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Traffic accident with a Malaysian vehicle.

Monday, July 30, 2012


On Saturday night, while driving home on the PIE, there was an accident on the lane I was in. As I always make it a point not to follow too closely the vehicle in front of me when I drive, I was able to stop my car in time although the wet road surface from an earlier downpour made braking more hazardous.

I was really pleased that my safe driving style paid off. However, that happiness lasted for only 3 or 4 seconds. There was a loud bang and I felt the impact as a motorcycle crashed into the back of my car. Sigh. I got out of my car and took a look. Argh! It was a motorcycle from Johor! Nooooo!




From being pleased, I became upset in a flash.

The motorcyclist was dazed and he probably cut his lips in the fall as he had blood on his teeth. His bike had a "P" sticker. A newly licensed rider. He looked frightened too and I later found out that the bike was borrowed from a friend.

I think I must have felt sorry for him and he must have have felt relieved that I did not scold him. He said he had tried to change lanes instead of braking but because traffic was heavy, he couldn't do it and ended up crashing into the rear of my car. He should have stopped his bike instead of trying to change lanes.

Anyway, I made a police report later that night at the advice of a friend. In any traffic accident involving a foreign vehicle in Singapore, a police report must be made within 24 hours of the accident.

Today, I brought my car to the approved workshop and my worst fear was realised. I would have to claim against my own insurance policy first because the other party is a foreign vehicle. It has to be so if I want to get my car repaired soon. There is no guarantee that the cost of repair could be recovered from the other party!

I would also have to pay an excess of $600 claiming against my own insurance policy. I bought an NCD protector. Otherwise, I would also lose my NCD.

Whenever I hear of accidents like this, I would always wonder why it is so difficult to claim against insurance policies of Malaysian vehicles involved in accidents here. In fact, I was told that it is almost impossible.

Singapore vehicles are not allowed on the roads unless they have valid insurance policies. The same should apply to foreign vehicles but if it is almost impossible to claim against their insurance policies, then, it is as good as being uninsured when they are in Singapore, isn't it? Then, they should not be allowed on our roads.

This reminds me of an accident here which I read in the papers some time ago involving a local female reporter. Her vehicle was the second last vehicle in a chain collision and the last vehicle was a van from Malaysia. She really suffered in the entire claim process which lasted months. I cannot remember clearly now but I think she had to bear all the cost in the chain collision as they could not track down the van from Malaysia.

These days, I always try to look on the brighter side of things. If I had not been able to brake in time, I would have been the second last vehicle in the chain collision and things would be more complicated now. I would have been in same situation as the female reporter mentioned earlier. So, I should count my blessings.

However, I am only human and cannot help but feel rather sad now...

47 comments:

Kyran Tan said...

Sorry to hear that AK...Such things happen when u are a driver and I have had people hit and run my car in the carpark, bang me from the side and yet it's a 50-50.... sometimes u know that you are not at fault but the road belongs to everybody so u can't control what others do. That part is fated...

Just glad that both the motorcyclist and you are ok. That's good enough :) $ can always earn again.

AK71 said...

Hi Kyran,

Yes, we just need to be more vigilant and do the right things.

I am going to install a video camera in my car as I am seeing more reckless driving over the years. I cannot control what others do but I can certainly take measures to protect my own interests.

Unfortunately, the bit about not being able to claim against a Malaysian vehicle's motor insurance policy is not anything I can do about. This is something for the authorities here to look into.

$600 is not a big sum of money. It is the principle that matters to me. I know. I am too much of a boy scout. Of course, the whole claim process is troublesome too.

Oh well, perhaps, in my past life, I did something to this guy and now we are even. Hahaha... ;)

Kyran Tan said...

Oh yes i forgot to mention the part on getting a video cam. I think it's impt. I am thinking of getting one too and I rem there was an offer for free installation and free 1 time car polishing with every purchase during PC Show. And Comex is coming up :)

Anyway, I wonder on the flipside, if a Singapore registered car gets into an accident in Malaysia, what happens? hmm...

AK71 said...

