Emergencies and police in Thai

ช่วยด้วย

chûay dûay

Help!

The one phrase with NO politeness particle: in a real emergency you shout it as-is. Tourist police hotline is 1155 and speaks English.

เรียกตำรวจครับ

rîak dtam-rùat khráp

Call the police.

Male speaker

General emergency number is 191. For tourists, 1155 reaches the tourist police, who speak English.

ผมอยากไปหาหมอครับ

phǒm yàak bpai hǎa mǎw khráp

I need to see a doctor.

Male speaker

The natural spoken form. In an emergency, the ambulance number is 1669. Private hospitals in cities usually have English-speaking staff.

ช่วยเรียกรถพยาบาลให้หน่อยครับ เร็วๆ

chûay rîak rót-phá-yaa-baan hâi nàwy khráp, reo reo

Please call an ambulance for me, quickly.

Male speaker

1669 is the ambulance line and it is answered in Thai, so say this to whoever is next to you first, then be ready to give a landmark. chûay plus hâi nàwy is how you ask a stranger to do something for you. reo reo is the spoken word for hurry; dùan is the written one you will see on signs and forms, not the one you shout. If there is no time for a full sentence, use the shout card instead.

ช่วยด้วย โทรหนึ่งหกหกเก้า

chûay dûay, thoo nèung hòk hòk gâo

Help! Call 1669.

No particle, because nobody adds one while shouting and Thai people drop it too in a real emergency. Say the number in Thai digits: an English 1669 shouted at a market vendor achieves nothing. Point at one specific person while you say it, otherwise everyone assumes someone else is handling it.

ช่วยโทรหนึ่งหกหกเก้าให้หน่อยครับ

chûay thoo nèung hòk hòk gâo hâi nàwy khráp

Please call 1669 for me.

Male speaker

The four numbers worth being able to say out loud: 1669 ambulance is nèung hòk hòk gâo, 191 police is nèung gâo nèung, 199 fire is nèung gâo gâo, 1155 tourist police is nèung nèung hâa hâa. Thai reads emergency numbers digit by digit, so no counting words are needed. Handing your own phone over with the call already dialling works even better than asking.

ไฟไหม้ครับ โทรหนึ่งเก้าเก้าเร็ว

fai mâi khráp, thoo nèung gâo gâo reo

Fire! Call 199, quickly.

Male speaker

fai mâi is the fixed word for a fire that is burning something, and it is what you shout in a soi or a stairwell. 199 is the fire service, though in practice 191 will also dispatch. In a condo, shout it on the floor before you call: most Thai buildings have working alarms that nobody has ever tested.

ช่วยด้วยครับ มีคนโดนรถชน

chûay dûay khráp mii khon doon rót chon

Help! Someone has been hit by a car.

Male speaker

1669 for the ambulance, 191 for police at the scene. Call 1669 first: a casualty needs medics, and the police will come to a road accident anyway. doon marks the person as the one it happened to, so doon rót chon is the normal way to say hit by a car. If nobody around you has any English, call the Tourist Police on 1155 and hand your phone to a bystander.

ผมขับมอเตอร์ไซค์ล้มครับ

phǒm khàp maw-dtoe-sai lóm khráp

I came off my motorbike.

Male speaker

lóm is going down, with or without another vehicle involved, and it is the sentence you will most likely need for yourself rather than for someone else. Say it to the first person who stops, then let them call. If a car was involved, use the hit-by-a-car card instead, because that changes who pays.

ผมโดนรถชนครับ

phǒm doon rót chon khráp

I was hit by a car.

Male speaker

Same frame as reporting it about someone else, with phǒm in front. This is the sentence the police, the medics and both insurers will all write down, so keep it exactly this short and do not add who you think was at fault. If the car left, go to the hit-and-run card.

กระเป๋าดิฉันโดนขโมยค่ะ

grà-bpǎo dì-chǎn doon khà-mǒoy khâ

My bag was stolen.

