Farang-Thai road accident and discrimination

[Shurup]

Many (but not all!!) of the cases described here would be 50/50 even in other civilized western countries, not matter that you think you're in the right and not matter if someone (police, the other driver) agreed that you're in the right too, Thais often do that to avoid confrontation even if they disagree, and they often change their opinion once you're out of their face.

There's saying that most accidents are preventable, learn to drive/ride defensively, keep your eyes open and be aware what's going on around you, stick to the road rules and accidents won't happen (mostly).

[cheshiremusicman]

So this was a dual carriage way and you were crossing into the lane going into the opposite direction when a bike hit you. Was she coming from the correct direction ?

Just don't really get what has happened here.

But the fact that she has no license and no helmet does not make her in the wrong automatically she could be right but I need to know more. But remember this is Thailand often the bike is protected against the car.

If you re-read the original statement he said that the woman on the motorbike came from the 'hard shoulder on the left' work it out for yourself which side of the road she was on and don't try and imply stupid excuses for these idiots that we all have to deal with day in and day out whilst trying to get around on the Thai roads and yes, before you ask I HAVE been driving here for over 6 years and have had two accidents where people have run into me and had to suffer the same Thai outcome i.e 'It's your fault'.. The vast majority of Thais on the roads don't give a shit about what accidents they cause, or the outcome of them, so why the hell should we? At least the vast majority of us are insured unlike the Thai's. Thailand is a great place to live, but you've got to accept that the so called LAW here is a bloody joke otherwise you'd go mad.

Keep safe on the roads all you people.

Edited October 12, 2013 by cheshiremusicman

[kikoman]

Different countries have different laws and dealing with its legal system, In the U.S. it is a civil violation and is dealt with by who the police state was at fault, through insurance companies, or in civil court. In Mexico if you are in an accident and someone got hurt and you were at fault, it is a criminal offence and you could end up in prison..

In the U.S. you are innocent until proven guilty, in Mexico under the Napoleonic code You are considered guilty until proven innocence.

Before driving one must know something about that countries laws as it may be completely different than in your home country, Your home countries laws do not protect you outside of your home country national borders.

Insurance companies all over the world tried to minimize the liability payout for an accident, it is not a action only by Thai insurance companies, a case may seem to be an open and shut case, until someone claims they were injured by your recklessness, every one is covered by the legal code of their country their charges have to be fully investigated and could change due to their side of the story.

I made it a point when I came to Thailand to not drive on Thailand's streets because it could lead to financial disaster, just the mere fact that you drive a car in Thailand, increases your possibilities of becoming involved with the the Legal system. and bears a great deal of responsibility, as a consequence of hurting someone in an accident.

I advised my brother to sell his truck because of his reckless U.S. driving habits, tied in with his version of road rage and the fact that every time he drove me somewhere he would become involve in a fender bender, That he was bound sooner, more than later being killed in a accident or killing someone else in an accident because of his depth perception problems due to the loss of sight in one eye.

Transportation cost are very reasonable nation wide, I pay 200 baht for a round trip to the local hospital, 14 kilometers away, 750 baht for a 120 kilometer monthly shopping round trip to Nakhon Sawan.

Cheers:

Yeah right - try that in Phuket it will cost 200 baht to get out of your driveway with all the corruption here.

When I came to Thailand I lived in Pattaya, when I decided to in stay here I moved away from the sex tourist hot spots because it was a magnet for all that is not good in the country. I believe it was a wise choice and have greatly enjoy life in rural Thailand, more suited to my lifestyle and needs.

Cheers:

[FiestyFarang]

Off topic perhaps but the fact that even if you marry a Thai not just a party but through the legal system you still do not get permanent residence, I understand there might be some sham marriages but in most countries the earnest would be on the government to investigate. Even if you have children with a Thai a foreigner does not get PR neither mind citizenship. I think this fact shows really what the government and people think of foreigners. We are only let in for our money, how many jobs are we allowed to do! Need I go on. Having been here nearly six years I have recently thought there is little genuine future here, the chances of finding true love are so low.

Not true - If a foreigner is married to a Thai national all they need to get Citizenships is a few simple things. for example

pay tax on 40,000 baht a month for 3 years

have a tambien bahn(house registration)

you don't even need to be fluent in the language these days.

