?

Answer: A full on beating, a trip to the ICU, the pain of eating your food through a straw for the rest of your life, and having a constant dribble out of the corner of your mouth.

I don't like it anymore than the others. One can say all they want about the reaction; but we should all know by now that the fuel is on the ground and the fumes are thick in the air.

DON'T Light a match. Pay and don't do it again. In any other country similar to this, this man would be very very lucky to be alive indeed. Moreover, a little bit further South and he probably would have been shot. Unless you are with a group of Special Forces or S.A.S., do not ever, ever shove or touch a Thai man when out and about and vulnerable.

As the prior poster listed the many articles citing violence with people in this occupation, it should come as no surprise that you WILL get ripped off. But to pay 200 THB to get home in an expensive and cheating environment is a small price indeed, when the alternatives are the ICU. Walk and play the odds with pneumonia, or ride and pay and smile! The veneer of civilization here is often as thin as the membrane of a soap bubble's.

Geez. I feel embarrassed for this man.

I feel embarrassed for Patong, Phuket and the money-grabbers that obviously run the province. If they wanted to sort the tuk-tuk situation out, they could have done so many moons ago.

Hindsight is a wonderful thing. There are many situations I wouldn't have got involved with if I knew the consequences afterwards. But none of us do. We can all be wise after the event.

On another night, the driver would have backed down and taken the 100B as a reasonable payment for the service. Perhaps he'd just had a fight with his wife. Perhaps he was on something. Perhaps he hadn't made much that night. Perhaps he was just a nasty little soab. Perhaps all 4 apply.

If the lesson to learned is "pay whatever the tuk-tuk driver demands of you when you leave the vehicle" then I don't agree.

If the lesson is "don't go to Patong" then I would agree.

[TechnikaIII]

100B is perfectly fair, too much even. 200B is just a rip-off.

So his wife is a local Thai and suddenly can't remember anything that happened? How bloody convenient .......

Not to mention soon after meeting her brother, there is suddenly a gang to hand. A call placed perhaps?

Yet again, looks like a case of choose your Thai "relatives" very carefully.

"Yet again, looks like a case of choose your Thai "relatives" very carefully."

No. It's about knowing where you are, and behaving yourself accordingly. He should have known better than to push the guy to the ground. What an idiot. And being drunk, I can imagine his manners would have been inflammatory to say the least.

CCTV, witnesses or not, the severity of the beating is an indication of just how much resentment there is amongst Thais, about the numbers of undesirables here to screw their women. There is a deep hatred which has not come from nowhere. The opportunity to lay into a chauvinist brute like this guy was just too good to pass up. He may well be suffering more than you think he deserves, but it's as well to take note and learn from it. Be streetwise when negotiating with tuk tuk drivers or anyone for that matter, and watch your manners, it is their country not yours. You do not own them, and you have no right to be rude, regardless of the other person's argument. Don't go out intoxicated that your discretionary powers are so diminished, so that you can not deal with it.

There are numerous places in London, New York, Sydney .. you name it, where you could expect similar treatment. Example: A white guy, with a black girlfriend, staggering through a black suberb, arguing and shoving a black guy half his size to the ground? Would the white guy be carried away in an ambulance or a body bag? In this case, would you still say "Yet again, looks like a case of choose your black "relatives" very carefully."?

[saintofsilence]

a bunch of thugs they are... How many times I have already warned this forum!? This maffia is clearly protected from higher hands who turn a blind eye on what they are doing. Please authorities, whether you are red shirts or Phue Thai: this Tuk Tuk maffia in Phuket is the reason why this place goes down: it used to be a nice place but since the tuk-tuk maffia took over, it's finished and will never be the same again. Ban them; buy their red/yellow cabs at fair prices: burn them all at Loy Kratong and get rid of these things for their loud noisy and disturbing appearances on the streets of Pathong and Phuket. If you are serious in saving tourism in Phuket: start with square one: the Tug Tug maffia! All the rest is sheer nonsense and peanuts compared to this major problem!

IT doesn't matter how many warning about Tuk Tuk or Jet ski mafia's are on this forum they will continue to injure and rob tourist's I am surprised there are not dedicated websites with all these reports and warnings to all travellers .

[MaxYakov]

Yes ... they've got some fancy Tuk Tuks in Phuket I was noticing during my whole two stays there. I made sure I didn't set body into one. I guess I wasn't drunk enough any time to make that mistake. I did learn how to take the bus from Phuket City to Patong though for 25 Baht. Lucky me!

[a99az]

This follows hard on the heels of the new "Miracle Thailand " campaign NOT !!

It is a miracle he survived...

and another miracle if they catch them.

[jackcorbett]

If the country really values tourism there is only one way to handle such situations as this---the way the Cairo Museum handled a security guard who laid his hands on my ex wife.

