Am I Allowed To Warn About Bad Products

[thaibeachlovers]

Nothing specific in the rules, but doesn't seem to happen.

[Chivas]

Why wouldn't you want to report shoddy service ??

[thaibeachlovers]

Why wouldn't you want to report shoddy service ??

I do, but haven't noticed anyone warning about specific companies, and don't want to break any "rules". I can't be the only person with a complaint about a Pizza Company product..

[lopburi3]

There indeed is a specific rule and due to laws here it needs to be taken very seriously as truth is not the defense it is in some countries.

6) Not to post comments that could be reasonably construed as defamation or libel.

Defamation is the issuance of a false statement about another person, which causes that person to suffer harm. Libel involves the making of defamatory statements in a printed or fixed medium, such as a magazine or newspaper.

[nong38]

There indeed is a specific rule and due to laws here it needs to be taken very seriously as truth is not the defense it is in some countries.

6) Not to post comments that could be reasonably construed as defamation or libel.

Defamation is the issuance of a false statement about another person, which causes that person to suffer harm. Libel involves the making of defamatory statements in a printed or fixed medium, such as a magazine or newspaper.

So do this mean that if we find bad service, or identify an eating or drinking establishment that is over charging we cannot tell other forum members to avoid these places? Yes you can or no you cant?

[WinnieTheKhwai]

It depends how you present it. If it's a tirade with little constructive value then you would likely get into trouble. Also it needs to be objective and demonstrable enough, not anecdotal. "I went to XYZ Burgers one afternoon and spent the whole next day on the toilet' is an example of a post that won't be looked on kindly.

Often however, you can omit the name of the specific place and keep the warning in more general terms. If you omit the name, that will get you through the first day on the forum without having the topic closed. Then by page two you will have an inbox full of people asking you which place. Then you can either keep it in PM, or drop a hint or two that will tell the readers with some intelligence exactly which place you're talking about. This was done expertly in a report recenlty in the CM forum, and it sailed right around any anti-'name and shame' rules without breaking them.

And then there are different kinds of these topics; I sometimes wonder if it wouldn't be great to have a 'Complaints' sub forum for every time someone is short-changed a 100 baht and feels like whining to the collective readership instead of speaking to the manager of the place. Another great category for such a sub forum would be all kinds of communication issues and misunderstandings with a single staff member who doesn't speak English very well, by a raving Farang who don't speak Thai very well. "I ordered an iced frappucino, but instead received a hot coco volcano with whipped cream and now I am outraged." Seriously... one way ticket to a 'Complaints' forum would work really well for those.

I think I could personally manage a warning about a bad product or service and not have the topic closed. Problem is that in the very rare event that I encounter something bad that is truly and objectively bad, I don't much feel like whining about it on a forum. (Unless it would really be important and for the common good to get a warning out.) Maybe I should just do it next time and do a complaint/warning topic, but I'm too much of an optimist.

Edited November 21, 2011 by WinnieTheKhwai

[thaibeachlovers]

Given Lopburi's reply, I think I'll just leave it. Warning about something isn't worth it if it's going to cause problems.

As the Romans said Caveat Emptor.

[Boater]

Freedom of Speach ?

[Ijustwannateach]

Since this thread has been borderline at best and is really about the rules and moderation, I'm now closing it and deleting the snarkier posts. If you have a specific suggestion about a complaint you would like to make in public, best to PM a mod first to ask about it. In general, I wouldn't think that general specific complaints about Brand X ('it doesn't work as well as Brand Y', or 'the handle fell off 2 days after we bought it'), there probably aren't going to be too many problems as weaknesses in these individual products are likely to be known. On the other hand, if you want to bash a specific business, or person running that business, that's dodgier ground legally. Forum sponsors are specifically protected by the rules- it is not absolutely forbidden to raise a reasonable concern, but you are on shaky ground especially if you seem to have a grudge or an axe to grind (it also depends partly on the sponsor). If you would like to open your own website or forum and accept the legal risks that such behaviour entails, you are entirely welcome to do so.

Other inquiries about the rules should be directed privately (by PM) to mods or by email to [email protected].