Having a English speaking lawyer a phone call away

We bought another small bike and had one of those little side cars added to it. I have ridden for year. But this was all new to me. I actually rode it around the village fro two day trying to get used to trick but I was getting it.

I started taking about a 400 Lb. load to our little farm. Got to the main street where I had to make a right turn. Now we got traffic in the mix. So I did what was normal to me and leaned, guess what they don't turn when you lean. Hit a parked car not much to talk about my fault.

I told the owner is was my fault, he wanted a 1,000 baht from the damage we could see at the time that was fair and I was ready to pay. On further inspection there was more damage then we knew about I figured for about 6K baht, which I would have paid without hesitation.

But, the his wife got involved and the farrang game got started, and we went to 10,000 baht So I called my wife to the location. Now when I first got here I would have just paid it. But, this isn't my first day of falling off the truck There was a body shop across the street I told him take it there and I would pay for it. We were in my village so I wasn't worried about being over charged.

Oh no he wanted his cousin to estimate it, now that sure sounds a fair deal doesn't it?

Ok I admitted I was wrong, I would pay for the damage. There comes a point when you say to yourself enough I'm not going down the rosey path any longer. So I called my Lawyer told him what was happening and only wanted the guy to go across the street and get an estimate. So the lawyer talked to him on the phone and explained everything to him. Should be no question at that juncture that I was going to do the right thing. Even the market vendors were telling him to go across the street. But, oh no the wife wanted blood. Mine you no one injuries. I asked the guy at least ten times just call the cops.

Having the lawyer at phones length I don't worry about the cops, he can talk to them as well. 12 times I asked they to go across the street and get an estimate. No way were they going to do that.

As far as I was concerned I had did the right thing, they refused to comply with any reasonable request and I had things to do. I had tons of witnesses around us that knew us and would say that I identified myself admitted it was my fault, was willing to pay with an estimate. So I left the Thai was way past me and I would have just complicated matters.

So my wife stayed and negiaoted a settlement I had told he up to 6K was fair. They guys wife kept the game up for another 20 mins. and them settled for 4500 baht. There greed coast them 1500 baht.

The call to the lawyer I think made the difference, the Thai guy finally told his wife to shut up. He knew he couldn't play a tourist game on me I would be fair but I would nit be conned.

Its good that you paid for the damage. But don't you think you should have compensated them for the inconvenience you will be causing them whilst there vehicle is being fixed. It's a pain in the ar5e being without your vehicle. If they had got on the phone to a lawyer at the same time you did the whole thing could/would have escalated. Does your lawyer do this work for you for free?

OT................

Had a similar thing happen to me, or at least to my wife, only we used our insurance guy. Outside of Nongbualamphu she rear ended a pickup truck. I had been bugging her about talking on the mobile while driving, so the phone rings and she turns around to hand the phone over to her mother in the back seat just as the guy in front puts on his brake. Relatively minor damage to his bumper and ours and nobody hurt as we were going slow. Fortunately he was taking vegetables to the market in Udon so we agreed to meet him that evening at the market with the insurance guy to settle it. The insurance guy showed up and estimated the damage and agreed to pay there on the spot. The guy was agreeable but, like OT said, he then demanded to be paid 3,000 baht for a rental vehicle while his truck was being repaired. Maybe he had talked to a lawyer or just his buddies who were all hanging around. In the States a rental is usually covered by the insurance policy but insurance guy verified that wasn't the case in Thailand. Insurance guy said it would take about two days as there was some paint work involved. So I told him I would only agree to pay 2,000 baht as he surely could rent a truck for that amount for two days. He then stammered and said something about gas for the truck and I told him he would need gas even if he was driving his own truck so he finally agreed and we settled it.

All the while he was smiling, as the Thais do and was very polite and happy at the outcome. I am sure that he probably was able to borrow a truck from one of his buddies and paid him maybe 200 baht, and possibly pocketed the insurance money without getting the truck fixed as it was certainly drivable and it was pretty minor damage to an already beat up truck. But I thought it was fair to just pay the equivalent of $60 US to get it out of our hair. In the US the deductible on my insurance was $250, to say nothing of a ticket if the police got involved which would have been another $300 or so and points on my driving record.

But you're right Bumper, having at least a neutral person involved sure makes it easier to negatiate.

If the guy would have just driven across the street and got a estimate, I would happily paid it I was wrong. He was a nice guy and treated them with respect and courtesy. Unfortunately that wasn't the case with the guys wife, very hateful.

I don't even know if they would send an adjuster out on one of those required motorcycle policies.

Many moons ago when a Thai and a farlang were envolved in a traffic accident it was always the farlangs fault (you shouldn't be here) Not so much any more, but when you use your insurance your payments will go up next year. so which is the better of 2 evils? no claims on your insurance the payments go down each year. So what do you do? Which is the cheaper? Pay a bit more or your insurance goes up. Old saying up 2 you

Dealing with the small bike insurance wasn't worth the hazzle involved. I don't paying when I'm wrong. Sadly they tried to game me I told them to call the cops they wouldn't do it. That would have been the first step to an insurance claim. I paid cash and in the end screwed themselves with the wife's greed. They made into a big deal it wasn't I might have been going 5 KLMS when I hit the truck.