Hi Kyran,

There are some inexpensive ones. Less than $100 each and no installation required. Just plug into the socket for cigarette lighters. The camera sticks onto the windscreen using a suction cup.

I stop driving into Malaysia for many years already. The cheap shopping is not worth it. My life not cheap. ;p

INVS 2.0 said...

Hi Ak71,

How much is your repair cost? If it is still within your reach, try not to claim insurance as the loss in NCD would cost much more in the long term.

Btw, Malaysian drivers are not saints too. I am always mindful of Malaysian plates with "J" and "W".

AK71 said...

Hi INVS 2.0,

It is going to cost a few thousand dollars. The whole rear bumper and even boot lid would have to be replaced, plus a few other things. My poor car must be in pain.

I purchased a NCD protector for my motor insurance policy. So, this would kick in now. I won't lose my NCD. :)

INVS 2.0 said...

Hi Ak71,

Given Malaysia's lapse traffic rules, I am wondering whether that motorcyclist has a valid license and insurance... "borrowed it from a friend" is such an outdated excuse.

Anonymous said...

7 years ago, i had an accident with a msian driver. Luckily back then, I manage to claim and get 100% of everything, as the msian driver was probably a permit worker in spore and driving his uncles vehicle.

The claim also didn't take too long, abt 8 months to sort everything.


recently, 2 years ago, i was overseas. An ah beng hit my STATIONARY car blatantly in a carpark head on between the front driver door and right passenger door, simply becos he was on the phone, and not focus on the road.


He requested my wife to go to his friends workshop, and he will pay for everything. since my car is new, and still under warranty, my wife (the driver) refuse his request, and wants to go to our authorized workshop for the repair.


Since his aggressive and persistent behaviour continued, it gave my wife no choice but to call the police. Even though the police took and recorded the ah beng statement about him being in the wrong, and willing to pay, this evident can't be obtained from the police as there was no injury. Even the eye witness who saw it and claim to side with my wife, gave a fake hp no, so no evident for the insurance to claim against the other party.


As the police refuse to give the recorded evident (FIR), unless the court judge requested for it, so the ah beng make a claim against us, and claim my wife was in the wrong and banged into him. Even the insurance company was hopeless, and went for 50-50 claim, instead of 100% against the other party.


My wife must be an extremely brillant stuntman to be able to drive in such a manner and knock the ah beng's car front right corner of the bumper with the in-between of the driver and passenger door.

AK71 said...

Hi INVS 2.0,

Sigh... Yes, lax indeed.

That thought did cross my mind when I asked for his insurance company and he said the bike belongs to his friend. He called his friend and his friend could not remember which insurance company it was...

The workshop just called me. Claiming against my own insurance policy will also take some time to fix the car because they have to order the parts from overseas.

Need two more trips to the workshop: 1. Send the car for survey and 2. Send the car for repair.

The inconvenience of it all bugs me. What to do? :-(

AK71 said...

Hi SC,

My dad drives into Malaysia frequently because of work. He has had more than his fair share of traffic accidents there and, so, I believe your incredible account!

Some of my dad's traffic accidents in Malaysia are totally bewildering! In Singapore tidak boleh but in Malaysia is really boleh.

It is enough that I have to deal with Malaysian vehicles in Singapore. I am not going to take chances by going into Malaysia, not anymore.

Unknown said...

foreigners always get the better end of the stick

la papillion said...

Hi AK,

Glad you're okay. Sometimes pay money and remove some bad luck is okay lah, considering that there are other things that money can't even solve. Those types of things are far worse, by comparison.

Still, the structural problem is still here. Perhaps you should highlight these problems to the relevant authorities. Maybe they'll start to do something about it. Perhaps it's a good opportunity for you to act on the behalf of all drivers here in Singapore, haha :)

INVS 2.0 said...

Hi Ak71,

I think for sure he is a "free-rider" aka no license.

