So my brand new isuzu d-max top model was smashed into by a drunk driver yesterday

[Mick Wood]

Im posting this to hear if someone have any experience from dealing with insurance claims regarding cars. The whole experience have been pretty unreal so far for me. I bought a brand new Isuzu 4-door pickup about 3 months ago, and the seller assured me i got the number 1 insurance from their recommended insurance company, Tanachart Insurance and bank.

Yesterday on the way home from shopping, ironically my thai girlfriend was driving because i had had 1 small Singha for lunch along with my tom yam noodle soup. Anyways we were riding in about 80 km/h, when this drunk thai suddenly came speeding out of a soi and smashed into the right side of my Isuzu. We sailed sideways out of the road and into the ditch. Its a miracle we didnt roll over and into multiple spins. The police showed up pretty quickly and the drunk driver confessed to everything was his fault, there were also multiple witnesses. He also signed a statement. At this point i was relieved, and expected the rest of the process with the insurance company to be formalities. I had a camera in the car and documented everything with photos. (Later i was very happy i did, because later the policeman failed to retrieve the photos from his memcard at the station, and had to use my photos in his report.)

We were asked to come to the police station for the paperwork. The drunk thai also was asked to come. I am really suprised i managed to keep my self from smashing his face in, but somehow i kept myself from it. An insurance agent from our company showed up, asked my gf questions and took notes. An agent from the drunk drivers insurance company also showed up.

The entire right side of my car is smashed in, and in Norway where i come from, this would clearly be a case of just getting a new replacement car, and not bother totry and repair the damage. Obviously that is not the case in Thailand. I was told by the agent that they would repair the damage and i should not worry, although paying for new doors, fenders etc, was less likely to happen. But this was not up to him, but up to the office clerks in the insurance company. I asked him based on what ? The photos and the police report he said.

After about 3 hours of chit chat in thai between the insurance agents, the police, my gf and the drunk thai, they gave him back his driver license and sent him home, mai ben rai, take care. We were also sent home, and told to contact the insurance office on monday.

It seems drunk driving is seen as a minor fellony here similar to running a red light.

After trying to deschipher the insurance deal today with my tgf, it seems like i have 1st class insurance, but i can only take the car to some specified workshops for repair, not the 1st class wich free choice of workshop, I was not given this choice when i bought the car.

So tomorrow(monday) im off to the insurance office. If they tell me they will replace the damaged doors and everything, its ok i guess. THis is Thailand after all. But if they want to repair the old smashed-in ones, im pretty sure the car will be damaged forever. Im also pretty sure the weels, and the structure steel is bent, so the car will never again run straight. I'll probably have to just dump it at a dealer shop, and eat a 3-400k baht loss.

So my question,have anyone experienced something similar ? Should i hire a lawyer here to walk me through the process, contact the Isuzu dealers for assistance ? Suggestions, similar experiences greatly appreciated.

[Commander Tamson]

Not much help to you now, but I've had similar problems in the past. 1st class insurance to you, may not mean the same to Thai insurance companies. You must insist that in the event of an insured peril, the car can be repaired by a manufacturer's approved repairer, rather than an Insurance company's approved repairer - there can be a huge difference!

And you'll find there is little or no difference to the price of the policy! Makes you wonder, right?

Edited October 6, 2013 by Commander Tamson

[Spoonman]

With my insurance there was 2 different choices for 1st class, They nominate repairer was one price and I nominate repairer another, I chose the later as it was cheaper plus I have access to the panel shop at my work.

Unless the damage is minor they will just replace the doors/fender, are you sure the chassis is bent..... has the B post been pushed in/floor pan buckled ?

[Gsxrnz]

I've been T-Boned in a similar fashion to you. Bent chassis, buggered rear door and rear deck, busted suspension/springs, diff was also trashed.

Had 1st class insurance. The insurance company chose the repairer which turned out to be a large company in Laem Chabang.

