Jet ski scam under scrutiny

News > Local News

Published: 26 Dec 2012 at 20.56
Online news: Local News

SURAT THANI: Tourism operators called on local authorities on Wednesday to strictly regulate jet ski renters at Koh Samui after four employees of a jet ski operator assaulted and injured a Swiss tourist.

Thanongsak Somwong, chairman of the Koh Samui tourism promotion association, said business owners and tourism operators wanted concerned agencies to impose stronger controls on more than 50 jet ski owners who are operating on Koh Samui’s beaches.

Mr Thanongsak said some operators took advantages or threatened physical attacks. He blamed state agencies for failing to crack down on rogue jet ski owners, resulting in a repeat of the similar incident.

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Ian
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Discussion 16 : 27 Dec 2012 at 08.2516
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Tourists are scammed all over the world but normally just a few bucks at a time, the scammers know not to kill the Golden Goose. Here they try to clean you out, cook the Goose. It's the Thai way of thinking, live for today, tomorrow never comes.
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tomb
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Discussion 15 : 27 Dec 2012 at 08.1415
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Now if the Bangkok Post wanted decent investigative journalism it should follow up on this story and maybe go on a field trip with a hidden camera and expose these scammers for the whole world. Or are your reporters maybe afraid of these mafiosos?
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nowayout
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Discussion 14 : 27 Dec 2012 at 08.0714
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Budget (car rental) does the same thing but they dont beat you up because they already have your credit card number.
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JP

Discussion 13 : 27 Dec 2012 at 07.5813
... I had wondered why I have seen a very significant drop in tourism in Thailand this year. Then as news has come through tourism in Myanmar has increased sevenfold. Beware Thailand 'Rip off prices and scams will drive more and more tourists away. Not forgetting the 'Unspoiled beautiful beaches of Myanmar. Then again as normal in Thailand folk will cut off their nose to spite their face.
from iPhone application.
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bkk-farang
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Discussion 12 : 27 Dec 2012 at 07.5612
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Maybe six months or more ago Deputy PM Chalerm promised to remove the Jet-Ski scammers in Phuket within three months. Did anything change? I would love to see some follow up on this. Maybe an interview in which Chalerm can tell us what he did – or didn’t do.
And if Chalerm is not even able to sort out a handful or two of crooks in Phuket how can anybody think he is capable of overseeing the Thai police?
In any decent government he would be thrown out right away. But then a decent government would not worship a criminal fugitive.
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sibley
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Discussion 11 : 27 Dec 2012 at 07.5311
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Another day in the land of snarls and scams and another tourists beaten up by a bunch of Thais this has been going on for many many years, how many more tourists need to be scammed and beaten up before something will be done about the this problem,
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amerman
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Discussion 10 : 27 Dec 2012 at 07.5110
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I'm really now sure why the news even reports these stories. We have read them for years. Nothing is ever done to stop this problem. It's just a normal scam of Thailand. Please BP stop reporting this until a real solution is reached.
The best prevention is to contact your Embassy and request they put a warning about " Jet Ski Rentals" on their Websites. The Thai hate that one.
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bkk1
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Discussion 9 : 27 Dec 2012 at 07.419
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All this means it will cost the Jet Sky owners a few more 000,s baht more each month lets see what happens to them
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kena
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Discussion 8 : 27 Dec 2012 at 07.248
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This is a serious problem which has been going on for years. Pattaya and Phuket officials have been able to avoid dealing with it (I wonder why? Couldn't be because they're being paid by the scammers, could it?). So, it's good to hear of a Samui official brave enough to do what's right.
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ricardofel
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Discussion 7 : 27 Dec 2012 at 07.187
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One can only hope that with all the continuing negative publicity about tourists being ripped off & beaten that they will no longer come to Thailand. Maybe then the government and TAT will open their eyes and do something about it.....unlikely, because it's miracle Thailand.
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Jet ski scam under scrutiny | Bangkok Post: news