Tourists Driving/Riding in Hua Hin

[peteytray]

Hi All,

We will be visiting Hua Hin (first time that far down) in March and would like to know if it is as easy to hire scooters/car as it is in Phuket or Bali for instance?

We are Australian and hence have our AU licences but not Thai - do we need to be concerned with this or no?

Is it possible/easy to hire scooters etc there also or do we need to book?

We wish to have a really good look around whilst we are there so we ca plan and find out more as we are potentially looking at renting/leasing a long term property there for ongoing and retirement.
Thanks

Peter

[buksida]

Hi Peter,
You can hire cars here: http://www.huahinmedia.com/huahincarrental.php

And scooters here: http://www.huahinmedia.com/huahin-bike-rental.php

Most places in Thailand are fine but you may get pulled in Hua Hin if driving without a Thai license, the hire companies can advise.

The property rental link has been posted in your other topic.

Enjoy.

[Dannie Boy]

Best to come with an international driving permit just in case you get pulled by the police.

[JamesWest]

international driving license is the scam.
"you have? no? 400 baht."
does not matter what the law is.

this scam does not happen so much anymore since new big boss of Thailand.

check point sometimes north bound pass the Market Village mall.

don't forget your helmet. free money for police.
"you have? no? 400 baht."

the police station is next to the entrance/exit to the main bar complex near the hilton. use common sense in this area late at night as the police know your have been drinking. one of the two exits road are one way and you just won't notice but they will.

"400 baht"

make damn sure you look over your right shoulder just before you start your right turn or you stand a good chance of serious injury.

[peteytray]

Thanks so much to you both - very helpful....and well accustomed to riding scooters all throughout Asia - just haven't been to Hua Hin before. Cheers!

[jumusman]

international driving license is the scam.
"you have? no? 400 baht."
does not matter what the law is.

this scam does not happen so much anymore since new big boss of Thailand.

check point sometimes north bound pass the Market Village mall.

don't forget your helmet. free money for police.
"you have? no? 400 baht."

the police station is next to the entrance/exit to the main bar complex near the hilton. use common sense in this area late at night as the police know your have been drinking. one of the two exits road are one way and you just won't notice but they will.

"400 baht"

make damn sure you look over your right shoulder just before you start your right turn or you stand a good chance of serious injury.

Where are you getting 400 baht from ? I have been pulled over probably 20 times in the last 4 years in Hua Hin and its always 200 baht.

[robcar]

I got pulled last year for not having IDP...........400baht. I was stopped again in the same place (MV) 2 days later, I argued that I was on holiday and there was no chance of getting IDP until I went back to UK. They let me off with a warning on that one.

[Frank Hovis]

There seems to be some confusion about what constitutes a scam and what constitutes breaking the law.

Not having the correct license is breaking the law, it is not a scam.
Section 42 of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act provides for aliens (non-thais) who don't have an immigrant visa to drive with a driving license issued in their home country if there is a treaty between the Thai government and the aliens government regarding mutual acceptance of driver licence.
Otherwise an IDP is required and it's much simpler to get an IDP than it is to find out if your government has a reciprocal agreement with the Thai government.
I'm not sure what the fine is for driving without the correct license (500B seems familiar) but not having a valid license will invalidate any insurance you have (which is also an offence).

Not wearing a helmet on a motorcycle is breaking the law (rider and passenger), it is not a scam.
Section 122 of the Land Traffic Act says the fine is 500B and adds "The provision under this Section is not forced for monks, novices, ascetics, persons of other religions which require wearing of a turban, or any persons under Ministerial Regulation"

Driving the wrong way on a one-way street is breaking the law, it is not a scam.
Section 41 says the fine is 500B.

When 'the police know your have been drinking' and you fail a breath/blood test is breaking the law, it is not a scam.
Section 42 says the fine is 400-1000B. Refusal to take the test is 1000B.

So, have the right license, wear a helmet, drive in the proper direction and don't drive drunk and you'll be fine.

It's quite possible you'll be killed by an idiot driving a motorbike, with no helmet, the wrong way up a one-way street while drunk but at least you won't have been 'scammed'.

[HHTel]

Countries with reciprocal arrangements to recognize each other's driving licence can be found at:

https://treaties.un.org/doc/Publication ... B-1.en.pdf

There are around 100 countries that are members of the treaty and can drive in any member country with their national driving licence. It must be in English or translated to English and must show a photograph of the holder.

