Ainu to be worried about daughter on scooter in Thailand?

[MrsKeats]

For some reason I am convinced that my daughter will have an accident in Thailand when she goes shortly. This has not been helped by checking out stats online. Can someone talk me down?

It's a reasonable concern. When I lived in SE Asia I took my own motorbike helmet over with me. The ones there aren't fit for purpose, but are marginally better than nothing.

I will be nagging about a helmet.

Has she driven one before? I’ve done it in Thailand and quality of bike does vary a bit. Absolutely need to wear a helmet at all times. I did see a couple of people come off their bikes after bad weather. Road quality isn’t too bad but she should watch out for loose sand / gravel on the roads which can be really dangerous. I’d highly recommend her taking a CBT intro course before she goes. Can be done in a day and she’ll get to learn how to properly use and control her bike which will make it a bit safer.

Most people manage without any kind of incident but just worth being sensible about it.

YANBU, Thai drivers can be pretty crazy. Also there’s the risk of being scammed by the rental companies, who charge thousands for minor or non existent damage.

Yes she’s been travelling before. That’s great advice. Thanks.

I was that 21 yo. Never been on a moped before… fell off and scraped leg badly. Got an infection, went to hospital and made it back home ok. It did muck up my week on the beach though.

I felt worried too, but all was well!
Be aware that not all insurance policies include riding scooters / motorbikes )or being passengers on them ) as standard.

I would be worried, I get it. Also need to be aware re insurance.

I will check re insurance.

You’re not Aibu. I am a risk taker including when abroad. But they are very risky to hire. From where personal experience which I won’t go into. You’ve seen the stats yourself.

I think different to use the scooter cabs with someone else driving. But you really don’t know whether the scooter you hire works properly.

Not heard of scooter cabs. Will have a look. Thanks.

Unless she has passed her cbt in the uk, she most likely won’t be insured if she has an accident.

Your fear is not unreasonable. I am aware of two people who I went to school with who died from scooter accidents in Thailand in the past few years.

That’s the one thing I insisted on when my dd went travelling in Thailand etc, that she not hire a scooter.
luckily she wasn’t bothered about it.
When I went to visit her, omg the traffic is horrendous!
And when I came back, a friends pal had died in a scooter accident in Thailand.
please try to dissuade her !

My advice if you can give her some budget and ask her to hire a jeep, if she’s in Thailand we hired jeeps for our boys to save the stress of the scooter, and you are right to be worried it’s so frequent.

I'd be worried too! The stats are horrendous. Where is she going and how does she know she'll need a scooter beforehand? I've been to Thailand maybe 10x since childhood to various areas. There is no way I'd ride a scooter, even in the height of my 20's, backpacking, confidence days.

Tuk Tuks are cheap, as are Songtheaws (its like an open aired, taxi mini bus). I'd be hiring a car before considering a scooter!

A close friend died there. She was half Thai and had spent most of here life there and was very used to using scooters. Another friend who had lived there 3yrs sustained life changing injuries when she hit a pot hole and flew off the bike into someones car. She had to pay off the police along with the persons car she hit.

1 issue with scooter Taxis, is that westerns often aren't used to riding as a passenger on a scooter either, so not always safer. Plus the risk of burns from the exhaust!

Does she have a motorbike license?

Hi 👋 I live in Thailand and I would
very strongly encourage your daughter to hire a car instead. Please do everything you can to dissuade her from hiring a scooter. I would love to talk you down but ambulance sirens are the soundtrack to where I live and fatalities are averaging at 2.6 per day from RTAs.

I was in Thailand last March. The motor cyclists are mad! They are hundreds of them and they totally take over the road weaving in and out and even coming towards you on your side of the road. Everywhere is incredibly busy with traffic, cars and motor scooter.
it is often the tourists that have accidents as they just aren't used to the way of driving in Thailand.

I wouldn't want a child of mine riding one there. If she does she needs to make sure that her travel insurance will cover her. If she doesn't add that she will hire a motor scooter, then her insurance will be invalid.

Taxi's are very cheap, I used Grab taxi's [ similar to an Uber ]. Trains too are a cheap way to get around.

one dd fell off while riding a scooter
the other dd went pillion

can you suggest she goes pillion?

I would encourage her to hire a three-wheeled scooter. Just as fun and much safer.

Blimey that’s terrible.

No

I absolutely would not be trying to self drive in Thailand. Especially if she’s not an experienced motorcyclist.

In fact I am not sure it’s actually legal for her to drive one without having a motorbike license and international permit, which means her travel insurance wouldn’t cover any accidents or medical bills.

Use taxis, motorbike taxis or tuk tuks, they are cheap and plentiful

Without a motorbike licence - and the associated international drivers license she needs for that motorbike licence to ride in Thailand - her insurance will not pay out, at all. Everyday here I see people post go fund me fundraisers to bring their injured (or dead) family members back from Thailand as they rode without licences and had accidents and their insurance will not pay. Again, please dissuade her from riding a scooter in Thailand.