The scheme covers tourists in Thailand from 1 January 2024 and will run until 31 August 2024. Tourists can claim the compensation within 15 days of their accident and the compensation is expected to be paid 15 days later. Thailand allocates 50 million baht to the campaign.
The government also underlines that accidents caused by negligence, intent, illegal acts or risky behavior will not be covered by the scheme.
According to Sudawan Wangsuphakijkosol the campaign has the aim to assure tourists that traveling in Thailand is safe. It is especially targeted towards young backpackers who make out a large part of the tourists in Thailand.
In the recent months there have been reports of young Europeans who have faced extensive medical bills as they have had inadequate insurance. Just last week, 13 young Danes were involved in a serious bus accident in Northern Thailand, in which the Thai driver died and some of the tourists were critically injured.
The tourism sector in Thailand has still not completely recovered from the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic, which greatly restricted travel and tourism worldwide. Around 28 million travelers visited Thailand in 2023 compared to 40 million visitors in 2019 pre-pandemic. Thai officials are hoping for 35 million travelers to visit the country in 2024.
Documents for applying for the compensation should be submitted to the Provincial Tourism and Sports offices or at tourist assistance centers in Bangkok. Tourist should register on the Thailand Traveller Safety website.
Find the announcement of the Ministry of Tourism and Sports here: TTS regulation 16 Feb 2024
Source: The Straits Times
