Thai Law Insights

Personal Injury Claim from Thai Law Perspectives

Sarot (Simon) Sratong

Many foreign tourists become victims of accidents caused by negligence during their journeys in Thailand. They can be compensated by their insurance companies for injuries sustained, but an insurance policy may not cover all actual injury. If so, the injured may consider making a personal injury claim against the tortfeasor. The following includes information and the legal aspects of a personal injury claim under Thai law.

Personal Injury Claim

The term "Personal Injury Claim" covers a wide range of injuries and accidents. A personal injury can be physical (such as bodily injury, loss or damage of property) or psychological (such as mind, liberty).

Time Limitation

Thai law provides different statute of limitations for which you must commence legal action in a personal injury claim. You should therefore get legal advice urgently if you consider claiming compensation.

The most common claim in a personal injury case is negligence and the statute of limitation for a negligence case is one (1) year. This means that a personal injury claim must be filed with the competent court within one (1) year after you first became aware (i) that you have suffered an injury and (ii) that you know who should be held liable to pay compensation.

Compensations

Compensation amounts awarded vary from claim to claim, depending on many different factors (such as supporting documents, witnesses present), even for similar injuries.

In the case the bodily injury caused by negligence or accident, the following compensation may be claimed:

• Hospitalization Cost (such as, medical expense, transportation, etc);
• Loss of Income;
• Loss of Working Opportunity; and
• Others (such as, loss due to physical disability, etc).

The Thai court has the power to consider fixing the compensation amount based on significant circumstances and seriousness of the injury.

Important Notes

If you are considering taking legal action and have not yet been to a legal counsel, you will need to be aware of the time limits for taking legal action in the Thai court.

If you are thinking about making a personal injury claim, you will need to get complete information on the process involved, how much compensation you could be awarded and, whether your claim is likely to succeed. If you are looking for more information or you would like to ask us about something specific, please e-mail us or give us a call.