Singing the national/royal anthem will get you some points.

It's a myth that citizenship is hard to get if you are married.

Dude stay away from the tourist areas.

Thanks for telling me this, is there a website in English that gives details? Ask a question but if I become a citizen can I buy land?

[NoshowJones]

Mr Berkshire, most of us would be involved in road 'accidents' frequently if we did not have to keep slowing down all these times when motorbike riders drive on the wrong side of the road, it is not unusual in the sticks where I live to have all sorts of vehicles doing this. Also I have good experience of driving in the USA, having driven all over California, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Nashville Tennessee, etc.

I actually have found American drivers to be the best of the lot, very courteous and never gave me any problems. I respect your opinion, and hope you would respect mine.

There is no thing as an accident. It is a culmination of events, all avoidable, that lead to an unfavourable outcome for all involved. 99% are due to human error.

You are right, that is why I put commas at accidents.

[FiestyFarang]

I got involved in a minor accident in 2011 where I was hit by a minibus who was trying to squeeze his way between mine and another car. I was stationary and had been for a minute when he hit me. The result was a four foot long scraping on the minibus from when he tried to squeeze by.

The driver of the minibus called the police to the scene, and the chaos that followed caused the attention of other drivers. Basically, the driver of the minibus wanted money. A lot of money. I got the impression others got interested when they heard the amounts being discussed, and for this reason another driver came forward and claimed I had hit his car. He also wanted money. Soon the police officers decided to have a go; if they're getting money, we're having some as well!

I will not go into detail of the ugly and unfortunate events that followed (though sdk here on TV actually knows the details), but this event triggered a decision to fly my family out of Thailand (which they did within 48 hours), close my business and sell my two houses and leave Thailand. Which I did soon after my business was closed.

I have always wondered what triggers someone to lie, cheat, bend the rules or even use criminal actions to extort money from others, and it's clear that jealousy is a huge factor. In my case, being a farang and driving a new BMW 5-series probably didn't help. In Europe, youngsters are getting robbed of their mobile phones by school kid bullies. Thailand is no different, only here it's grown ups doing the bullying..

Sorry to hear this, what part of Thailand was it in?

[cheshiremusicman]

Different countries have different laws and dealing with its legal system, In the U.S. it is a civil violation and is dealt with by who the police state was at fault, through insurance companies, or in civil court. In Mexico if you are in an accident and someone got hurt and you were at fault, it is a criminal offence and you could end up in prison..

In the U.S. you are innocent until proven guilty, in Mexico under the Napoleonic code You are considered guilty until proven innocence.

Before driving one must know something about that countries laws as it may be completely different than in your home country, Your home countries laws do not protect you outside of your home country national borders.

Insurance companies all over the world tried to minimize the liability payout for an accident, it is not a action only by Thai insurance companies, a case may seem to be an open and shut case, until someone claims they were injured by your recklessness, every one is covered by the legal code of their country their charges have to be fully investigated and could change due to their side of the story.

I made it a point when I came to Thailand to not drive on Thailand's streets because it could lead to financial disaster, just the mere fact that you drive a car in Thailand, increases your possibilities of becoming involved with the the Legal system. and bears a great deal of responsibility, as a consequence of hurting someone in an accident.

I advised my brother to sell his truck because of his reckless U.S. driving habits, tied in with his version of road rage and the fact that every time he drove me somewhere he would become involve in a fender bender, That he was bound sooner, more than later being killed in a accident or killing someone else in an accident because of his depth perception problems due to the loss of sight in one eye.

Transportation cost are very reasonable nation wide, I pay 200 baht for a round trip to the local hospital, 14 kilometers away, 750 baht for a 120 kilometer monthly shopping round trip to Nakhon Sawan.

Cheers:

Yeah right - try that in Phuket it will cost 200 baht to get out of your driveway with all the corruption here.

I concur with your advice to your brother, but you obviously don't get about much, or don't want to! I'm 70 and drive about 5 days a week, getting about to the shops, golfing, eating out etc. It would cost me a fortune to do this with taxi's. Please,please, don't suggest that I use a 'motorbike taxi'; I wouldn't be seen dead (pardon the pun) on one of them and another thing - I don't like getting wet!

