Motorbike Accident Near Wat Lamai Yesterday

[jamesbrock]

The basic insurance does not cover damage to your bike.

It's only cover damage to third party and hospital up to 15.000 baht.

Yeah, a mate crashed his rented bike when we were in Chiang Mai in Feb, and the hospital dealt with the owner of the rental shop to cover his expenses (which were, coincidentally, 14,900 baht); he didn't have to do a thing. This did not happen for me at Nathon hospital, but considering how quickly they wanted to get me out of the place, it's not surprising. I assume the second hospital I went to assumed the first hospital I went to initiated the insurance proceedings. Regardless, it was pretty much the last thing on my mind at the time!

It will be worthwhile trying to get some of my costs back, now that the dust has settled, if it is possible once I have paid the charges myself.

Edit: Gf just told me the insurance was discussed in the first few days, and was refused by the owner of the motorbike - her reason being that I didn't die. My gf and our friend went back to the police station to complain, and the big copper there told here there was nothing he can do as the never actually filed an official report! (Upon hearing this, my gf got angry and asked - in the crowded station - "Do you want more money?") So, there you go... Gotta love Thailand!

Edited April 2, 2012 by jamesbrock

[wana]

So you hit a patch of water, slid and came off the bike and a truck then hit the bike on the ground? Then apparently another bike hit the truck?

I must have this wrong since I don't see how anyone would be paying except maybe the truck driver for compounding the damage to your bike. Where am I getting this mixed up?

it happened to a farang in thailand .........i think that clears it up .....

[wana]

I just love these post's. I worried about my GF. If you were so worried you should have made sure she was wearing a helmet before going anywhere. As for speeding pickup that hit you bike if he was speeding he did well to stop in 20 meters. Only lesson is learn and accept you made a big mistake.

Err... he already admitted the accident was his own fault. I suggest you re-read the thread, more thoroughly. It's also up to his girlfriend if she wears a helmet or not.

actually it isnt

i had this same argument with my gf and the police in the station one evening

we were going somewhere and i told her to grab a hat ,we have loads of them

she says no,just fixed her hair of whatever

half a mile down the road ,we get stopped and my licence was confiscated for "carrying a passeneger without a hat "

no roadside fine was payable ,we went in evening to the station and argued ,her (not me ) that we should pay nothing or just

100 because it wasnt my fault etc and she chose not to wear it

bottom line was ,a driver knows the highway code and IS responsible for the safety of his passenegrs who may not necessarily know the dangers of the road

so we paid 200 or 300 and promised not to do it again

[insertmembernamehere]

The most interesting part of all this is the question: Would you try and push your girl away from danger when you might know that in doing so, you will be the one seriously injured?

[jamesbrock]

I just love these post's. I worried about my GF. If you were so worried you should have made sure she was wearing a helmet before going anywhere. As for speeding pickup that hit you bike if he was speeding he did well to stop in 20 meters. Only lesson is learn and accept you made a big mistake.

Err... he already admitted the accident was his own fault. I suggest you re-read the thread, more thoroughly. It's also up to his girlfriend if she wears a helmet or not.

actually it isnt

i had this same argument with my gf and the police in the station one evening

we were going somewhere and i told her to grab a hat ,we have loads of them

she says no,just fixed her hair of whatever

half a mile down the road ,we get stopped and my licence was confiscated for "carrying a passeneger without a hat "

no roadside fine was payable ,we went in evening to the station and argued ,her (not me ) that we should pay nothing or just

100 because it wasnt my fault etc and she chose not to wear it

bottom line was ,a driver knows the highway code and IS responsible for the safety of his passenegrs who may not necessarily know the dangers of the road

so we paid 200 or 300 and promised not to do it again

I assume this wasn't Thailand? As far as I knew, Thai law states that only the rider is required to wear a helmet?

Regardless, the fact is I never wore a helmet when just tottering around Lamai, and my gf who has been riding motorcycles for over 30 years chose not to either; I had sufficient faith in her motorcycle riding ability (much more than my own) to not be worried for her. It was a completely different story, however, when we ventured out of Lamai in any direction - much to her dissent, we both wore helmets (whether she'd just had her hair done or not). It only took three or four times of me insisting she wear one for it to become habit.

Note the tense of that paragraph. Our accident, has scared us both sufficiently that we intend to wear helmets all the time in the future; and shoes (OMG wear shoes!); and if we're going to be travelling at any decent distance or speed, some of these, a pair of these and one of these... I'd rather be hot and sweaty than go through what I've been through again (and my injuries were relatively minor). If proper personal safety for both of us is the one thing to come of this, then it shall have been worth it.

