Thailand Scams & things to watch for on your vacation in Bangkok
AS AT 2023 WE ARE WORKING ON
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Bangkok is a fun city and most of the tyime one can enjoy them selves but underneath you still must be careful. Heres a few hints on what can happen and what to beware of.
MEETING FOREIGNERS IN BARS IN BANGKOK:
Most of the info you get from bars is beer talk. Theres many foreigners living in Thailand and many on the bones of their ar... so watch out as they all know more than you'll ever know and their advice is beer talk. If you are lost then ask around and go to the right places but start using some of the best websites we know. Buying a house or condo check out the buying guide on www.chiangmairealty.com & for all law services theres a free very good advise line on www.chiangmailaw.com and a lot of good advice for FREE. In Chiangmnai Darets has a few foreigners who ply on would be expats so be careful & Pattaya is full of them.
BUYING A CAR :
Foreigners cannot get finance unless they have a guarantor and also a company to buy a car. GE Money is perhaps one of the best finance companies in Thailand and the interest rates are only around 6.50% and they allow you to pay as much or as little as you like from any 7/11 etc. The good news is if you have cash then you can buy a car in your name. You need passport and copy of your house lease now and its pretty eay. You do need to have new registration but this is normally taken care of when you register the car in the other persons name. make sure theres a book (tabian) when you buy the car and also get copy of the sellers ID & House registration signed and change of ownership signed. Theres no such thing as an AAA check so you buy the car as you see it caveat emptor prevails. Before one needed a nonimmigrant license to buy a car so some foreigners would put them in their girl friends name --however when they wanted to change the status they were told sorry and lost their cars so don't do this.
BUYING A MOTORCYCLE :
Again make sure theres a tabian or reg book which shows the tax and also previous owner. If you buy a bike with only invoice papers you may have problems with the Police riding it on th roads. Although you can get insurance if you o have an accident then its still your fault so don't buy a bike that has no registration road tax cert. Always wear a helmet as thats the law. Even if in an accident the other driver was drinking --if you havn't got a lid on then you will carry the blame.
LENDING MONEY :
Never ever lend money to a foreigner in Thailand. Chances are he is on the bones of his last baht and you will only prolong the agony and yours by not paying it back. The best idea ask him what collateral he has but if he says I will pay you back next week then ask yourself yeah with what??? Ask yourself if someone has no mony how in the heck will he pay you back so best answer is to say no. Many foreigners lose there funds in the first year due to not knowing the place or using so called Thai friends to act as there go betweens but remember they also may get a cut out of every deal you make. A good friend of ours bought into Thailand 4.9m baht. It lasted 1 year exactly and he had to go home. Everything he bought using a Thai friend, he was charged double or triple for the items from the Tv to satellite dish to his motrcycle & aircons. The last straw was when he had workers and paid his mate 500 baht a day to give to the workers. You guessed it the workers made 100 baht and he took 400 baht off each one of them. he ended up having a house in a Company thats no good and has had to go back home with most of his avings gone into dust ---or as we say into someone elses pocket. Whatever don't ledn to anyone including any Thais the same story will occur. Its easy to give but hard to get back & another thing to remember if you lend once that same poerson will hound you for a bigger loan next time until finally yours and his friendship ends and he wins..
ACCIDENTS :
If you have an accident then you may have problems with who is in the right but always have the tourist police number handy and also a good friend who knows Thai or a lawyer. It will help you when the time comes so thank us for telling you. Never help at an accident scene unless you are sure its OK--- once a US man helped a victim of an accident --when the victim woke up in hospital after the good samaritan took him there he told the Police he had a rolex watch and gold chain worth countless stolen (I guess to pay his hospital bill ) and guess who he said was to blame. So mind your own business and let someone else do the helping as bad as it may sound.
BUYING A BUSINESS :
If you are asked to buy into a business remember anything under 1m baht won't make you money. Its just a lifestyle here and you need money to just live in thailand. Theres no dole, no finance available to you and if youre working you do need a work permit and all these things cost money and to have a work permit you must have a Company. Paying the power the visa etc every month can be never ending as thats just the start ofn things and the tourist season is very brief from November to end of March so think about it before you dive into the jungle..