They did the repairs that took three months. A second hand door and rear deck, second hand diff, new springs suspension and rear wheel, new rear bumper bar. I had to pay for the tyre because insurance doesn't cover it. The entire truck was re-sprayed - I never figured out why.

I'm involved with a transport company and have supervised many HV repairs over the years and handled insurance claims in relation to them- talking fender benders and rollovers.

I'd say the repairs here were as good as anything I've seen in NZ. Quality was good on all the repairs, s/h quality of the door and deck was OK and they were re-sprayed anyway. It went to an actual Toyota dealer for chassis straightening (I saw the invoice from Toyota), and it tracks true, brakes straight, and corners as you would expect. Paint looks as good as new after nearly 3 years.

I'd say that provided you have the luck to be sent to a larger organisation for repairs than you can expect a reasonable job to be done.

Oh........two things about Thailand - you WILL fall off/crash your motorbike, and your truck WILL get hit. It's not a case of "if", it's just a matter of "when".

[Ace of Pop]

Is the G.F.s Licenense 100%, if not Foreget any claims.. Your Loss.

[Mick Wood]

Thanks for the input guys, Its appreciated

The GF's driver license is 100%, thank god.

Tomorrow i'll go to the Izusu dealer and talk about the chassis straightening bit, wich is my main concern. Im not 100% sure its bent, but i want to have it checked, preferably by a Isuzu workshop.

The Insurance company has offered me a list of workshops they have arrangements with, and its up to me to pick one. I'll have the isuzu guys look at this and tell me their choice. but i'll visit some of the shops before i pick one.

I'll also have a chat with the salesman on why he did not offer me an insurance option including possibility of me nominating the repairer, or manufactorers/Isuzu workshop.

Anyone know a good workshop in the Kalasin/Khon Kaen area by any chance ?

[Pib]

Insurance policies can be either Dealer repair or Contract repair. When Dealer repair you can have it repaired at your dealership; if contract repair that means it gets repaired at shops under contract with the insurance company. This would be reflected on your policy sheet statements. However, after a vehicle is 5 year old, insurance companies don't offer Dealer repair coverage; it shifts to contract repair only. So, you might want to confirm whether your insurance covers Dealer or Contract repair...the insurance company will try to steer you towards one of their contract repair shops even if you have Dealer repair coverage but you can have your vehicle repaired at the dealer if the coverage provides that. Happened to me a couple years ago when I needed a broken door window replaced...my insurance company (LMG) tried to send me to one of their Contract repair shops...I said I have Dealer repair coverage...got my insurane broker involved who straightened out the insurance company and it was repaired at my dealership. My 2009 Fortuner (actually reflects 2008 on the car blue book since it was bought in Oct 2008) insurance was dealer repair for the first 5 years, I just renewed my insurance and that is when I found out only contract repair is now available and even some of the medical coverage amounts take a healthy drop...my broker even gave me three more quotes from other companies just to show me how coverage changes once the vehicle is more than 5 years old...guess the vehicle is consider less safe once it gets so old and don't rate Dealer repair anymore....appears to be the norm for Thai insurance.

[Dario]

About 20 years ago I was involved in a "carambolage" of 10 cars just opposite the Yakult factory on the Don Muang - Din Daeng highway under, not above on the tollway. The first car, a Mercedes which caused the whole thing, disappeared. I was the 9th car, I tried to avoid to hit the car in front of me, succeeded, but was pushed by the last car behind me at full highway speed into the car in front of me. I had "chan 1" insurance. My car was very badly damaged as it was "sandwiched" between 2 cars at high speed. My insurance company said they will repair the car. I did not agree with the agent at all and I tried to and got get the MD of the company on the phone and told him that in my country this car would be labelled as a total loss. One day later, after he had seen pictures of my car, he called me up and conceded defeat. My car was declared a total loss and I was paid by the insurance company within 8 days. The company was Thai Metropole which merged with a foreign company a few years after the accident. It was worth lobbying.