The most interesting part of all this is the question: Would you try and push your girl away from danger when you might know that in doing so, you will be the one seriously injured?

Your question is phrased in such a way that it is a 'her or me' scenario; even so, I would like to think that most men would.

In my situation though, it wasn't a case of 'her or me', it was more like '@&%* me we're goners, but if I do THIS she could be missed' - a 'her and me or just me' decision, which, in the end, proved not to be the only two options.

[wana]

the law states all motorcyclists must be helmeted

its the enforcement of it thats XXXXX ,the laws in place are adequate

Post edited:

7) Not to post slurs or degrading comments directed towards any group on the basis of race, nationality, religion, gender or sexual orientation.

Edited April 5, 2012 by Rooo

[smedly]

safety gear (excluding helmet) will only save you from road rash not broken bones - just saying

as I said on the other thread Glad you both made it

[jamesbrock]

safety gear (excluding helmet) will only save you from road rash not broken bones - just saying

as I said on the other thread Glad you both made it

Proper shoes would've prevented the badly broken toe, and the sprained ankles; but, you're right, the leg and arm wouldn't have been saved by any of the gear I linked to above. Road rash was the least of my concerns, and is mostly gone now anyways.

Thanks again; we were both very lucky.

[wasas]

safety gear (excluding helmet) will only save you from road rash not broken bones - just saying

as I said on the other thread Glad you both made it

Proper shoes would've prevented the badly broken toe, and the sprained ankles; but, you're right, the leg and arm wouldn't have been saved by any of the gear I linked to above. Road rash was the least of my concerns, and is mostly gone now anyways.

Thanks again; we were both very lucky.

I,m very happy you were both ok,can i ask what age are you, just to find out roughly how long for recovery. i mean if u r 20 ish, maybe sooner, or if you r late 50s or 60s maybe longer, no offence intended

[jamesbrock]

I,m very happy you were both ok,can i ask what age are you, just to find out roughly how long for recovery. i mean if u r 20 ish, maybe sooner, or if you r late 50s or 60s maybe longer, no offence intended

I'm 41, healthy and fit (even if I have developed quite a cider-belly in the past six months ). I had been regularly cycling the 70-odd-k's around Samui (going the long way) up to a few days before the accident - THAT, I miss! Going a bit crazy in this chair actually!

The fibula in my right leg was snapped clean, a complete traverse fracture, but isn't displaced so it hasn't been braced or splinted; I'm supposed to be keeping off it. The left big toe was shattered, the foot badly bruised, and the ankle badly sprained; the toe is splinted to the second one, the foot's still very tender, and the ankle - after blowing up like a balloon - is near its normal size; I'm supposed to be keeping off that too. The right ankle was sprained too, but that's pretty much ok now. The left elbow was fractured, but it seems to have healed nicely, I just can't rotate my hand fully yet. Both wrists were sprained, and I can't really do too much that requires hand-strength (it was two weeks till I could open a can of coke).

A gash on my left shin bruised badly, and became really swollen and painful; turns out I had developed a subacute compartment syndrome. (Wiki it, it's gross.) This has required daily visits to the hospital since Sunday, but, hopefully, the incision will be closed up tomorrow. The doctor believes we caught it before any damage was done.

If I can stay off it more in these early stages, the fibula will take between 8-12 weeks for fully heal; but I could be back on the bike in another four or five. The ankle should have healed by then too.

I just need to be patient...

As an aside: the motorbike is now finished, and a friend will pick it up for us on Monday.

Edited April 12, 2012 by jamesbrock

[angryfarang]

A gash on my left shin bruised badly, and became really swollen and painful; turns out I had developed a subacute compartment syndrome. (Wiki it, it's gross.)

Wish I hadn't just googled scs... Nasty.

[jamesbrock]

A gash on my left shin bruised badly, and became really swollen and painful; turns out I had developed a subacute compartment syndrome. (Wiki it, it's gross.)

Wish I hadn't just googled scs... Nasty.

Yup, sorry bout that!

[wasas]

A gash on my left shin bruised badly, and became really swollen and painful; turns out I had developed a subacute compartment syndrome. (Wiki it, it's gross.)

Wish I hadn't just googled scs... Nasty.

Yup, sorry bout that!

yes sounds bad, one good thing about it all is that you werent killed, especially considering both of you werent wearing your lids,

[jamesbrock]

yes sounds bad, one good thing about it all is that you werent killed, especially considering both of you werent wearing your lids,

Most definitely! I stupidly clicked on a video in another thread of this guy on a big bike losing traction and doing a highside - literally sent chills down my spine! Especially in slow-mo when he smacks his (helmeted) head on the ground - f me we were lucky!