[Forethat]

You made your assumptions on a part of my post to the OP without bothering to read what I actually posted,you posted on what you assumed.

...

Your shoot from the hip approach, is not appreciated by you when you think I do not fully understand your situation

Just to point out one thing before you dig too deeply; you dont fully understand my situation at all. And, if you read my post you'll notice that I didn't assume anything, I asked a question. That's what the question mark is for. Perhaps you should try that sometimes?

Your actions are not those of a person with great parenting skills, as by you words and manner of addressing others you turned a minor accident into a situation, where you felt your family was placed in danger, that you had to leave the country immediately. And as I "assume" that you have not resided in Thailand for the last 2 years! An indication that you have not been driving in Thailand since then,.

Wrong. Again. For someone who complains about others allegedly making "assumptions" you have a remarkable ability to do exactly that. Pretty much everything in the quote above is incorrect assumptions. If you feel I'm a bad parent I'll assume (?) it's your opinion, and that's fine with me, I couldn't care less about your opinion. You even claim to know what I feel...

I can not believe so many people that have posted on this thread , are still driving in Thailand!

In 2001 in my first month in Thailand I rented a car and drove some friends to Sattahip, I instantly realized that driving here was much different than driving in Arizona, as I notice all types of driving situations, that made me very uncomfortable and also the driving on the opposite side of the street which was very foreign to me. so I made the decision, not to drive a car in Thailand.

...

Which solely is my right for me to make and my personal decision are none of your business, as they have served me well over the last 12 years in Thailand.

Ok. Thanks for letting me know that you instantly realised that driving in LOS was different than driving in Arizona, as you notice all types of driving situations.

Again every one is entitled to make their own opinions

As long as you are the only who's entitled to an opinion, and if others got one you call it an incorrect assumption?

My opinion is that stuffing your family into a car driven by a Thai driver with nil or statistically proven appalling education in driving and traffic laws, in a country that is at the very top of WHO's statistics for road deaths per travelled kilometer, is an outstanding example of non-existent parental judgment. Whether you did this or if the aforementioned conditions apply to your choice of transportation is irrelevant for my opinions as expressed in my posts, they are generic and not personal in their kind.

I believe minibuses and taxis outside the big cities in Thailand are the most dangerous types of transportation there is in the world. It really is my opinion, it's not assumption.

[MAJIC]

Look , you all live here, well, some of you do, ok, not many of you do, alright, most of you don't live in Thailand, so really, what do you know ?

So easy to diss Thai people, you don't live here cos it's such a bad place, right ?

Seems like on ThaiVisa, it's a competition to see who can slag off Thai people the most, most posters don't live in Thailand and don't know <deleted>, there are a few posters I respect on ThaiVisa, only a few, Neeranam, Guesthouse etc etc, guys like that, anyway, I gotta go now, bye.

My post wasn't relating to Thai people!

[boonchu]

I had an accident when a Thai woman cut across in front of me, in a pick up, I was also driving a pick up She stopped and I called my insurance she said, she had insurance but did not ring them.

My insurance arrived in less than 15 minutes and the rep spoke to me then to the Thai woman, she told her story and at the end the rep is she was wrong. She rang her husband who eventually arrived and turned out to be a policeman (from a different khet, luckily for me because he was mean). After talking to the husband her story suddenly changed and declaring that I was in the wrong. the rep insisted that she was in the wrong so he rang the local police, a policeman arrived and immediately the husband called him over to speak to him, my rep then spoke to the local policeman who said the husband asked him to give me a ticket and tell me to pay on the spot what he thought the damage to his pick up would cost (10x plus what the rep estimated). I then asked the local cop to meet me at the local police station and have the officer in charge sort out the problem, the rep came with. I explained my version of the accident and so did the woman, the rep and the woman's policeman (husband). The husband did not like it when the officer in charge said he doubted the woman's story and that most accidents at this spot were from people turn into the side soi from the wrong lane. The husband stated shouting, then the officer in charge told him to get back to the police station where he worked and also that his wife was wrong and would have to pay my insurance company. This was a classic corrupt cop trying to sway a good cop into blame the frang. I was lucky to have a helpful insurance rep and a straight cop running the police station and it may have been helpful that I can speech Thai.