I do drive into JB frequently for cheap food. Avoid the central areas notorious for crime rates. I go only less populated and unknown outskirts of JB where the good and safe places are. :D

I wouldn't avoid Malaysia totally because I believe when it is time for you to be unlucku, it means you can't avoid it even if you don't drive at all. Can't throw out a good baby when empty a bucket of dirty water, eh? ;)

AK71 said...

Hi Unknown,

I would not go so far as to say that locals always get the shorter end of the stick but I certainly feel that more could be done in such instances to protect local drivers. :(

AK71 said...

Hi LP,

Yes, I agree that if a problem can be solved with money, it is not too bad. Still, I feel bad. I look at my car's injuries and I feel sad. :(

As for the structural problem, I don't think the authorities are unaware of this. There were probably thousands of cases if not many more before this. The authorities would have done something if they really want to by now.

I am no hero or champion...

AK71 said...

Hi INVS 2.0,

He has a driver's license. He produced it when I asked to exchange particulars. The only thing that could not be produced was the motor insurance policy.

Anyway, the workshop says that my insurer will try to get in touch with the other party since I took down their contact numbers too, both the rider's and the owner's. They did warn me that it could take months to resolve the issue.

Eeeks! Johor Bahru is a good baby in a tub of dirty bath water?!

OK, I get your point on the good luck bad luck bit. Time to visit a temple for some blessed flowers to have a bath with. Been ages... :(

FoodieFC said...

sorry to hear that. Maybe try to not drive in so often. If i venture to KL, I take SG tour bus. When I go JB for food I take cab. Sometimes not very smooth sailing of course. as some cab driver refuse to on metre.. (diff risks)

INVS 2.0 said...

Hi Ak71,

Not the entire JB is a dirty water. You need to know which places are relatively safer. Those outskirts, dominated by chinese teochews and faraway from the crowded and more dangerous city central, are good babies. :D

Singapore Man of Leisure said...

破財擋災!

Kyran Tan said...

Hi AK, just be mindful that the camera must be able to take video well at night ya. Daytime is no problem but at night not many cameras do their job well to capture the number plate.

Ray said...

Anybody know why TP need to be called in when a foreign vehicle is involved? (at least that's what TP stated in their website) It doesn't seem to me the TP are doing anything much.

I think in cases like this, it is best we settle things in cash.
Negotiate for a settlement amount since its not possible to claim against their insurer.

AK71 said...

Hi FoodieFC,

Even in the capital of K.L., I have friends who complained to me about the taxi drivers being dishonest and outright rude.

I have not visited Malaysia for a while and if I do so again, I am definitely not driving in. No point tempting Fate. ;)

AK71 said...

Hi INVS 2.0,

Really? I am happy you are able to find good babies in the dirty waters of J.B. Always good to know that we have silver linings. Otherwise, life would be rather miserable for people there. :)

AK71 said...

Hi SMOL,

Aiyoh, lose wealth to block disasters? Simi disasters, I wonder? Now, I am scared...

My grandmother was warded last night... This? :(

AK71 said...

Hi Kyran,

This is a very good tip. How much would a good camera like this cost? I think those cheap cheap ones I am looking at probably can't capture details like license plate numbers...

AK71 said...

Hi Ray,

The TP's website says that? Aiyoh, I didn't know. I should have called the police. Oh well, I don't think they could have done anything apart from doing what I did anyway... Sigh.

Ray said...

yep. basically our TP are a pampered lot.
They do not wish to be involved if accidents did not cause damage to public properties, did not cause injuries / fatality, did not involve foreign vehicles.

So what are they busy with? issue summons on citizens loh. Revenue generating mah... Other non revenue generating work, pls dont disturb them hor. they very busy one.

Anonymous said...

AK71,
due to that ah beng (sporean working in the army) incident, we bought a HD car camera and installed it to protect ourselves from such incident.
Also from that incident, we know the police and PAP govt will not do anything nor help in any way even with facts, and recorded evident as they didn't want to be involved in anyway.
I was telling my wife that with the kids in the car, and the aggressive behaviour of the ah beng, she could have said to the police, about suffering from shock and fear, and gone to see a doctor. This would then force the police to provide the necessary evident in order to have a 100% claim against such a hooligan!

