Consumer Affairs in Thailand

Recently I read in the Algemeen Dagblad the story of someone who successfully protested against an increase of his fine for a traffic violation with 6 Euro being administration costs. You must have a good portion of perseverance and courage to go against this injustice.

Anyway, he won the battle and he will probably not only get that 6 Euro back, but also compensation for the costs he had to make to get his right.

Because what happens when you go to a restaurant, for example Thailand Order “Sen Yai” and you get “Sen Lek”? What do you do if you call the telephone company for the umpteenth time about a malfunction? Do you protest if it turns out that a taxi driver has taken you to your destination with a long detour? Well, most of the time we take a “Mai pen rai” attitude anyway and don't worry about it. It's not worth the effort.

But not everyone thinks that way and recently I read Guru, the supplement of the Bangkok Post, a story about three consumer cases, in which the consumer did not let himself be swayed and successfully fought for his rights.

The Monday car

A lady had bought a Honda CR-V for 1,3 million Baht and had constant technical problems with that car. Dissatisfied with the car and dissatisfied with the dealer's service, she parked the car - still with a red license plate - in front of the dealer's building. She took a big sledgehammer and smashed the windshield to pieces and then she worked the hood with the same sledgehammer.

“It was always my dream to own a Honda CR-V, but the numerous visits to the garage became a nightmare for me”. The dealer's excuse was that there is always one out of 100 cars that has a problem with more than average. The dealer had no intention of doing anything special for her.

Due to this indifference on the part of the dealer, she proceeded to the destruction action, was injured on her hand by flying glass, but did not forget to inform the press beforehand. The case was therefore widely reported in Thai newspapers.

The Thai Office of Consumer Protection Board intervened and through their mediation the dealer decided to buy back the car. She was refunded the full amount of the purchase, but not the purchase costs of the sledgehammer and bandages.

She now drives a Toyota Wish to her complete satisfaction.

Illegal built house

Someone bought a two-storey terraced house in Bangkok. When she lived there for two years, her neighbors started renovations and cracks appeared in the walls of her house.

She filed a complaint about her neighbor's misconduct with the district office, where it was discovered that her house had been built illegally. The space where her house was built should have been left undeveloped as a firebreak, as required by law. The house had to be demolished.

She held the developer of the construction project liable, but without success, also because she was not supported by the local government. When she also received no response from higher government authorities, she decided to paint her house completely black and to invite the press to pay more attention to her problem. Her house was demolished anyway and she decided to camp with her family on the sidewalk in front of the BMA (Bangkok Metropolitan Administration). number of project developers were paid and half by the government.

Risk of hostage taking

A former Thai senator took a flight with Nok Air from Nakhon Si Tamarat to Bangkok. He determined that there were no security measures, such as a metal detector, and when he spoke to an employee about this, he received the answer that the equipment had been loaned to a university that day.

“I was shocked, someone could have just brought a bomb on the plane and a gun to hold the pilot at gunpoint. I could have been taken hostage” His protests to the airport staff were more or less laughed off and the crew of the plane also took no notice of his objections.

After arriving in Bangkok, he sued the airport authorities for their substandard security procedures. The man was good at math and demanded compensation of 6 million Baht. He thought he was worth 4,5 million himself, plus 500.000 for the stress suffered during the flight and another 1 million for his wife, who could end up without income. Indeed, he expressed the value of himself and that of his wife in a nice difference.

At the time, a new law had just been enacted in Thailand, the Consumer Case Procedure Act, and this was the first court case where this law was applied. Although he was not awarded the total amount claimed, he was paid an amount of 50.000 Baht. Was he able to fly for free a number of times?

So you see, even in Thailand you don't have to take everything for granted.