So there are definitely good Thai police and insurance reps out there.

[KOZMO]

The answer is very simple. It is all about who you know, period. I had two accidents one in 1971 while stationed at Ubon RTAFB and the other in Korat. In both cases I was in the right and was hit by a crazy thai. At Ubon I was friends with a Captain in the thai police. I got my motorcycle fixed, no problem. In Korat, I was hit by a thai lady driving a car with no license. Lucky for me the traffic was slow so she did not hurt me, just the bike. This was in 2012. She trird to blame me and had the thai police almost going along with her. My friend, a Colonel in the Thai Air Force came down cause I called him. Lol and behold it was the ladies fault. Got the bike fixed, painted and all is ok. Now am thinking of using my wifes relatives to drive me cause am getting too old and don't want to press my luck. The number of crazy, unlicensed thais has gone way up as has the number of vehicles. I spend 6 months here in Thai and 6 months in Florida. It keeps me sane!!!

[Guest Gandtee]

Heed the advice supposedly given to the British Colonial ladies in the Victorian times, "When you are being raped, lay back and think of England". I would suggest the same thing applies here.It's a different type of justice that most of us are, or were, used to.

[ayayay]

You have lived here 11 years, and you still refer to yourself as "farang".

On the one hand you complain about being discriminated for being the "other".

And yet, you happily call yourself "farang".

One thing is for sure, if you cant even stop calling yourself "farang" (an object, rather than a human being), how on earth are you going to expect Thais will view you in another way??

Edited October 12, 2013 by ayayay

[Forethat]

You have lived here 11 years, and you still refer to yourself as "farang".

On the one hand you complain about being discriminated for being the "other".

And yet, you happily call yourself "farang".

One thing is for sure, if you cant even stop calling yourself "farang" (an object, rather than a human being), how on earth are you going to expect Thais will view you in another way??

The term "farang" doesn't denote an object, it is a mass noun used to identify a person of foreign ancestry the same way we refer to people being african americans.

How would you be able to stop calling yourself an "african american" in case you live in Asia for x number of years...? Are you saying the correct term should be "african american asian".

Brings to mind Tiger Woods home-made definition of himself: "Cablinasian". Apparently he made that up from being Caucasian, Black, American, Native American Indian and Asian or something in that region.

[ayayay]

You have lived here 11 years, and you still refer to yourself as "farang".

On the one hand you complain about being discriminated for being the "other".

And yet, you happily call yourself "farang".

One thing is for sure, if you cant even stop calling yourself "farang" (an object, rather than a human being), how on earth are you going to expect Thais will view you in another way??

The term "farang" doesn't denote an object, it is a mass noun used to identify a person of foreign ancestry the same way we refer to people being african americans.

How would you be able to stop calling yourself an "african american" in case you live in Asia for x number of years...? Are you saying the correct term should be "african american asian".

Brings to mind Tiger Woods home-made definition of himself: "Cablinasian". Apparently he made that up from being Caucasian, Black, American, Native American Indian and Asian or something in that region.

First of all, Thais do not view a "white person", the way most of the rest of us view race.

We, well most of us at least, think, underneath the skin, the main factor that decide how we behave, is based on cultural, national heritage and individuality, NOT primarily skin color (even though, there are minor differences between races).

But for a Thai, skin color is THE most important thing that decides how we behave, much more important than nationality, or culture. This is also the reason, why Thais can never, even for a second, get passed the fact that you have white skin, and that is the most important thing for a Thai to point out.

In the west, sure we know there are many different races around the world, but as soon as you get to know a non white person, on a really deep level, you will many times forget about his or her race, and mainly notice his personality.

This is however not the case for a Thai.

So keeping that in mind, I think it is just really stupid to always point out that we are so much different, by constantly calling ourselves "farang".

Racism and discrimination is a huge problem anyway, and especially in Thailand.

And on top of that, many of us, really enjoy calling ourselves "farang" all the time.

It is like saying, it´s ok, I know we are the dancing monkey, and we like it, but on the other hand, we can not understand why you Thais discriminate us all the time.

