Share your scam stories here.

[ChristianPFC]

To my previous post add one rigged taxi meter (I shared details at that time), and not a scam, but one attempted theft (pickpocket) on a Baht-bus in Bangkok (going to Seacon Square).

 

I figure it balances out when many times I have got caught in a traffic jam . I am sitting in a nice air conditioned taxi and the meter barely moves and the driver is making nothing for his time and fuel.

 

Taxi going slower than 6 km/h is charged 2 Baht/minute.

 

Thanks Bucky for sharing "Patpong upstairs bar" story. I am sometimes tempted (what they announce makes me curious), but didn't dare going not knowing where exactly the scam is.

 

 

Guys at the door were blocking my exit and I turned to see a waitress waiving another receipt for me.

 

Make it "waving". The meaning is very different in this context.

 

Scams with change can easily be avoided by paying the exact amount in such situations.

 

One could add double pricing for Thai and foreigners and displaying prices in menus before adding 10% service charge and 7% VAT as scams.

[Guest abang1961]

Touch wood..I have (yet) to encounter bad incidents in Thailand.

Firstly, I chained my wallet to my belt.  This way, I won't be a victim of pickpocketing.

Secondly, I locked everything in the safe - wallet, handphones and passport before I sleep.

Above all, I don't (normally) bring anyone to my room cos' the farangs I'd met usually brings me home/room.

 

Regarding drink prices etc... If a beer is advertised for THB 55 at a bar, one should definitely be suspicious of the "hidden" agenda.

Call me cheapskate, I paid for my one and only drink and returned the "holder/cup" immediately to the waiter.

However my bar-visits are now few and far in between as the prices of drinks are astronomical and I have ZERO interest in Thai boys.  The cute farangs don't go to the gay bars ... they would rather hang around DJ station.

[Smiles]

I have never been scammed of anything in Thailand ... and that is a time frame of 7 years on holidays and 10 years of living here. Not once, and that is with putting myself in a situation as a potential easy mark more than a few times.

Sometimes I think my old man is scamming me, but I ignore it and carry on.  

[stijntje]

I was in Thailand in April and was not scammed.

 

Only problem I had was that a boy I offed refused to perform in my room. He told me it was his first off and he was scared. Didn't pay him, but the off fee was lost.

[DivineMadman]

I certainly don't have any scam-like experiences with any of the guys I've met.  I attribute the occasional "oh you have big dick" more likely to myopia than anything nefarious.    

 

I think once several years ago someone tried the "Wat Pho is closed, I can take you someplace else" thing on me.  Easy to ignore.

 

Of course there is the famous - infamous - Jet Ski scam.  On Samui years ago there was I believe a bit of a similar scam going on with rented motor bikes, but it may have been stopped, I don't know.  

 

Best scam I've heard about recently was last year in Hanoi.  Some shady hotels will adopt the same name as a more successful one (or close enough to be confusing) and send people to the airport to meet incoming flights with a sign saying, for example "Art Hotel" rather than "Art Boutique Hotel."  Unsuspecting, probably tired, tourist will go with the wrong driver.  Because my hotel took this scam so seriously they gave me a unique password that the driver meeting us at the airport had to have also.  BTW - my general take on Vietnam was great and certainly this is not intended to suggest anyone needs to be extra-careful about anything in Vietnam.

[a447a]

I had a watch stolen once, but that's about it. I think Thailand is basically free from scams, at least in my experience.

 

But DivineMadman, I totally 100% disagree with you regarding Vietnam. I've never been scammed more frequently in any other country I've visited over the years. I don't think I'll ever go back.

[firecat69]

I did not experience that in Hanoi.  You must ask your Hotels which taxi companies are honest and once you have them in your phone, a quick call and that company shows up within 5 minutes. Just a little bit of experience with boys off the apps and those meetings were all positive.

 

Plus 5 months out of the year the weather is just beautiful.

[ChristianPFC]

I just read the discussion preceding this thread (numazu warned of the broken phone scam), and now I vaguely remember having read about the following scam: someone is walking and looking at his phone (which is already broken) and deliberately runs into a tourist and drops the phone, in order to accuse the tourist of running into him. He then requests a replacement, backed up by friends of the scammer who appear as passers-by and witnessed the accident.

 

There is/was a similar story of a woman forcing bird food on tourists to feed birds at Sanam Luang, and asking for outrageous amounts of money afterwards, backed up by friends of her.

[bucknaway]

I just remembered 2 more events.

 

Pattaya.

 

I invited a guy from the beach to my condo. He needed to use the bathroom. My bathroom had 2 doors. One that is at the front of the condo facing the kitchen and another door leading to the bedroom.