AK71 said...

Hi Ray,

I used to call the TP hotline a few times a week to report illegal parking outside the condo until the call centre people could recognise my voice! I was helping them generate income, no? Hahaha...

I would usually speak very slowly and clearly when I call these call centres which probably gives the impression that I am an old man. A lady at the call centre who sounded very impatient all the time was quite rude to me on one occassion. Suddenly, my voice quality changed. I was very stern and told her:

"You are very rude! Is this how you should talk to members of the public who are trying to help the police do a better job? What happened to PS21?"

Wah! That shocked her. Tone changed immediately. At least she knew what she had to do and corrected herself. Otherwise, I would have asked for her name, rank and designation next. ;)

AK71 said...

Hi SC,

The car camera is front facing only, right? How would it be able to record the accidents involving sides of our vehicles?

I really wonder sometimes why are some people (e.g. the ah beng) able to lie just because of money or to protect their interests. Well, I guess it is just the way the world is. :(

Kyran Tan said...

Hi AK, those that works well at night costs at least $300 I believe. I am still looking for one myself. Korea made ones are better. And if u dare to buy online u will save more too.

AK71 said...

Hi Kyran,

Wah! $300 is rather pricey. I am looking at those sub $100 ones...

Kyran Tan said...

Frankly those sub $100 ones will not cut it for night recording. I wonders whether if u cant capture the number plate of the offender and he act blur say not his vehicle involved then would it complicate matters?

SnOOpy168 said...

As you are still in SG, would have asked the motorbike to settle on the spot. Pay you some $ and let him go. Why ? You already know it is almost hopeless to claim against his insurance. Plus, nobody is seriously hurt.

sg cars are well known targets in boleh land. I have seen my fair share of scams, kopi $ and bullies.

I was inside that black car you see on video. On the NS Highway after cameron highlands. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZzUIoB2D9I&list=PL1052352A6D63CA05&index=11&feature=plpp_video

AK71 said...

Hi Kyran,

You know I have entertained the thought of not having a car one day. Hahaha.. It is actually rather stressful to drive in Singapore. At least, it has gotten much more stressful over the years.

Maybe, for a start, I should use my Canon IXUS' video mode and see how that works out. I wouldn't have to buy a video cam just for the car then. Will have to find a way of securing the IXUS in the car though. ;p

AK71 said...

Hi SnOOpy168,

I doubt I could get any money or much money out of the motorcyclist. Anyway, I doubt he would pay up even if he had some money. I will just write this off as bad luck. What to do?

Wah! You were inside the black color car? How did you feel?

Anonymous said...

AK71

actually, different car camera has different wide viewing recording angles, some 120degrees, max abt 140degrees.

The crux about a good high end car camera is it has motion/shock detection. As in the incident, my wife has stop completely, and is stationary, while waiting for the ah beng to turn right, and move off. However, the ah beng turn right and instead of driving straight, suddenly veer right. Although, my wife horn at him w/o moving, he was unable to stop in time as he was talking on the phone and hit in between the driver door and passenger door.

So the shock and motion detected from the hit, plus the capturing of the car turning right into her right side just b4 being hit, and lastly, the fact that she was stationary (as recorded as speed of 0km/h by the car camera) can then be used as evidence to prove the ah beng had lied.

Even in a court case, we can even bring up the recorded evidence from the police, which gives the judge a choice to ask the police to provide that fact from their FIR.

The insurance company said the car camera evidence can be used and prove the fact of the case. however, we were pissed off by insurance company when they said it is possible to drive and hit another car, using your in between driver door and passenger door into another car front right bumper.

the claim by the ah beng was not small. he was claiming $6k, and we understand that in the event of 50:50, he gets to repair his car for free, since the front bumper repalcement would cost him just under that amount. His lawyer is also from PAP, a grassroot person, who acts for the PAP as seconder in the election, and in the Punggol-Pasir Ris GRC.

AK71 said...

Hi SC,

Hey, thanks for the very detailed explanation. It would seem that I really need to spend more money on a better video camera for my car... :(

Would you mind sharing which brand/model did you buy and how much did you pay for it?