Female speaker

doon khà-mǒoy means someone took it, while hǎai means it went missing on its own, so use doon khà-mǒoy; on the written report you will see the more formal thùuk khà-mǒoy. The wording matters far less than the document you walk out with, though, so read the card on asking for a real report rather than a daily-log entry. Women should use dì-chǎn at a police counter, a hospital admissions desk or any office; chǎn is for friends, and leaving the pronoun out entirely is always safe.

หนังสือเดินทางผมโดนขโมยครับ

nǎng-sěu-doen-thaang phǒm doon khà-mǒoy khráp

My passport was stolen.

Male speaker

nǎng-sěu-doen-thaang is the word the station writes on the report; in speech the English word passport is also understood. The doon passive here is ordinary polite speech, not formal register: the formal written form is thùuk khà-mǒoy, which is what you will read on the paper. Order of operations: report first, then your embassy for an emergency document, then Immigration, which will want a copy of the report too. A phone photo of your ID page saves an hour here.

ผมต้องติดต่อสถานทูตครับ ขอโทรศัพท์หน่อยได้ไหมครับ

phǒm dtâwng dtìt-dtàw sà-thǎan-thûut khráp, khǎw thoo-rá-sàp nàwy dâi mǎi khráp

I need to contact my embassy. May I use a phone?

Male speaker

Useful when your phone went with the bag. Stations will normally let you make the call, and the embassy will ask for the report number, so have the slip in your hand first. Most embassies issue an emergency travel document in a day or two but only on a weekday, so a Friday theft costs you the weekend.

ขอสำเนาใบแจ้งความสามชุด มีตราประทับด้วยครับ

khǎw sǎm-nao bai jâeng-khwaam sǎam chút, mii dtraa bprà-tàp dûay khráp

Three stamped copies of the report, please.

Male speaker

One for the embassy, one for Immigration, one for you. chút is the counting word for a set of documents, and dtraa bprà-tàp is the station stamp that makes a photocopy count as real. Ask while the file is still on the desk: coming back next week means the file has to be pulled and your day is gone. Immigration will also need to re-stamp your visa or extension into the new passport, so that copy gets used twice.

ขอใบแจ้งความสำหรับบริษัทประกันหน่อยค่ะ

khǎw bai jâeng-khwaam sǎm-ràp baw-rí-sàt bprà-gan nàwy khâ

Could I have a police report for my insurance company?

Female speaker

bai jâeng-khwaam is the paper slip, and it is the whole reason you are at the station. Ask for it at the counter before you leave. What decides your claim is not the verb you used to describe the theft but which document you are given: stations routinely write a ban-théuk bprà-jam-wan daily-log entry instead, which opens no case and which most insurers reject, and the two look almost the same on the counter. The next card is how you name the one you want. Many policies set a short notification window, sometimes as little as 24 hours, so check yours and open the claim the same day.

เป็นอะไรไหมครับ เจ็บตรงไหนไหมครับ

bpen à-rai mǎi khráp, jèp dtrong-nǎi mǎi khráp

Are you all right? Are you hurt anywhere?

Male speaker

Say this first after any collision, whoever caused it. Opening with anything about fault is what turns a routine insurance matter into a crowd forming around the foreigner. It is concern, not an admission. What you must not say is khǎw-thôot: the apology a polite foreigner reaches for by reflex is heard by police and assessors as accepting blame.

รอตำรวจกับประกันก่อนนะครับ

raw dtam-rùat gàp bprà-gan gàwn ná khráp

Let us wait for the police and the insurance people.

Male speaker

The neutral holding line that admits nothing and refuses nothing. gàwn means before anything else happens, and it is the word that buys you time. Say it, then stop talking. Do not move the vehicles until they have been seen, because fault is judged largely from where they ended up.

โทรเรียกประกันแล้วครับ รอเจ้าหน้าที่ประกันก่อนนะครับ

thoo rîak bprà-gan láew khráp, raw jâo-nâa-thîi bprà-gan gàwn ná khráp

I have called my insurer. Let us wait for the assessor.