 

He entered the bathroom and I started to settle in. I walked around the dividing wall to the bedroom and found him with his hand on the closet sliding door. He jumped when he saw me and beat it back to the bathroom. When he came out I asked him to leave.

 

Another.

 

I knew a guy from Dj station in Bangkok. We talked once and I bought him a drink with my extra drink ticket. When I was in pattaya I saw him on the beach and we talked. He told me a sad story and we made plans to go shopping the next day at the tesco lotus.

 

We met and i baught him clothes, backpack, shoes, medication and massage supplies as well as giving him money.

 

Once done shopping we ended up in my room. Something didn't seem right with him. I remember he came out of the bathroom in a towel and laid across my bed. I was fully dressed and declined his advances. Instantly his face showed anger and I think after some thought it instantly changed back. He went into the bathroom as I straightened my bed.

 

I found him dressed with the backpack I bought him in the kitchen drinking a glass of water. He was keen to leave and we said goodbye.

 

Later that day I decided to organize my bags to make room for the things I purchased.

 

I went to pack the bottle of 100 pipers I purchased for my boss as a gift and found the box it came in was empty. It took me a second to realize my friend had stuffed it in his backpack when he was in the kitchen.

 

I saw him on the beach. He flirted and I asked him why he took the bottle. He told me it was only little baht for me.

 

I run into him often and he always begs for my generosity and I continue to tell him I can't help him.

[firecat69]

As I said before you must be the unluckiest visitor ever to Thailand because according to you , you have suffered more thefts then every poster in this thread combined who when combined have hundreds or probably thousands of more days spent in Thailand.

[bucknaway]

I live life to the fullest. I do as much as I can and go where the wind blows me. I meet many people and find myself in countless situations.

 

You want to make this about me but I'm not going to get baited into an argument about me.

 

These are my life experiences and I am thankful to have them. And these events have been documenTed over the years and can be found on the sawatdee network under my name bucknaway or my old screen name blkcuteguy.

[firecat69]

You are the one making it about you and all the thefts and scams you have suffered, and yet nobody else has anything but an isolated experience to report and most have nothing to report.

 

Do you somehow think that all the other posters in this thread have not lived life to its fullest. I assure you I have and I am sure most of the posters in this thread have.

 

I have no idea why you are the only poster who picks up thieves and goes to Bar that rob you etc etc etc.

 

Possibly you make a lot of bad choices or are just unbelievably UNLUCKY!

[bucknaway]

No. Your reply was about me being un lucky and on and on.

 

I guess this is going to be the 2nd thread you haunt and try to destroy.

 

This was a fun place till you got on this crusade.

 

Well I'm moving on and hoping for a thread without debate or board member drama.

[Guest]

You are the one making it about you and all the thefts and scams you have suffered

 

That is the purpose of a thread on scams.  

 

The one problem I see is you objecting to every single post you don't like, despite you having no factual basis for your objections. 

 

Perhaps you would be better off starting a blog. 

Then you can write what you like & switch off the comments so you are not troubled by other peoples views.

[firecat69]

Possibly you should do the same! Again try reading and comprehending. I am stating that Bucknaway 's experiences do not seem to be the norm and the first time visitor should pay little attention to them because you , myself and many others have not had those experiences. All of whom have far more days and years in Thailand I think then Bucknaway.

[bucknaway]

Deleted.

[abidismaili]

Come on, all of you have been the victim of a scam. Each time a moneyboy lies to you - in order to make you give him money - it legally, from a strictly legal viewpoint, is a scam.

 

If I tell someone here in my country "please give me 100 EUR I will use it to help children in need", then when I use it to buy new clothes for myself I have committed a crime. So when a boy tells you "can you please help me, because <here follows a lie>" and you give it, you are the victim of a scam. Even if you know he is lieing and you still give (what I do, I tend to give in easily, even if I suspect its a lie) they are scamming you.

 

99% of money boys in Thailand are strictly speaking criminals. From a purely legal viewpoint that is. Each lie to get extra money is strictly speaking a scam. Else tell me why it is not a scam, and where you draw the line?

 

PS: same goes for us, we are criminals too since prostitution is illegal in Thailand; so from the viewpoint of the law it also applies to us. But since it is official government policy to not enforce that law I think the lable 'criminal' is not applicable for us. But it is for the lieing money boys :-)

[bucknaway]

I have been visiting Thailand for about 15 years, 4 weeks at a time.

 

For the last few years I have been coming twice a year for a total of 6 weeks at a time.

 

Enough about me...

 

The topic is about scams....

[firecat69]

Come on, all of you have been the victim of a scam. Each time a moneyboy lies to you - in order to make you give him money - it legally, from a strictly legal viewpoint, is a scam.

