driving licence for rented vehicles

[rickpilot601]

Hi,

I'm wanting to rent a small motorbike for getting around. I read somewhere that international driving licence needed. 2 years ago I rented a Honda Civic using my UK licence. Anyone can give me the latest? thanks

[treehugger]

I believe that legally you require an International Driving Licence covering a motorbike. Places will rent to you without this, and the police might accept an International Driving Licence for a car ( or even a UK licence). BUT if you have an accident then it will be a different story.

TIT and everything is 'no problem' until there is a problem!

[plien]

Hello Rick and welcome

Just had a look at Lek Car Rentals homepage. They require a valid international licence or a thai licence. As for renting a motorbike, all you need is your passport. But remember that everything is all smiles until you have an accident. Just to cover my six, I bring drivers licence and international licence when driving in Thailand.

Maybe someone who had an accident with a rented bike or car can share his/her experiance regarding insurance.

Good luck

[BobHelm]

My understanding of the insurance of most of the places that rent motorcycles is that it is effectively sufficient for you to be on the road & very little else. If you have an accident then in many places you will be responsible for paying to put right any damage done -or at least up to a surcharge that would repair most bikes. In those cases what licence you have is really of academic interest only - unless you maybe kill someone while driving it & the police want to intervene.
If you want comprehensive insurance that legally covers your costs in case of accident then you should have an international licence. It is possible to get cover without & on the back of just a home country licence, but, to the absolute point of the law you are not actually legally covered. You will even probably get away with it if you have an accident, but personally, I would suggest that for a £5 for an International Licence it is just not worth the risk..

[kopkei]

hi rick,
you always need international dl,( if you don't have thai), in my country it is only one mentioning what type of cars,motorbike, 10wheelers you are able to drive, if it was me ( i never rented before) with the knowledge i know now , i would not rent anything that doesn't have grade 1 ( full ) insurance , so this is the most important thing to look at , next to your dl, a uk license or from any other country is not valid here.....
good luck....

[rickpilot601]

thanks to all for info. last time I got an international licence (in canada) it didn't even have a number. So didn't think it was worth much. the Civic was rented to me by Hertz at Suvarnabhumi, so I presumed that all was Ok. However I 'm getting the impression that the 'all smiles until..' applies to many things, and appreciate the advice

[Bear Lek]

Hi Rik

Ive rented loads of times in thailand and been stopped by the police nearly every visit!! I consider it normal now
I have always had an Idl and they always copy it, along with my uk card, at the hire desks.
Simularly the police always look at the idl. I dont get the point myself as it doesnt have thai on it, but it seems to make them happy!!
As it only costs £5 anually from any major post office, or the AA, in the UK, then it is well worth getting, just to avoid the inevitable agro
Regards Tony

[douglas]

Hi,
You do not need a international DL to drive a bike or car in LOS. legally. Do what I did. I went to Udon driving lic. center and showed them my British D.L. and asked the boss man how long can i drive in LOS on this, bike and car. He looked at my lic. and replied 12 months sir. I said i thought it was only 90 days, or you need a I.D.L. He replied you have been talking to to many farangs. If you do not leave LOS in 12 months you are required to get a Thai. D.L.. As i do not need to leave LOS every 90 days now, i got 2 temp. Thai D.L.s one for car and one for bike. valid for 12 months, and when renewed valid for 5 years. Did not have to sit a written test only had to get a med. cert., myself i got this from Paolo Hospital, and bring all forms to D.L. center with cash. Do not bring photos, they do them there and directly print them onto your lics., and was issued the two lics.
If in doubt pay a visit to them and get the facts from the horses mouth. They will tell you what THEY require.
By the way most insurances, in LOS, cover the car or bike and not the driver here. So it is best if you get accident insurance. For your own peace of mind.
By the way U.D.L. center is losated on the Udon to K.K. road on the right hand side about 26K from Udon.

[BobHelm]

& did he point you to an official Thai Government site that confirmed what he believed was the law Douglas??

