The Department of National Parks, Wildlife, and Plant Conservation (DNP) is likely to add monkeys to its list of wild animals whose damage results in compensation payments to the victims.
The expected move comes after a woman hurt when she was attacked by a macaque registered a complaint with police on Friday in a move to cover the cost of her medical treatment.
Arikanta Kanchanasinmetha met police at Tha Hin station in Muang district of Lop Buri on Friday and requested that authorities formally register her complaint so that she would have an official document to use in her request for medical reimbursement.
She did not say to which agency or office she would apply for the reimbursement.
"How come we have reached the point of registering a complaint with monkeys involved," her younger brother wrote on his Facebook account under the name of Jah Ice Thap Fah.
Ms Arikanta was assaulted by the macaques at 7.30pm on Wednesday while walking on a street in Muang district, according to a copy of the complaint posted by her brother. One of the macaques had jump-kicked her in the back, knocked her down and stole her food, leaving her lying injured. Her left knee was dislocated and she sustained minor injuries. She was sent to Lop Buri Hospital by rescue volunteers and discharged later.
"I was about to get into my car and all of a sudden I found myself lying in the street. I told my brother that I fell down and could not get up," she told reporters on Thursday.
Phadet Laithong, director of the Wildlife Conservation Office of the DNP, said the victim could file a complaint with the DNP, but compensation currently only covers damage done by elephants and gaurs.
The macaques are protected by the Wildlife Conservation and Protection Act BE 2562, although authorities are now considering their inclusion so compensation payments can go to victims of attacks.
Monkeys have been troubling residents in Lop Buri for several years with a recent study finding that there was a population of 5,709 monkeys living wild in the province in 2023.
Authorities have already initiated a plan to sterilise all wild monkeys to cut their numbers, he said.