 

If I tell someone here in my country "please give me 100 EUR I will use it to help children in need", then when I use it to buy new clothes for myself I have committed a crime. So when a boy tells you "can you please help me, because <here follows a lie>" and you give it, you are the victim of a scam. Even if you know he is lieing and you still give (what I do, I tend to give in easily, even if I suspect its a lie) they are scamming you.

 

99% of money boys in Thailand are strictly speaking criminals. From a purely legal viewpoint that is. Each lie to get extra money is strictly speaking a scam. Else tell me why it is not a scam, and where you draw the line?

 

PS: same goes for us, we are criminals too since prostitution is illegal in Thailand; so from the viewpoint of the law it also applies to us. But since it is official government policy to not enforce that law I think the lable 'criminal' is not applicable for us. But it is for the lieing money boys :-)

Well I agree we are both breaking the law. However I 'm not sure where you find your moneyboys .  I find them in a Bar where it is assumed you will pay. The boy does not have to lie to me.  Same on the Apps. Most have something in their profile that makes it plain they are moneyboys and those who do not , certainly tell me before they leave for my room or apartment that they expect money. Usually How much you give me? is the question.

 

So definitely nothing to do with a scam!

[colmx]

16 years of coming here...

2 thefts of money from wallet (1000B & 2000B) the first 1000B may have been lost through carelessness. The 2000B was miraculously recovered under my bed by the boy, after I made a pretend search around the room an asked him to help me find "his" tip! 

 

One scam I noticed twice on last trip was the girls in the local 7-11 short changing my change late at night.

 

On both occasions when challenged, the girls gave me the money immediately, without even counting or disputing... which leads me to believe that either they were scamming (or simply couldn't count!)

 

The only other scam happened in Dave Man club.

BF invited one of the Coyotes to come to a Morlam with us. BF paid the boys off fee that night, not knowing that the boy had already paid his.

The Coyote's mamasan took both off fees, but refused to give either of them back, or even give the boy a day off in lieu.

 

That petty action ended up costing Dave 25,000-30,000 in lost revenue over the next 2 trips

[firecat69]

Good for you!!

[halfhansum]

Well I have not had a large amount of days in Thailand, but I have had money stolen ..

 

First one, boy took 2 thou. Baht from the pocket of my jeans while I was in the shower ..  ( I know, I know ..Stupid me )

He was clever enough to not take it all, so I didn't notice till he was long gone ..

 

Have also lost a £20 note , taken from a bundle that was locked in the room safe .. ( I assume the cleaner thought I didn't know how much I had , but I always know exactly how much is there )

[firecat69]

Can I ask where you met the boy and what Hotel you were staying .  I use Hotel and apartment safes all the time  and never had a problem. But I do stay at 4 or 5 star Hotels .  That said I try not to leave much money in the safe because much easier to take money out of my Thai Bank ATM and thus rarely I would have much in the safe except my iPhone and whatever baht left over after a day.

[Guest]

One scam I noticed twice on last trip was the girls in the local 7-11 short changing my change late at night.

I had that once, in Bangkok. Considering they followed normal Thai practice & counted the money twice, I think it was deliberate. [Just the one time in umpteen visits, so by no means common. Like once in well over 1000 convenience store transactions.]

 

Have also lost a £20 note , taken from a bundle that was locked in the room safe .. ( I assume the cleaner thought I didn't know how much I had , but I always know exactly how much is there )

Which hotel was that ?

For what it's worth, I may leave some cash in the safe when going to the beach. In Thailand, I've never had a problem. Although, I would immediately blacklist any hotel that did have problems with that.

The money is usually in a transparent envelope & when organised, there is a slip of paper stating how much is in the bundle. I am not always organised.

 

I often leave some ATM cards in the hotel safe & used to use the same PIN for the safe as the ATM cards. Several years ago, I suddenly realised the folly of this and immediately changed the safe PIN.

[Whist the easiest way into a safe is via the backup key, another way is to leave a fine layer of dust on the keypad, so they know which keys have been used. So that's down to 24 combinations on a 4 digit PIN, not too difficult to work through. Whilst that is a known trick, I have never seen nor heard of it being used in Thailand]

[bucknaway]

When I was in Pattaya, a friend was staying in a condo at View Talay 7C and their safe stopped working.  The safe had a keypad and a place for an key.  The renter would not find the key and called someone to open the safe.  I was there when 2 guys arrived.  One looked to be a teenager and the other in his early 20's.  

 

They kicked off their shoes, went to the safe.  Pulled off the plastic casing.  Took a punch and a hammer and in 5 minutes they safe was open and it took them 5 more minutes to put everything back and make it look as if they were never there.