I quote from the USA Embassy site in BKK as the British one does not have these details.

An international driving license is accepted as long as it is valid, but a foreign license is not accepted in Thailand.

http://bangkok.usembassy.gov/driving_in_thailand.html

[douglas]

Hi,
Bob. Your site for this is a USA site and not a Thai site. And you do not want to visit a British site. It is the Thai driving lic. center you want to visit to get the facts right. I have been to two, Udon and Pattaya, and they both rerquire the same things. Not what your Embassy is saying
The offical, boss man, at the Udon D.L. center quoted me, the Thai, requirements. WHAT THEY WANT, and not what a Embassy wants. I did not possess a I.D.L. or a letter from my Embassy. And was issued 2 Thai D.L.s. The price also was a bit dearer than 105B. nearer 300B. Plus the photos i took with me, they would not accept, as they take your photo and the camera prints it directlly onto your D.L. via the computer. Unable to do with photos. They do not stick them on like on a passport. So the Thai D.L. people told me. When did you get yourThai D.L.s and what did it entail. I myself have 2, bike and car, and am willing to show anybody them, and tell excactly what it entailed for me to get them.
PLEASE, as i have said before, GO TO UDON D.L.C. and get the facts from the horses mouth.
PLEASE go to the people concerned, to get the facts, and not other people or embasses etc.to get hearsay and second hand information. Spend some time to go to U.D.L.C. on the second floor and get the correct facts.
If anyone is interested they can see my Thai. D.L.s and the wife will verify what it entails to get them, as she was with me. Thank God as all signs etc. are in Thai, as most of the people there speak Thai only. This is not a complaint just informing people of the facts.

[BobHelm]

Douglas, I do not want to get into an argument about this BUT..
I agree that you do not need an IDL to obtain a Thai driving licence. But that is not what this is about..it is about if you need an IDL if you wish to drive & do not possess a Thai driving licence.
Given the choice between accepting what a person says to you - which will not help you in any court as heresay is never permitted evidence anywhere in the world - & what the American Government is willing to put into print to legally advice its citizens then I think there is no choice. For the sake of a fiver I would recommend that anyone who comes to Thailand & wishes to drive gets an International licence. This is the standard procedure for visiting any country other than your own.
If someone can show me an official Thai government site that says this is unnecessary in Thailand then I would be willing to think again...until that day I will stand by what I am reliably informed is the law. I have searched this question via Google on many occasions & have yet to find anything that supports the Boss of the Licensing Centre's view that IDL are unnecessary in Thailand..
The AA in England insist it is required...
http://www.theaa.com/motoring_advice/ov ... untry.html
Would I trust the AA to know more about the law in Thailand concerning driving licenses than I would the boss of the licensing centre near Udon? You bet I would. Would I accept that the AA knows more about the laws concerning IDL than a Thai Government web site... No I would not..

[kopkei]

well douglas,
i would follow what bob says, as i did long time ago my first thai dl, and i did needed an idl to get it without doing a test, at that time even i only get dl for 1 year , the first 3 years , after 3 years i could get 5 years , dl from abroad 100% not valid in thailand ....( no matter what story they told you) , you will know this when you make an accident....
i have just been there to ask about tuk tuk dl, and even i have thai dl, car and motorbike, i can not get it without doing a test, or test not needed when i have idl..........not really logic again ( as many things in thailand) , as i can drive all ready 2 wheel ( as they say ) , four wheel , but not saam lo ( 3 wheel ) which is smaller than 4 wheel... ,
it is probably again like with all things in thailand , different standards according to different offices and regions.....
TIT.....

[kopkei]

forget to mention, theoretically you can not get thai dl without a form from immigration confirming you have a non immigrant visa... , but like i said this is theoretically , as you can BUY almost everything here.....

[21again]

forget to mention, theoretically you can not get thai dl without a form from immigration confirming you have a non immigrant visa... , but like i said this is theoretically , as you can BUY almost everything here.....

