Phuket motorbike mayhem: Tourist Police send clear message on green book ownership

Phuket‘s Tourist Police issued a stern reminder to foreigners purchasing motorbikes, emphasising the importance of having the green registration book in their name. This advice follows a recent dispute between a Russian tourist and a local motorbike rental shop that refused to return his vehicle key.

The disagreement came to light on November 18, when the Phuket Tourist Police were informed by the Thalang police about a grievance lodged by a Russian visitor. He wanted to press charges against an employee of a motorbike rental shop for withholding the key to his grey-black Honda CBR 250R.

Officers from the Tourist Police at Phuket International Airport, together with the Tourist Assistance Centre (TAC), joined forces with the local police to address the issue. They also played a pivotal role as interpreters for the Russian tourist, as stated in a recent post by the Phuket Tourist Police.

Upon assessing the situation, the officers learned that the Russian man’s friend had borrowed his Honda CBR to visit a motorbike shop on the evening of November 18. While test-driving one of the shop’s motorbikes, the friend got involved in a minor accident, which he blamed on the vehicle’s faulty brakes.

The shop staff, however, demanded a compensation of 5,000 baht for the damage to their motorbike. On the other hand, the friend insisted on 1,500 baht as compensation for his minor injuries that required treatment at Thalang Hospital.

The disagreement escalated, and the shop staff seized the key to the Honda CBR, leading to the Russian tourist’s formal complaint, reported Phuket News.

During their investigation, Thalang police officers discovered that the Russian man didn’t have the green registration book for his Honda CBR, which he claimed had been lost. Moreover, they found no sales receipt confirming his purchase of the motorbike, and the road tax hadn’t been paid since 2018.

The officers recommended the Russian man register the motorbike in his name, and record it in the green registration book, at the Phuket Provincial Land Transport Office (PLTO). They advised him to return with the proper documents to affirm his ownership of the motorbike before they could help negotiate a settlement with the rental shop.

In the meantime, both the Honda CBR and the rental shop’s motorbike involved in the minor accident were taken to Thalang Police Station. They will stay there until the dispute and the ownership issues are resolved.