The most important aspect of a business is management so think about this first. Without a reliable honest Thai manager you have no show of making money from a restaurant; bar or such like. Everyone will help themselves. A recent case 2007where a Scottish owner in Chiangmai had his gay Thai friend manage his restaurant called the True Blue. The manager never made a rent payment let alone any others till finally the landlord took it back and the contract became null and void and they all got the boot. Simply speaking this Scottish person lost control and allowed a Thai to take it over and suck it dry without taking control of the money and finances. The same happened to an Aussie in Ekamai who owned Superbikes --- one of his trusted workers started in the shop then away from the shop using the credentials of the Aussie owner till finally he lost all his bikes and the business closed down. The moral of this story is if you can't run the busines yourself don't have one & where theres cash flow involved you are at risk. Even a Guesthouse is 18 hours 7 days a week and we know of a Kiwi couple who lost money to every manager x3 of them; even the sheets and towels went missing till finally after 3 years they had enough and sold -- as they said they came to Thailand to have a quiet life and didn't realize that work here is a lot different than the west so be warned.
Then there was a Uk friend who bought a small Guesthopuse in Ratchamankha Road. He had a thai wife but whn he started the inhouse manager decided to take the till proceeds. The maid decided she needed more and also helped herself to the chattels and then th new manager did the same as the first manager all in a number of weeks. The Uk owner decided enough was enough and sold.
Then the Greek couple who bought the Zorbras the Greek restaurant in Chiangmai found after a year of running the place that paying 50,000 baht a month is far too much money. Of course it is when you have visas, company, overheads like power, water, wages, taxes etc so 150,000 baht a month just to carry the place without any profit is a lot to get. They tried to sell for 2.5m baht but no takers at that rental price and ended up just closing the doors and walking away from it all to head back to Greece. The actual owner who is from the west is laughing her way to the bank and has a complete restaurant just like the x owner of True Blue. The stories are endless but now you know.
THEN WHAT BUSINESS SHOULD I BUY :
Its pretty easy TO GUESS what to buy here. Basically nothing as nothing is concrete for foreigners in Thailand. However if you have a good theme and idea then buy the building. This way if you go belly up you can rent the building and recoop your money spent.
RENTING A HOUSE :
Its a pretty easy thing to do but have a lease and make sure the landlord is not the tenant as has happened. You normally pay 2 months deposit and a contract but have someone read it if in thai. Check your electricity if the house or condo hasn't been lived in in case the next door neighbour has connected to your power source --this does happen. Soemtimes you have to pay for the telephone and a depsoit of up to 10,000 baht as a foreigner cannot have the phone in his/her name.
WHO SHOULD I TRUST :
Basically noone but yourself. I always remember my lawyer asking me this question. How many lawyers do you think are in this city??? my reply was not sure. His reply was around 109. Then he asked me now how many do you think are honest ==again my naive reply was unsure --- his final statement said she new of 6??? so there you have it.
NOT JUST BANGKOK ---- - - - CAMBODIA:
Going to Cambodia: With the Government not wanting to sign any anti corruptiuon laws as at 2007 its understandable that this is a cowboy town still so watch out as plenty of scams here. Using a moto like tuktuk hold on to your bags. An ex Aus cop friend of ours went there and had all his money, passport in a small bag beside him in the moto. After arriving at Phnom Penh he was being driven into town in a moto and 2 guys on a Honda bike came alonside and stole his bag. No possessions, no money, no passport and what to do –One hell of a headache he told us one hour after he arrived. Lucky there was an Aus Embassy there but if you think about the headache to reapply for non immigrant visa etc, get another CC and money etc ---- who wants it? you said it.
Poipet on the border be careful as many touts who want to take you to the buses. They wait while the driver is having a snooze or not there then allow you to climb on board take your money –no ticket and then the driver comes along and wants you to pay again. It’s a racket so don’t use touts for shortcuts.
[ Phone calls from USA ]
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