Just a mum said...

Tp no use one...
Taxi uncle involve in a near miss... He din knock into the old man... Then after statement taken ... Go make official report.. Slap with fine and 9 demerit points.. Because old man go see doc.. Dunno how he talk .. Become very serious... Doc give mc.. Then old man make police report.. This time it become taxi uncle knock into him, cause him injuries and spoil his bicycle. The tp who are there disappear.....

AK71 said...

Hi Just a mum,

I tried to put the different pieces together and I am not sure I have an accurate understanding of what happened.

Basically, this is what I understand:

1. Taxi uncle was innocent.
2. Old man was dishonest.
3. TP was useless.

Correct?

Thank you for sharing your story. :)

Anonymous said...

AK71,

we bought the blackvue model DR400G-HD immediately after that incident, and has since recorded lots of unexpected scenes like illegal driving etc. :D.
At least, it has protected us from aggressive and unreasonable driver so far.

Note that it comes with a class 6 16G micro SD card, which is not good enough under the very hot sun of spore. You need a CLASS 10 micro SD card, which I've send to you via email link. I bought a 32G class 10, and the recording was much better, and no error encountered as compared to the class 6, due to write-read speed.
It can also take the heat of parking and recording under the sun.
http://www.blackvue.co.kr/en/contents/sub1.asp?idx=7

We also bought the power magic to do recording for overnite parking etc.

The blackvue cost about S$360-380 for bulk purchase, and power magic is S$30 if i remember correctly. installation of the entire package is about S$30.

The power magic is meant for japanese or korean cars, probably not advisable for continential cars.

Anonymous said...

Ak71,

forgot to add that locally the distributor is selling it for around S$450.

AK71 said...

Hi SC,

Thank you so much for taking the time and effort for sharing the details. Invaluable information!

So, the usual SD cards I buy for my IXUS cannot be used in high temperature environments? I also don't know which class these belong to. They are all quite cheap now. $8 gets me a 4GB SD card.

How much does a Class 10 SD card cost?

The numbers are adding up now. My initial estimate of $100 or so is looking untenable. :(

yun said...

hi ak71,

under 100 is possible, if you are interested can pm me. the models can be found here (comes with free 4gb sd card)

http://vroomvrooms.blogspot.sg

my dad's using it and found that there's no need to spend so much on a car video camera, just have the basic functions can already. you can head over to youtube, paste the model number and there are actually some recorded videos being posted by other users. looks clear enough to distinguish who's at fault.

let me know if you're interested! cheers to safe driving :)

p.s: i learnt alot from your blog about investment and am still learning!

AK71 said...

Hi yun,

Hey, thanks for sharing! I appreciate it.

I will definitely go to the blog and YouTube to take a look.

Learned quite a few things from all who have commented. :)

Anonymous said...

AK71,

your usual sd card or micro sd card (usually class 2, at best class 4) can be use for normal camera taking, ie photos, but if you are recording actions, like sports, F1, and anything that moves fast, you will need a Class 10 version of it.

a class 10 SD card now cost only about S$30-40 for a 32G, as compared to when I bought the micro sd card from amazon at $76 including shipping.

For car camera recording, since it is moving, and also can be quite fast, eg, along the highway, under the sun when parking, a class 10 sd card will not give an error due to the much faster writing of recorded data onto the card.

The card that came with the camera was only a class 6, and did give some error under the hot sun, due to its inability to record fast enough.

similarly, a normal car camera, is not sharp, or clear enough, esp. during the nite recording, as compare to a full hd car camera.

so those car camera selling at S$30-100 are usually the normal SD, or non full HD version.

i suppose you can do your maths easily, when a good car camera cost abt S$400, as compared to your car, which cost abt $100k and above, and repair cost easily S$1k-6k.


hope that helps.

AK71 said...

Hi SC,

You give good advice. Yes, you are absolutely right. I definitely did not know about what kind of SD Card to use. You have saved me much work and some heartache, no doubt. Thank you so much. :)


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