The form you get from immigration, kopkei, is PERMISSION to apply for a Thai driving license, i got my permission, cost 300 baht, on a 30 day extension visa.

[kopkei]

well 21 again,
as i said above , different standards according to different offices and regions.....
i went to dl office and they told me i have to go get paper immigration first, and as of the 300 bath , this is a immigration invention as normally this paper is FREE ( i have never payed anything until this year , btw a friend payed 1000 bath once ....), did you get a receipt????????????????, i don't think so.....but does PERMISSION not mean you need it??

[jackspratt]

I suspect you may both be incorrect.

My understanding is the form you get from Immigration is to confirm your address - in the absence of a yellow book.

I cannot remember the DLT office in Nong Han showing any interest in my visa status when I applied for my 1 year license about 12 months ago - although they did look at my passport for ID.

And it was 12 months ago.

[kopkei]

well jack ,
same here ," different standards according to different offices and regions.." , although i went same office as you
6 months ago..., but i do not have the yellow book.....i was thinking immigration must confirm you have non immigrant visa ( as the bank has to confirm the money you have on your bankbook is true, even it is up to date...) , but of course i also can be wrong.......

[douglas]

Hi,
Bob I went into this very deeply when i stopped having to do the 90 day border runs. I wanted to be legal according to THAI, law. Not what any other country says.
As for, if you have a accident, which i did, the police accepted my countries D.L. No problem. As I was doing a border run every 90 days. The Thai. insurance firm did also.
Also five years ago i hired a car out from Avis in Pattaya. They accepted my British Isles D.L. Did not want to know about I.D.L. just asked me when i arrived in LOS. and i said six months ago. And they wanted to see my passport, I also took out a waiver on thje excess on the insurance, belt and braces.
In my country, you have to apply to the goverment for a I.D.L. and the cost is 15GBP per 12 months, the time the lic. is valid for, You have to go in person to the Goverment to get it, Not the P.O., they take your photo and will not accept your ones. Like Udon D.L.C.. So this adds another 600GBPs plus onto the price. To expensive for the likes of poor me every year.
As I have said i will go with you to Udon D.L.C. and show them my British D.L. and ask them how long can i drive legally in LOS on this lic. I have done this once before with another person and he was supprise when he showed them his British D. lic. and asked how long he can legelly drive in LOS on it, and got the answer 12 months. If you leave the country within this time, when you return again, you will be entitled to a further 12 months. So when i was doing the 90 day border runs, i was intitled to a further 12 months grace. When i got a marriage visa and did not have to do these runs i got a Thai D.L. for car and M/B.
I would advise anyone to take a trip out to the Udon D.L. center, and not listen to what other people say, show them your home driving licience and ask how long you can legally drive in LOS on it. Also when there ask what else is required besides the medical cert.. Please publish your results on this board. When you go into the center take the stairs, on the left, and go to the next floor. At the top of the stairs turn right, go through the double glass doors and turn left. The desk is on the right hand side near the end of the corridor.
Thank you. Doug.

[kopkei]

maybe better doug, next time somebody has to be in the konsong, ( dl center, not in udon ) they can ask also ,so ( maybe ) we can ( compare) be a little bit sure this is according to the law , and not according to one office ( or office guy...), anyway i will ask next time i am there and post the result....as i also have posted before my facts not presumptions....

[wazza]

This post is going 100% the same way as every body who has , requires, had , a Visa extension or application etc.

Everybody has had different experiences in applying for, being tested ( no i didnt ) and being granted a Thai licence etc or what the various car rental agencies request from you , if you rent.

My experinence at the Udon centre was gr8, NO medical required, no test required , and my exsisting Oz licence, plus my yellow book and i was away in 30 mins.

At the end of the day, the finally decision on the DL issue will be the Thai insurance company who has insured the vehicle that has been in an accident. If they dont consider the licence to be adequate, then they will reject the claim, and then the payments start coming out of your Visa account ! that was left as security with the renting agency .