This was back in 1987 or so. We were visiting various exhibits together when we temporarily split up. Upon exciting the museum my wife told me a security guard on one of the upper levels had tried to feel her up while I was absorbed looking at the mummies. I about came unglued, turned around and in full view of all the tourists lining up at the museum entrance i denounced the guard and his action in a very loud voice. The scene must have gotten very uncomfortable for the employees in our vicinity so my wife and I were ushered into a very plush office belonging to the curator of the museum. He had soft drinks brought in for us and a magazine for me, then he had his head of security come in. The man left with my wife for a few minutes while I perused the magazine and after she returned she told me while we were leaving the museum that the head of security helped her find the guard who had tried to molest her. After my wife identified the man the head of security took him and my wife into a little room where he had the guard sit in a chair while he beat him senseless.

The lesson the museum gave us was 1. we were considered to be far more valuable to Egypt as tourists than Egyptian citizens who were employed in low level positions in the tourism sector. The lesson the museum gave Egyptian citizens by summarily beating up the security guard was.....1. Don't screw with the tourists because Egypt needs their money. It is inexcusable that Thailand does the opposite by giving the power of life and death to taxi drivers and other rift raft over tourists. What needs to happen is that tourists need to be presumed to be correct and that if a taxi driver or any other person making his living off tourists has a grievance he should go to the police who can then deal with the offending tourist according to Thai law. As for anyone subjecting any tourists to such beatings.....everyone taking part in the beating should be getting some serious jail time after getting beaten within an ounce of their lives first... Egyptian Museum style.

[pete66]

100B is perfectly fair, too much even. 200B is just a rip-off.

So his wife is a local Thai and suddenly can't remember anything that happened? How bloody convenient .......

Not to mention soon after meeting her brother, there is suddenly a gang to hand. A call placed perhaps?

Yet again, looks like a case of choose your Thai "relatives" very carefully.

"Yet again, looks like a case of choose your Thai "relatives" very carefully."

No. It's about knowing where you are, and behaving yourself accordingly. He should have known better than to push the guy to the ground. What an idiot. And being drunk, I can imagine his manners would have been inflammatory to say the least.

CCTV, witnesses or not, the severity of the beating is an indication of just how much resentment there is amongst Thais, about the numbers of undesirables here to screw their women. There is a deep hatred which has not come from nowhere. The opportunity to lay into a chauvinist brute like this guy was just too good to pass up. He may well be suffering more than you think he deserves, but it's as well to take note and learn from it. Be streetwise when negotiating with tuk tuk drivers or anyone for that matter, and watch your manners, it is their country not yours. You do not own them, and you have no right to be rude, regardless of the other person's argument. Don't go out intoxicated that your discretionary powers are so diminished, so that you can not deal with it.

There are numerous places in London, New York, Sydney .. you name it, where you could expect similar treatment. Example: A white guy, with a black girlfriend, staggering through a black suberb, arguing and shoving a black guy half his size to the ground? Would the white guy be carried away in an ambulance or a body bag? In this case, would you still say "Yet again, looks like a case of choose your black "relatives" very carefully."?

I agree with a lot of that, especially about the resentment among some Thai men when farangs have taken their women. That is certainly true. And Thai men take it out on the Thai women when they have the chance as well... you might even say the Thai men that DO feel such resentment are attracted to work in areas where they get a chance to take out their resentment.

Also agree you shouldn't get so drunk you have no idea what you are doing, bad idea anywhere, let alone Patong.

We'll see (or not) whether the relatives had any part in this apart from "innocent victims".

BTW, your story about New York is great and all, except we have no idea it really happened like that do we? Again I ask, who's story are we currently going on?

And the idea of a bunch of London black-cab drivers kicking some guy to within an inch of his life because he didn't pay a non-metered fare, maybe agreed in advance, maybe not, might work in a Statham gangster movie, not in real life. Never seen it in 30 years, yet happens in Patong seemingly all the time. There is nothing comparable.

[SanSaiExPat]

I wouldn't worry since the new government will eventually silence the media like the past.

Why do you have to bring your own political bias and opinion into a news article about a violent assault? Isn't this a violation of the TOS?

[luvU2much500THB]

Why not ask for the price of the tuk-.tuk price upfront? If its too much take next one its easy (while you walk away he lowers the price anyway sometimes)

[pete66]

Why not ask for the price of the tuk-.tuk price upfront? If its too much take next one its easy (while you walk away he lowers the price anyway sometimes)

That's already been discussed. We all agree its a good idea. But also it seems according to the latest account from his Thai wife, he did agree 100B in advance, and then the driver asked for another 100B at the end of the journey.

[MaxYakov]

It strikes me that this kind of altercation must have occurred often in Bangkok with Taxis before meters where mandated. Meters objectively determine the fare and a dispute is less likely. With Tuk Tuks, on the very rare occasions that I've used them, I've always negotiated the fare in advance for a specific destination. I've often walked when the fare negotiation failed. Of course, being sober does help the whole process.

[metisdead]

Discussion of German Man Still In ICU After Dispute With Phuket Tuk-Tuk Driver would be on topic to this discussion. Discussion of taxi fares in Germany would be another topic altogether, although not Thailand related. Posts have been removed.

