Hey was wondering if anyone could offer any information and/or suggestions regarding a recent motorcycle theft. I had been renting from a mate for about 15 months when my bike got stolen two weeks ago. We never had a written contract and it turns out the bike was not insured for 7 months while I was driving it. I have offered an above average sum but my friend does not seem too satisfied with it, and his Thai wife certainly isn't. They have threatened legal action and I would like to avoid this at all costs. However, I was wondering if anyone could shed any light on my predicament, with regards to legal status. If there was never any written contract would I be obligated to pay? I was told there was insurance (but theft was never mentioned, only assumed it covered it) but ended up driving around for 7 months without it. Many people have also told me that it is illegal to rent bikes in Thailand without insurance. Any helpful information would be much appreciated, thanks.

Even if the motorcycle had insurance, theft is only covered with first class insurance which is only something what most Thai people do when the motorcycle is new... and even with first class insurance the insurance company only pays 80% of the value of the motorcycle.

What for motorcycle was it?

i think you have the right to defence yourself if the owner want to bring this to court. the agreement seems grey area and at this point it's failure from the owner to trust you without proper insurance coverage for the bike. anyway what's the bike model?

Thanks for the replies. Ideally I would like to settle this with my friend, but his no good wife seems intent on intervening and trying to get as much money out of me as possible, which is just not gonna happen. It's a 2 yr old Yamaha Mio that had 14,000 k on it before it was stolen.

If it was me I would make an offer of 20,000 THB and make it official send it by registered mail and keep copies etc. With this in mind the (Thai) wife of your friend will know she will never get 20,000 THB in court even if she wins, more likely, the judge will settle the case for less.

Also if you know any respectable older Thai men, go together with him to your police station and consult with the police about this matter... Also ask him if offering 20,000 THB is fair... in best case scenario the police officer will call the Thai wife of your friend and convince her she is unreasonable... (police is not always bad... they pretty good in solving problems like this)