Laos.Stopped by the communist militia, they took purple book...

[nelson bunker]

Driving the car entering Savannakhet, close to the Thai embassy, we got stopped by the Laos police.

 

We had done all the paperwork at the border so i was confident, but apparently there was some insurance missing...

Anyway, they kept the purple book  (the Thai car passport) and we are supposed to go the the police station to get it.

 

My question is : What happens if we enter back Thailand without this little purple book?

 

 

[nelson bunker]

Whereas the Thai police officers always look very good, the Lao police look like clowns, dirty and shapeless uniforms, unshaven, no socks in city shoes...

On our last trip to Savannakhet, i drove the wrong way in a one way road and got stopped, they took the purple book and wanted me to go with them to the police station on the back of the motorbike, i was unimpressed and said no. No. No.

They just gave us the purple book back...

 

This time we had the little baby with us and wanted to get to the hotel quickly, i didn't fight enough...

We are very p****d off and what was supposed to be 10 days trip into Laos is going to be a quick visa run...

The GF wants to eat mama in the room in order to give no money to Laos...

[IMA_FARANG]

They might just  ask you why  you brought your car into  Laos without the proper insurance paperwork  and maybe fine you the usual fee.

Or maybe not.

[robblok]

15 minutes ago, IMA_FARANG said:

They might just  ask you why  you brought your car into  Laos without the proper insurance paperwork  and maybe fine you the usual fee.

Or maybe not.

I don't see the problem here  the guy is in the wrong.. police caught him.. he has to come to the police office to pay a fine. 

 

No different then Thailand where they keep your license till you pay a fine. 

[nelson bunker]

The immigration laos people jumped on us at the border, i had to pay 300 THB to get the car into Laos, there was no mention of an insurance...

 

Anyway, the question was : What happens if we enter back Thailand without this little purple book?

 

robblo, thank you for your very constructive reply, people like you make TV a very pleasant place to visit.

[khwaibah]

50 minutes ago, nelson bunker said:

The immigration laos people jumped on us at the border, i had to pay 300 THB to get the car into Laos, there was no mention of an insurance...

 

Anyway, the question was : What happens if we enter back Thailand without this little purple book?

 

robblo, thank you for your very constructive reply, people like you make TV a very pleasant place to visit.

 

You have no proof of legaly departing Thailand, therefor you have no proof of entering Lao and as such Thailand may very will suspect you of improper exit and importing and the fine you don't want see. In short your <deleted>. 

 

You should have asked over in the Cambodian Forum on this. There are numerous threads on this subject. This is a Thai Customs enforcement  not immigration. The following link is just one of many.   

 

[phuketrichard]

Of course u have legal proof u left thailand, u have the temp export papers also required to leave thailand PLUS its in the Thai customs computer.  You dont need the cars book to leave Thailand to go to Cambodia or Malaysia. You do have the temp export papers.

 

Sorry u had this trouble, did u not buy insurance at the border??

 

i looked at my last years Car book and it indeed has stamps showing when i returned to thailand.

As u had it when u left ( as it was stamped) they would expect you to have it when u returned,

PLUS  it needs to be stamped to exit Laos so u might not make it to the thai customs.

 

you could say you "lost" it.  BUT if they call the police station ur &lt;deleted&gt;, They might fine you but for sure they will let you back in.

I'd do what they say

 

MY last trip to Cambodia i entered at Osmach, no official papers, exited at Pailin,  the Cambodian customs asked for my "legal"papers, told him i had none,  he said i cant leave and took me to his office  he said he needed $10 to leave but he told me Thailand would not let me back him ( as i turned away and laughed silently, yea right) anyway gave him $5

 

 

[ubonjoe]

Cambodia forum??? He is in Laos.

Moving to the Thailand motor forum where there are people who have taken their vehicles to Laos.

[phuketrichard]

i am just saying that kwah is wrong. ( doesn't happen much does it?)   and sharing my story what happened at the Cambodian border. why didn't u respond to the part about Laos>>>

 

PLUS car book NOT required to enter Cambodia ( i just drove in in July)

 

as i said 

PLUS  it needs to be stamped to exit Laos so u might not make it to the thai customs.

so u wont get it out of Laos

[stevenl]

i am just saying that kwah is wrong. ( doesn't happen much does it?)   and sharing my story what happened at the Cambodian border. why didn't u respond to the part about Laos>>>
 
PLUS car book NOT required to enter Cambodia ( i just drove in in July)
 
as i said 
PLUS  it needs to be stamped to exit Laos so u might not make it to the thai customs.
so u wont get it out of Laos

Sorry, this post does not make sense.