Having said that, it's always safe to bring an IDP as the police here are probably not aware of this treaty.

[Gérard]

Driving or riding without a legal license, international or local, may be 400 or 200 bahts only, but if you have an accident with casualties, it could be a big problem.

2 years ago, I was knocked down by a minivan, riding a friend's big bike with a passenger (broken leg) and me (broken arm). The minivan was declared 100% responsible and its first class insurance paid nearly 500.000 for hospital and motorbike damages (it took 8 months to come to an agreement...)

If I did not have a Driving license, I suppose it would have been different.

[HHTel]

I know someone who had an accident a few years ago. No helmet, no insurance, no licence, speeding and had had a drink. Hit by a pickup who accepted responsibility. Months in hospital all paid for by the insurance company. If I remember correctly, they shelled out around half a million baht. Go figure!!

[JamesWest]

There seems to be some confusion about what constitutes a scam and what constitutes breaking the law.

Not having the correct license is breaking the law, it is not a scam.
Section 42 of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act provides for aliens (non-thais) who don't have an immigrant visa to drive with a driving license issued in their home country if there is a treaty between the Thai government and the aliens government regarding mutual acceptance of driver licence.
Otherwise an IDP is required and it's much simpler to get an IDP than it is to find out if your government has a reciprocal agreement with the Thai government.
I'm not sure what the fine is for driving without the correct license (500B seems familiar) but not having a valid license will invalidate any insurance you have (which is also an offence).

Not wearing a helmet on a motorcycle is breaking the law (rider and passenger), it is not a scam.
Section 122 of the Land Traffic Act says the fine is 500B and adds "The provision under this Section is not forced for monks, novices, ascetics, persons of other religions which require wearing of a turban, or any persons under Ministerial Regulation"

Driving the wrong way on a one-way street is breaking the law, it is not a scam.
Section 41 says the fine is 500B.

When 'the police know your have been drinking' and you fail a breath/blood test is breaking the law, it is not a scam.
Section 42 says the fine is 400-1000B. Refusal to take the test is 1000B.

So, have the right license, wear a helmet, drive in the proper direction and don't drive drunk and you'll be fine.

It's quite possible you'll be killed by an idiot driving a motorbike, with no helmet, the wrong way up a one-way street while drunk but at least you won't have been 'scammed'.

Collecting money on the spot instead of writing a ticket is a scam. They just use the law as a tool to scam you. So the scam is helmets and International Drivers License. Most tourist will not argue.

[Pleng]

Collecting money on the spot instead of writing a ticket is a scam. They just use the law as a tool to scam you. So the scam is helmets and International Drivers License. Most tourist will not argue.

You can ask for a ticket

[Dannie Boy]

Collecting money on the spot instead of writing a ticket is a scam. They just use the law as a tool to scam you. So the scam is helmets and International Drivers License. Most tourist will not argue.

You can ask for a ticket

I've only been stopped once about 12 years ago for not wearing a helmet and at the time I tried to get away with paying the policeman direct, but he insisted on giving a ticket, I then had to find the police station, pay a 200 baht fine, exchange my ticket for a receipt, go back to where I was stopped to show my receipt to get my driving licence back, only by the time I got back the temporary police stop had moved on. I managed to find somebody who directed me to the small traffic police station on Chomsin road heading towards the railway crossing and finally managed to get my licence back some two hours after being stopped. Needless to say I now always wear a helmet, mainly from a safety point of view, but also to avoid the same sort of hassle again.

[Frank Hovis]

Collecting money on the spot instead of writing a ticket is a scam. They just use the law as a tool to scam you. So the scam is helmets and International Drivers License. Most tourist will not argue.

A policeman offering you the chance to pay less than the standard fine when you break the law is a scam?

Well, yes it is, but it's not you that's being scammed is it?
It's the Police Force and the Government who are losing income, it's the Thai people who are being scammed in the long run as the money collected from fines is not going where it should, and if you play along with the 'scam' (i.e. bribe a policeman not to give you a ticket) I fail to see how you can feel scammed by paying less.

There is no scamming; people breaking the law get stopped and fined, if you choose to pay a bribe to avoid a ticket that's up to you, otherwise just demand a ticket.