[JLCrab]

The problem with relying on connections as with many of the posts above is that the person in the other side of the altercation may have better connections and your connection may choose not to cross them.

When I use the term 'farang' in Thai conversation t is usually in the context of: Well what do you expect? I'm a farang.

... and I spend 50 weeks of the years in Thailand and 2 weeks in Florida -- helps keep me sane.

[indyuk]

I sympathise with you but would like to point out that it is not unusual to have an insurance claim filed against you in respect to an accident that never happened. So if like me you chose to live in a Thai community, as a farang you can expect strange things to happen on occasion.My experience, one fake accident claim and two attempts by Toyota Comapany heavies to reposses my Vigo for which in fact I had bought for cash equal to the ticket price of 550,000 bath!

We just have to accept that every kind of crime that exists is part of Thai culture. It's a game. Which if you visit a police station and witness the arrival of Thai men in handcuffs you will see the amusement and entertainment around their own demise. Like I say it's a game.

[nontabury]

Let me start by saying this. I've been involved in 3 accidents and everytimes, i've been cleared of everything. I'll try to answer as best as I can and my apologize for the mistakes as my main language ain't English. Still, I'll take the time to answer to your questions and, in the eventuality it happens again, you'll know what to do.

There are things you did pretty well. The first one is that you haven't ran away from the scene. The second is that you know the Thai road safety code. The third good thing is that you have all the papers as required by the authority to drive in the kingdom.

There are 2 things you should have done not to be involved in the "farang is wrong" circle. The first one is to get a lawyer right before you and the insurance officer sign the papers at the police station to make sure that:

1- they wrote the report properly

2- the insurance officer wrote his repport properly

Insurances companies in Thailand have a bad reputation when it comes to pay for a car accident and this is caused by their wrong way to write their report. Exemple: they are going to write in Thai that you have for 20000 BAHT in damage on your vehicule but they are going to avoid writing that "it may cost more for unknown damages" the car accident may have caused, or, in the case the lady sue you, to pay for her damages. This said, this is one of the problem you may face pretty soon.

The second thing would have been to take evidence by yourself on the scene. You could have taken photos, videos and witness testifying about what happened over there. Usually, Thai people are not lying when the event just occured. They tend to lie more once they gossip about it with friends and family to make the farang looks "bad".

One more suggestion would be to install a dashcam. Don't forget that we are guests here and we need to do our own safety.

I'm lucky as I have a high rank policeman in my family who likes to teach me about the laws and how to do things in Thailand. I would tell you that it is not about not being welcome here, but all about money. Thais act this way towards Thais and so they act this way too towards foreigners. However, the difference is that Thai people are going to stick together to win over you while the foreigners living in Thailand don't care much about each other. That is the reason why we have such a hard time getting respect here.

One more suggestion: get a lawyer now!

Send me a private message if you have more questions.

Could not agree more, especially your last paragraph. Until All farangs stick together and stop wearing rose tinted glasses this will continue, I 'm not suggesting that we support other farangs when they are obviously in the wrong, but unfortunately some farangs seem to always make excuses and take the side of the Thai, perhaps mistakenly thinking that this will make the Thai's accept them as one Their own.

[Forethat]

You have lived here 11 years, and you still refer to yourself as "farang".

On the one hand you complain about being discriminated for being the "other".

And yet, you happily call yourself "farang".

One thing is for sure, if you cant even stop calling yourself "farang" (an object, rather than a human being), how on earth are you going to expect Thais will view you in another way??

The term "farang" doesn't denote an object, it is a mass noun used to identify a person of foreign ancestry the same way we refer to people being african americans.

How would you be able to stop calling yourself an "african american" in case you live in Asia for x number of years...? Are you saying the correct term should be "african american asian".

Brings to mind Tiger Woods home-made definition of himself: "Cablinasian". Apparently he made that up from being Caucasian, Black, American, Native American Indian and Asian or something in that region.

First of all, Thais do not view a "white person", the way most of the rest of us view race.

We, well most of us at least, think, underneath the skin, the main factor that decide how we behave, is based on cultural, national heritage and individuality, NOT primarily skin color (even though, there are minor differences between races).