[khwaibah]

Cambodia has nothing to do with this. Sorry for the mistake. With out that car passport the op could be in deep  you know what. That car could be impounded if the Thai authorities deem so. My advice is go to the lao authorities and be veeeeeeery nice and if needed pay tea money but get that car pp back and properly stamped at customs.

[phuketrichard]

Quote

With out that car passport the op could be in deep  you know what. That car could be impounded if the Thai authorities deem so.

 

He wont make it to thai customs!!!!!

Car book NEEDS to be stamped when he exits Laos,

so as he doesn't have it ........ he wont be allowed to leave Laos ,much less make it to the Thai customs office.

[ubonjoe]

If I recall correctly the Lao insurance can be purchased at the Lao side of the bridge.

It seems you need to go there and get the insurance coverage and take that to the police station to get the book back.

[NanLaew]

1 hour ago, ubonjoe said:

If I recall correctly the Lao insurance can be purchased at the Lao side of the bridge.

It seems you need to go there and get the insurance coverage and take that to the police station to get the book back.

...is pretty much the correct answer.

 

Plus pay the fine for the wrong-way incident and THEN get the purple book back.

[Sirbergan]

You are in the wrong, Nelson. It is your responsibility to learn the rules and abide by them when you enter Laos. You didn't pay the insurance at the border, and now you're paying the price for it.

 

That being said, it's an honest mistake. But YOUR mistake nonetheless.

[NanLaew]

12 hours ago, NanLaew said:

...is pretty much the correct answer.

 

Plus pay the fine for the wrong-way incident and THEN get the purple book back.

Sorry. I misread. The OP broke the law, drove the wrong way on a one-way street on a prior visit. Then he browbeat the local militia into getting a free pass. 

 

Quote

... the Lao police look like clowns, dirty and shapeless uniforms, unshaven, no socks in city shoes...

 

 

Got good memories though.

[Lee4Life]

You must have Lao insurance on your vehicle when you drive in Laos, not just Thai Insurance (as others have already said). There are no signs at the border telling you of this requirement but it is a law. I was stopped on the Lao side near the NongKhai-Vientiane Bridge and the officer actually let me go when I told him there was no sign informing people of this at the border crossing and promised him I would go back to the border and purchase insurance at the Tokyo Insurance office there.

[PREM-R]

Interesting that the OP made this post earlier this year

Quote

Posted January 31

I dont know about Vietnam but here is my experience into Laos :

I went to Laos via Mukdahan/Savannakhet in December last year driving my 23 years old car registered in the girlfriend's name.

Before the trip i applied for the "car passport"/"purple book", 105 THB, got it the next day with two T stickers.

At the Thai border, a bit of paperwork, a form to fill with name of car, engine size, registration number... 100THB.

Put the T stickers on the car.

Crossing the Bridge 50THB.

Compulsory communist car spraying 25THB.

Communist officers 450THB to get the car into Laos.

Communist insurance for 7 days 200THB.

Everything easy and straight forward...

Poor roads in Laos...

Seems that he was able to purchase the Laos Insurance on that occasion, maybe just forgot this time.

[The Deerhunter]

16 hours ago, nelson bunker said:

The immigration laos people jumped on us at the border, i had to pay 300 THB to get the car into Laos, there was no mention of an insurance...

 

Anyway, the question was : What happens if we enter back Thailand without this little purple book?

 

robblo, thank you for your very constructive reply, people like you make TV a very pleasant place to visit.

Yes.  I agree. Telling the truth in such circumstances is tantamount to defamation.  Shame on you!

[SOTIRIOS]

.....no insurance....???

 

...seems like a serious violation......