[pete66]

Why waste your time? This has nothing to do with the cost of taxis in Berlin. What a ridiculous idea ....... or if I come from Manhattan should I expect to rent a room in Patong for $100K a month?

Well, now that you've brought it up, if the USD keeps dropping like a wet water buffalo pie ...

Thai Baht -> US $ hasn't really changed much the last couple of years ........

I understand people living abroad thinking its ridiculous talking about taxi fares that are 100B or 200B being insignificant, I really do. In the UK, I pay £15 (700 baht) for 20-min journey, and don't start kicking the taxi driver because of it.

But as anyone knows who stays abroad for more than a few weeks, you quickly get used to local prices, and you should do, that is where you live! Being ripped off is a completely different mindset, its really got nothing to do with prices, its just that nasty feeling someone is trying to shaft you. Nobody likes being shafted.

In Thailand, if you know Pepsi costs 14B a can at 7-11, and you go to another store without displayed prices, and they want to charge you 25B, you feel you are being ripped off, because you are, even if it costs double that "back home". They have seen you coming. I've even seen Thai store-holders brains' ticking over deciding whether to try and rip me off or not when they "make the price up on the spot".

Personally, if I had agreed 100B and then got out the other end and got told to pay 200B, I wouldn't have paid the extra either. I certainly wouldn't have kicked or pushed the guy (if that is what happened), because I've witnessed too many violent incidents in Phuket, and I'm no bigger than the average Thai tuk-tuk driver anyway, let alone his 20 rent-a-mobs.

[Roachiebkk]

200 baht equals approximately 4 and a half Euros. A German paying anything less than ten euros for such a trip in Germany would be lucky indeed. While this is not Germany, the foreigners come here expecting everything for cheap and to push people around, just like that German just pushed the tuk-tuk driver to the ground because there was an argument. We don't have the whole story, because as was noted, the German couple were drunk, it is possible they are putting themselves in a much better light than they have behaved, and the Tuk-tuk driver cannot be located because 200 baht is not an incredibly high price to pay for a taxi ride in the rain in the middle of the night.

You are kidding right? You must be taking the p*** because your comments leave me speechless

[Logician]

No sympathy for the bloke in hospital at all. Play with fire....

[Roachiebkk]

100B is perfectly fair, too much even. 200B is just a rip-off.

So his wife is a local Thai and suddenly can't remember anything that happened? How bloody convenient .......

Not to mention soon after meeting her brother, there is suddenly a gang to hand. A call placed perhaps?

Yet again, looks like a case of choose your Thai "relatives" very carefully.

"Yet again, looks like a case of choose your Thai "relatives" very carefully."

No. It's about knowing where you are, and behaving yourself accordingly. He should have known better than to push the guy to the ground. What an idiot. And being drunk, I can imagine his manners would have been inflammatory to say the least.

CCTV, witnesses or not, the severity of the beating is an indication of just how much resentment there is amongst Thais, about the numbers of undesirables here to screw their women. There is a deep hatred which has not come from nowhere. The opportunity to lay into a chauvinist brute like this guy was just too good to pass up. He may well be suffering more than you think he deserves, but it's as well to take note and learn from it. Be streetwise when negotiating with tuk tuk drivers or anyone for that matter, and watch your manners, it is their country not yours. You do not own them, and you have no right to be rude, regardless of the other person's argument. Don't go out intoxicated that your discretionary powers are so diminished, so that you can not deal with it.

There are numerous places in London, New York, Sydney .. you name it, where you could expect similar treatment. Example: A white guy, with a black girlfriend, staggering through a black suberb, arguing and shoving a black guy half his size to the ground? Would the white guy be carried away in an ambulance or a body bag? In this case, would you still say "Yet again, looks like a case of choose your black "relatives" very carefully."?

You are obviously joking?

[Roachiebkk]

No sympathy for the bloke in hospital at all. Play with fire....

What is it with you people?

[RedNIvar]

Been to Phuket once. Had my fair share of adventures with the tuk-tuk drivers. Don't really see myself going back, these thugs seem to have no fear of the law. Amazing, scratch that Miraculous.

[EyesWideOpen]

I am curious about the level of tourist beatings that are acceptable to the Phuket government.. One a week, two a week , or one a day ?? I would have thought that this magic number , whatever it is, would have been exceeded by now. But apparently not?

[Logician]

No sympathy for the bloke in hospital at all. Play with fire....

What is it with you people?

What is it with you people who choose to completely over look a drunk farang assaulting a local person while on holiday in his country, and instead choosing to moan about how expensive the fares are.

You're letting your bias and hatred for tuk tuks over come you, and not seeing the incident for what it is individually. A drunk bloke assaulted a Thai man and got a kicking for it. No sympathy what so ever.

Why is it myself and thousands of others can use Tuk tuks without ever getting attacked? Because we're not drunk and abusive perhaps?

[pmgthailand]

Should be called Puke-it. Makes me sick!