But for a Thai, skin color is THE most important thing that decides how we behave, much more important than nationality, or culture. This is also the reason, why Thais can never, even for a second, get passed the fact that you have white skin, and that is the most important thing for a Thai to point out.

Apart from accepting that I can't possibly know what a Thai person think (other than the overwhelming Thai majority of my own family whom I can ask) I dont agree with your idea that skin colour is THE most important thing. I employed a Thai national who grew up in Europe and didn't speak a word of Thai. Every single person who met him initially believed he spoke Thai because of his appearance. Despite his apparent Thai appearance, he was referred to as farang wherever he went when people realised he was a foreigner.

My perception is that Thais use the farang to denote a foreigner not someone with white skin.

[kikoman]

Different countries have different laws and dealing with its legal system, In the U.S. it is a civil violation and is dealt with by who the police state was at fault, through insurance companies, or in civil court. In Mexico if you are in an accident and someone got hurt and you were at fault, it is a criminal offence and you could end up in prison..

In the U.S. you are innocent until proven guilty, in Mexico under the Napoleonic code You are considered guilty until proven innocence.

Before driving one must know something about that countries laws as it may be completely different than in your home country, Your home countries laws do not protect you outside of your home country national borders.

Insurance companies all over the world tried to minimize the liability payout for an accident, it is not a action only by Thai insurance companies, a case may seem to be an open and shut case, until someone claims they were injured by your recklessness, every one is covered by the legal code of their country their charges have to be fully investigated and could change due to their side of the story.

I made it a point when I came to Thailand to not drive on Thailand's streets because it could lead to financial disaster, just the mere fact that you drive a car in Thailand, increases your possibilities of becoming involved with the the Legal system. and bears a great deal of responsibility, as a consequence of hurting someone in an accident.

I advised my brother to sell his truck because of his reckless U.S. driving habits, tied in with his version of road rage and the fact that every time he drove me somewhere he would become involve in a fender bender, That he was bound sooner, more than later being killed in a accident or killing someone else in an accident because of his depth perception problems due to the loss of sight in one eye.

Transportation cost are very reasonable nation wide, I pay 200 baht for a round trip to the local hospital, 14 kilometers away, 750 baht for a 120 kilometer monthly shopping round trip to Nakhon Sawan.

Cheers:

Yeah right - try that in Phuket it will cost 200 baht to get out of your driveway with all the corruption here.

I concur with your advice to your brother, but you obviously don't get about much, or don't want to! I'm 70 and drive about 5 days a week, getting about to the shops, golfing, eating out etc. It would cost me a fortune to do this with taxi's. Please,please, don't suggest that I use a 'motorbike taxi'; I wouldn't be seen dead (pardon the pun) on one of them and another thing - I don't like getting wet!

I live in a Thai village, no shops, no golf courses, some street food stands, I get around by walking, biking or on a motor-bike. Your life is yours to make the decisions that most meets your personal needs. I was just posting to the decision I made and to another poster that questioned my right to make those decisions in my life.

By the way my brother will be 80 next July, I just advised him because he would not listen to his wife's concern for his safety due to his poor vision.

Cheers:

[amykat]

Invest in a good lawyer, I think this is the only way to sort out problems here.

Good luck with that! Finding a GOOD lawyer here, is harder than working out the problem on your own, in most cases, and might well create a lot of new problems.

Yes, IF you have a GOOD lawyer, one who actually advocates on YOUR behalf, and if you have had a serious accident only ...I don't think it would be necessary for the average accident/farang here.

But if you feel better that way, I guess it might seem like a good thing to do.

[benalibina]

Invest in a good lawyer, I think this is the only way to sort out problems here.

Good luck with that! Finding a GOOD lawyer here, is harder than working out the problem on your own, in most cases, and might well create a lot of new problems.

Yes, IF you have a GOOD lawyer, one who actually advocates on YOUR behalf, and if you have had a serious accident only ...I don't think it would be necessary for the average accident/farang here.

But if you feel better that way, I guess it might seem like a good thing to do.

I sense some cynicism in your comment. Correct ?

[Forethat]

I was just posting to the decision I made and to another poster that questioned my right to make those decisions in my life.