Edited October 6, 2013 by Dario

[jbrain]

In Thailand you rarely get a total loss as the labor cost is so low that it's always cheaper to repair.

In the west it's cheaper to replace the car because of the high labor costs.

[robblok]

In Thailand you rarely get a total loss as the labor cost is so low that it's always cheaper to repair.

In the west it's cheaper to replace the car because of the high labor costs.

I had a total loss here in Thailand.. took a while for them to decide and a crooked insurance employee tried to screw us.

[Mick Wood]

In Thailand you rarely get a total loss as the labor cost is so low that it's always cheaper to repair.

In the west it's cheaper to replace the car because of the high labor costs.

I had a total loss here in Thailand.. took a while for them to decide and a crooked insurance employee tried to screw us.

How did he try to screw you ?

Im assuming most insurance companies here see any case with a falang involved as an opportunity to get easy off the hook. Thats why im considering hiring a lawyer. The insurance agent from Tanachart showing up at the policestation recommended a shop in Roi Et, (were he came from) Im assuming the shop belongs to his cousin.

Another concern i have is that most shops will have more money out of repairing damaged doors, fenders etc than to order new original ones ones, as the labour hours comes up.

Another potential scam can be respraying second hand doors, and claim they are genuinely new fresh from the Isuzu factory.

[robblok]

In Thailand you rarely get a total loss as the labor cost is so low that it's always cheaper to repair.

In the west it's cheaper to replace the car because of the high labor costs.

I had a total loss here in Thailand.. took a while for them to decide and a crooked insurance employee tried to screw us.

How did he try to screw you ?

Im assuming most insurance companies here see any case with a falang involved as an opportunity to get easy off the hook. Thats why im considering hiring a lawyer. The insurance agent from Tanachart showing up at the policestation recommended a shop in Roi Et, (were he came from) Im assuming the shop belongs to his cousin.

Another concern i have is that most shops will have more money out of repairing damaged doors, fenders etc than to order new original ones ones, as the labour hours comes up.

Another potential scam can be respraying second hand doors, and claim they are genuinely new fresh from the Isuzu factory.

The guy who handled the initial part kept saying it was not total and that we should sign it over to him and he would give us (was a lower amount). We were adamant it was total and called the higher ups in the chain, obviously the guy wanted it so he could have it as total and pocket the difference.

[oneday]

I was rear-ended about 3 months ago in Pattaya by a Thai driving a Range Rover. I breathed easy when I saw that, knowing he'd have insurance. We pulled over to the side of Pattaya Tai and both waited a half hour for our agents to show up. My insurance was with Vitritya...supposed to be the biggest in Thailand. BTW, police were never involved, but with a bigger accident they should be involved I'd think.

I trusted the whole process never having an accident before. The Thai driver wanted to give me 1000B for my trouble since it was his fault. Naturally, being falang I waved it off, but I gather it's standard practice in Thailand assuming the one at fault has the money.

Both agents took pictures of both cars, so plenty of pictures. Anyway, when it was all done I asked my agent for a recommendation who to take the car to. He recommended Pattaya Garage on Sukhumwit so that's where I took it. The rear bumper was bent in and trunk lid had some small damage to it. They had to order the parts and that took two weeks. When the parts were in I brought the car in for repair. Funny, they wanted us to have the car cleaned first. I think it was one week later I picked the car up and was blown away what a good job they had done. I have no idea if the lid was replaced or just repaired and resprayed, but it looks like from the factory. The paint is a 100% identical match. The underlying bumper was probably replaced. That was probably the part they ordered.

Bottom line is repairs here seem to be very well done. A friend of mine was in an accident and his car also looked in new condition after the repair.

A recent quote from AXA was a difference of about 4,000B/yr between them naming a repair shop or taking it a dealer. With my one experience, I'm happy using an insurance named repair shop. It all comes down to the repair shop and how good they are.