[jethro69]

It doesn't have to be mentioned, it's your own duty to be informed about the regulations when entering another country. (Not only Laos). It happened on a few occasion that the  shag where the sell the insurance was closed, so I went to the next larger village and got one there. In some other forums it's also mentioned that motorists got stopped without insurance, and they could purchase it with the police for the double price (still peanuts). So if the police could not get him insurance on the spot, they might been well aware that it was not available, so I might be a scam. Or they just damn lazy, and it's just easier to collect the fine at the station. 

Good there is no purple book for bikes. So I can't tell if they check it, as I don't have one.

[Sydebolle]

1) you must get that book back; everything else is a nightmare at the border when returning into Thailand and will take you hours on first the Lao side (they have to stamp your ITP out) and then the Thai side. Worst case scenario - if you leave through a different border - could be, that you "lost" the booklet.
2) make photos of all documents the moment something has changed (i.e. inward stamp etc.) with your phone

3) insurance is mandatory also in Laos and there are plenty of booths at the borders. If you enter very early morning or later in the evenings then the counters might be closed = get coverage next day with one of those 4, 5 insurance companies. Should you enter Laos more frequently then do it as I do; get a one-year coverage which is cheaper than 3 short time insurances and it is only once the (easy) paperwork
3) when dealing with Lao police then start taking pictures of them - does wonders and expedites matters. They are after Thais and less after aliens. 

[fullcave]

Btw, only liability insurance is available at the border. It will not cover your car or occupants! Just saying...

[robblok]

18 hours ago, nelson bunker said:

The immigration laos people jumped on us at the border, i had to pay 300 THB to get the car into Laos, there was no mention of an insurance...

 

Anyway, the question was : What happens if we enter back Thailand without this little purple book?

 

robblo, thank you for your very constructive reply, people like you make TV a very pleasant place to visit.

 

Happy to be of service.. point being.. you were wrong..  What is the problem of just paying the fine and getting the book back ? They were just doing their job.. you made a mistake and have to pay for it. I always accept when I have broken the law and pay what i need to pay. Its not a hard concept IMHO. Sure its never fun but as others pointed out you did this before and bought insurance before and now you did not.. 

 

Anyway I hope you get it sorted out but stop blaming the police, just pay up. 

[Deepinthailand]

Are we missing something here he's been before and broke the law but the point is he's been before so therefore should know to get insurance at the border. I came over today for first time in car but I did some research before hand got caught out on a couple of things re photocopies needed pages 18 and 19 as we had changed address in blue book. Plus first time over you have to go to box 6 to register the purple book before going to thai immigration. But smiling faces from all concerned no big drama's and on the laos side they were super helpful when we forgot to go to customs after having passports stamped lol they were great. We was told in no uncertain terms if you lose any paperwork or purple book we would have major problems getting back through laos customs on return.

[performance]

Just offer 300 Baht and say sorry

[cumgranosalum]

I don't see what the fuss is really.........It appears the OP didn't buy insurance at the border - I think they've stopped putting stickers on the windscreen?.

but nevertheless it should be a simple matter to get insured and get the book back.

 

There is ofte a police checkpoint on the road out of Savannakhet towards the border so that is no surprise

[Briggsy]

It is a legal requirement to get insurance upon entering Laos. It costs very little for the 14-day policy. The OP is wrong and didn't do his homework.

 

I should add the last 2 times I have entered Laos, the insurance booth has been deserted so I couldn't get it despite trying. Nothing ever happened though and nobody ever asked me for it.

 

Laos is just as corrupt as Thailand, if not more so. The OP is right on that point.

[cumgranosalum]

2 minutes ago, Briggsy said:

It is a legal requirement to get insurance upon entering Laos. It costs very little for the 14-day policy. The OP is wrong and didn't do his homework.

 

I should add the last 2 times I have entered Laos, the insurance booth has been deserted so I couldn't get it despite trying. Nothing ever happened though and nobody ever asked me for it.

 

Laos is just as corrupt as Thailand, if not more so. The OP is right on that point.

If you can't get insurance at the border, there are plenty of places in Savannakhet to buy it.

[cumgranosalum]

one point - I was told one time by a woman in Thai customs to make sure I didn't lose my temp export papers - she suggested that this could cost 80,000 baht to put right. not sure the passport would be such a big deal though.

 

i'm beginning to wonder what the OP was up to at the border - being "jumped" and then "stopped by communist militia" - the whole thing smacks of paranoia to me.