I am really interested to see where anyone has questioned your right to make any decisions in your life.

I could be wrong of course, but I can't find anything that even comes close to any such atrocities.

Care to help the rest of us out and show us an example?

[Emdog]

At some earlier post it was suggested you hire a driver to avoid being at fault, but using Thai logic it would still be your fault as you hired the driver....

[dotpoom]

It would seem 50/ 50 shared blame. You pay for your damage she pays gor hers. If not and you press thst she is to blame then your insurance may not pay for yours and try to get it from her. Which will not happen. Agree to share blame and move on..

Thank you Chicken George, I am going to pay for my own damage to my car as the Insurance wants me to get the money from her (I had only 3rd party insurance but am upgrading on Monday with a different company) and I have no desire to try that as I have already mentioned in an earlier post. She is a laborer on a building site. She can do what she likes about her damage to her motorbike. I have not agreed to a 50/50 compromise and am happy with things as they stand. I did as the policeman told me and got a quote from the garage he recommended, the quotation was for 9,000 Baht plus i had to pay them 1000 Baht for the privilege of getting the quote (maybe she was the policeman's sister). That is no different from at home, they give you a quotation for all new parts in the knowledge that you will be getting the job done somewhere more cheaper and only want the quote for the other parties insurance company....only difference here being that the majority don't have insurance....but the system is the same. By the way, I discovered that even if she had insurance and had admitted she was in the wrong her coverage would not have paid for the damage to my car. I am told by those who should know.... that motorbike insurance does NOT cover damage to property...only covers damage to people.....how's about that then?

[kikoman]

Forethat,

You sure are the master of the double talk, You stated in part "I have always wondered what triggers someone to lie, cheat, bend the rules" etc,) I also wonder that about you. I really do not care what you believe or do in your life (Up to You) I just responded to your attack on my post that was not in reference to your post what so-ever.and was a response to the OP's post in your rush to "save face" you attempt to project on me your short comings.

If anyone is interested in who started this, all they need to do is go back and read our post.

You know you are wrong as your way of dealing with people, lead to you having placed your family in harms way (your words,not mine) clearly stated in your post, that you had to leave Thailand , sells your properties in 48 hours due to your involvement in a fender-bender and your shoot from the hip approach that resulted in you having to turn tail and run. Leaving Thailand in 48 hours!

(My way) Kikoman has been here for 11 years and in those 11 years use public and private transportation for his traveling needs,great transportation system and inexpensive, no problem at all.Verses your fender-bender that cased you to turn tail and running in fear out of the country. and as you never stated have not returned in the last 2 years.

My family is no concern of yours, as I am the only non-Thai in my family and the kids being adults make there own decision how to travel in their own country, my wife also is Thai, so your assumption (value Judgement) about me dumping them in a van with an uninsured Thai driver is ill-founded at best.

I will state again I do not care about you or your situation, and I would not care what happens to you, as people such as you have a great need to "save face" when you know that what I posted is True!

Cheers:

Edited October 12, 2013 by kikoman

[tingtongteesood]

Sad to say that you are always 'guilty' of being the foreigner so always in the wrong according to the Thais as, and I quote 'Even the worst Thai is better than the best Foreigner'. Their bigotry, xenophobia, selfishness etc etc. know no ends...NOT THAI BASHING - FACT !

[robert888d]

I never drive here in Thailand , neither car nor motor-cycle it's just too b....y dangerous ! The Farang are always too blame !

[benalibina]

Sad to say that you are always 'guilty' of being the foreigner so always in the wrong according to the Thais as, and I quote 'Even the worst Thai is better than the best Foreigner'. Their bigotry, xenophobia, selfishness etc etc. know no ends...NOT THAI BASHING - FACT !

Bad experiences in paradise ?

[dotpoom]

You have lived here 11 years, and you still refer to yourself as "farang".

On the one hand you complain about being discriminated for being the "other".

And yet, you happily call yourself "farang".

One thing is for sure, if you cant even stop calling yourself "farang" (an object, rather than a human being), how on earth are you going to expect Thais will view you in another way??

There's a mouthful..................last time I checked I was still born in Europe!