[BKS22]

While I don't currently own a vehicle here yet. I have been pondering purchasing one soon with the Mrs. This thread was informative and gave some good ammunition to be prepared for.

To the OP I hope it all works out well for you. A real bummer to get hit like that in a nice new ride. Just good to hear you or your GF were not injured.

[JoeW]

My repair shop named by my insurance company is Mitsubishi.

[cosmont]

Insurance policies can be either Dealer repair or Contract repair. When Dealer repair you can have it repaired at your dealership; if contract repair that means it gets repaired at shops under contract with the insurance company. This would be reflected on your policy sheet statements. However, after a vehicle is 5 year old, insurance companies don't offer Dealer repair coverage; it shifts to contract repair only. So, you might want to confirm whether your insurance covers Dealer or Contract repair...the insurance company will try to steer you towards one of their contract repair shops even if you have Dealer repair coverage but you can have your vehicle repaired at the dealer if the coverage provides that. Happened to me a couple years ago when I needed a broken door window replaced...my insurance company (LMG) tried to send me to one of their Contract repair shops...I said I have Dealer repair coverage...got my insurane broker involved who straightened out the insurance company and it was repaired at my dealership. My 2009 Fortuner (actually reflects 2008 on the car blue book since it was bought in Oct 2008) insurance was dealer repair for the first 5 years, I just renewed my insurance and that is when I found out only contract repair is now available and even some of the medical coverage amounts take a healthy drop...my broker even gave me three more quotes from other companies just to show me how coverage changes once the vehicle is more than 5 years old...guess the vehicle is consider less safe once it gets so old and don't rate Dealer repair anymore....appears to be the norm for Thai insurance.

My car is older than 5 years and I'm insure at AXA, still have Dealer repair... but AXA is not Thai company...

[thhMan]

Interesting posts.

So far I have shunned away from car ownership as it seems that even if a farang car is sitting at a red light and a Thai driver hits it, the farang is still liable for the damages, just for being there. A mate of mine has his car surrounded by cameras and that exact thing happened to him.

Great comments !

[StasD]

i have never given to drive my GF even I drank 0,5v Jack Daniels with Tom yam

[Dararasmi]

How do you know the "drunk" driver was drunk? Did the police give him a sobriety test?

[stevenl]

Interesting posts.

So far I have shunned away from car ownership as it seems that even if a farang car is sitting at a red light and a Thai driver hits it, the farang is still liable for the damages, just for being there. A mate of mine has his car surrounded by cameras and that exact thing happened to him.

Great comments !

No, that is an urban myth.

[Spoonman]

Interesting posts.

So far I have shunned away from car ownership as it seems that even if a farang car is sitting at a red light and a Thai driver hits it, the farang is still liable for the damages, just for being there. A mate of mine has his car surrounded by cameras and that exact thing happened to him.

Great comments !

What an utter load of pish.

[HUAHIN62]

They tried the same thing with me last year. After the vehicle was standing at their agents repair shop without anything happening my wife went for them in full force and thats something to behold. In the end the Triton was sent from Bkk to Mitshu in Pranburi for repairs. They did a fantastic job. We since changed our insurrance company to one which includes Mitshu in Pranburi as repair agent. Krungteb insurrance have a good reputation but they also have a limited repair agent list, you can thus not choose who repair your vehicle. I would suggest that you take your vehicle to Isuzu after its been repaired for an inspection.

[technologybytes]

There are lots of sensible and correct answers here, so I guess I can't add much.

There are 2 types of number 1 insurance, if you didn't ask which then you can't claim to have been cheated in any way, and you will have to go with the insurance companies contracted repairer.

However... and this is important.. the quality of repair at a thai body shop that is not a main dealer is often better than the quality of a main dealer.. so just because you have to take your car to somchai repair shop DOES NOT automatically mean that the quality of repair will be any less than the quality at the Isuzu main dealer.

You have no right to new vehicle, and you cannot judge the quality of repair until after the job is done.

My advice,

1/ Be thankful that nobody was hurt.

2/ Let the contracted repairer do the job.

3/ If you are not happy, sell the vehicle and buy a new one. It won't be worth any less because of the repair!

4/ Learn a valuable lesson. Any answer in Thailand is only as good as the question.

[Guest Gandtee]

I crunched my Honda City about seven years ago and it was repaired at the insurance company repairers. At the time they seemed to have done a good quick job but now their respray work is going rusty. Not so bad I suppose after seven years and considering that it has been subjected to floods from time to time. On reflection, a pretty good job.

[Bagwan]

Many insurance company policies state that if your vehicle is more than 10 years old then another vehicle must be involved. If it is adjudicated that you crashed into a tree or wall then it's all down to you. No payout. Many Thais used to bend their old cars and have them made up as new at the insurance companies expense.

[stevenl]

<snip>

3/ If you are not happy, sell the vehicle and buy a new one. It won't be worth any less because of the repair!

<snip>

It will be worth less because of the repair.

[Mick Wood]

How do you know the "drunk" driver was drunk? Did the police give him a sobriety test?

He admitted it himself, shortly after the accident. I have no idea if the police tested him. I think they didnt bother to, as he admitted it himself.

There are lots of sensible and correct answers here, so I guess I can't add much.

There are 2 types of number 1 insurance, if you didn't ask which then you can't claim to have been cheated in any way, and you will have to go with the insurance companies contracted repairer.

However... and this is important.. the quality of repair at a thai body shop that is not a main dealer is often better than the quality of a main dealer.. so just because you have to take your car to somchai repair shop DOES NOT automatically mean that the quality of repair will be any less than the quality at the Isuzu main dealer.

You have no right to new vehicle, and you cannot judge the quality of repair until after the job is done.

My advice,

1/ Be thankful that nobody was hurt.

2/ Let the contracted repairer do the job.

3/ If you are not happy, sell the vehicle and buy a new one. It won't be worth any less because of the repair!

4/ Learn a valuable lesson. Any answer in Thailand is only as good as the question.

1. That i am, very much so.

2. Thats out of the question, based on what i saw when i visited them today.

3. I'm pretty sure its worth alot less, however thats kinda hard to tell before the job is done and the result is clear.

4. Thats pretty much the case anywhere dont you think ?

[Mick Wood]

Thanks again for the advice and experiences.

I just came back from the Isuzu shop, the insurance company's designated repairer, and a shop in Yang Talat.

Firstly the Isuzu dealer in Kalasin dont have a workshop, its a dealer office with only minor facilities for inspection and basic service.

They knew about the insurance company's repairer, and adviced me to stear clear of it if possible, without giving much reason why.

I visited said shop, and they had very limited facilities, and none at all for paintwork. It was a second hand car dealership with a small garage.

I then visited the Honda workshop as i have had a good experience with them before. They were unfortunately fully booked for months and adviced me to visit a newly opened workshop in Yang Talat.

I did so, and this looked very good, they have top end spraying facilities, and equipment to straighten chassis and everything needed for the job. They handled my enquieries in a efficient and professional manner

GF got the district leader from the Insurance company on the line, and he agreed to let this workshop inspect the damage and offer a rate and plan for repairing it.

He said we might be eligible for a lesser cover if we did not use the designated repairer, however he was willing to let me use this shop unless the repair fee offered was totally through the roof.

So im optimistic so far, but still no cigar.

[Pib]

Some times I think insurance companies purposely limit the number of contract repair shops they have available which causes high wait times for repair in hopes of just getting the customer to settle (due to frustration) for a cash payout that is much less than what it would cost to repair the vehicle.

[stevenl]

Some times I think insurance companies purposely limit the number of contract repair shops they have available which causes high wait times for repair in hopes of just getting the customer to settle (due to frustration) for a cash payout that is much less than what it would cost to repair the vehicle.

Only reason they do that is to be able to send volume in the direction of the repairshop, and thus get better rates.