Male speaker

A minor road accident in Thailand is usually not settled by police at all. Both parties ring their own insurers, nobody moves anything, and two assessors arrive on motorbikes and settle fault between themselves at the roadside. That is the normal twenty minutes after a bump. Your insurer's hotline number should be saved in your phone and stuck inside the car.

รถคันนั้นชนแล้วหนีครับ

rót khan nán chon láew nǐi khráp

That car hit them and drove off.

Male speaker

chon láew nǐi is the fixed expression for a hit and run and every officer knows it instantly. It changes what the police can do, so say it in the first sentence rather than working up to it. khan is the counting word for vehicles.

ผมจดเลขทะเบียนไว้ครับ

phǒm jòt lêek thá-bian wái khráp

I wrote down the licence plate.

Male speaker

Without a plate there is no case, so this is the sentence that makes the report worth filing. wái means you kept it, noted for later. Thai plates carry a province name under the number and the police will want that too, so photograph rather than copy if you have half a second.

ผมมีคลิปจากกล้องหน้ารถครับ ส่งให้ได้เลย

phǒm mii khlíp jàak glâwng nâa rót khráp, sòng hâi dâi loei

I have dashcam footage, I can send it to you now.

Male speaker

glâwng nâa rót is the dashcam, standard equipment for resident car owners here, and police will accept a clip on the spot over Line. Save the file before the loop overwrites it, which on most units is within a couple of hours. Footage settles fault faster than any argument at the roadside.

ใบแจ้งความรับได้เมื่อไหร่ครับ

bai jâeng-khwaam ráp dâi mêua-rài khráp

When can I collect the report?

Male speaker

The paper is often not ready the same day, and this is where a resident's case differs from a tourist's: yours is only beginning. Ask before you leave and write the answer down. Going back on a guess means a wasted morning, because the file has to be found and the officer who took it may be off shift.

ขอชื่อกับเบอร์ร้อยเวรหน่อยครับ

khǎw chêu gàp boe ráwy-wen nàwy khráp

May I have the duty officer's name and number?

Male speaker

ráwy-wen is the named duty inspector, and your case belongs to him personally rather than to the station. Without his name you have nobody to ask for on the second visit and you start from the counter again. Asking is routine and he will usually give you a mobile number or a Line contact.

ขอถ่ายรูปเอกสารไว้ได้ไหมครับ

khǎw thàai rûup èek-gà-sǎan wái dâi mǎi khráp

May I photograph the document?

Male speaker

Almost always yes, and it costs nothing. Photograph the report, the case number and the duty officer's details before you walk out, so your insurer can open the claim while you wait for the stamped copies. Read the paper on screen at the counter: it is easier to spot a wrong name zoomed in.

เมื่อวานมาแจ้งความไว้ครับ มารับใบ

mêua-waan maa jâeng-khwaam wái khráp, maa ráp bai

I filed a report yesterday, I have come for the slip.

Male speaker

The second visit, which is the one nobody prepares you for. Lead with when you filed and the duty officer's name, and have your ID ready. wái again is the marker that the thing was done and left in place. Swap mêua-waan for the actual day: aa-thít thîi láew, last week.

ผมเจ็บขา ลุกไม่ไหวครับ

phǒm jèp khǎa, lúk mâi wǎi khráp

My leg hurts, I cannot get up.

Male speaker

mâi wǎi is cannot manage it physically, which is the difference between not wanting to move and not being able to. Say it early, because the reflex of everyone around you is to pull a fallen rider upright. Swap khǎa for another part: hǔa head, lǎng back, khǎen arm.

ในกระเป๋ามีอะไรบ้างครับ มูลค่าเท่าไหร่

nai grà-bpǎo mii à-rai bâang khráp, muun-khâa thâo-rài

What was in the bag? What was it worth?

Male speaker

This comes within seconds of your report and both halves go on the paper. bâang is what turns à-rai into a list rather than a single item. muun-khâa is the value, and the figure you give here is the figure your insurer will pay against, so think before you answer and do not inflate it.

มีโทรศัพท์ บัตรเครดิต กับเงินสดประมาณ...บาทค่ะ

mii thoo-rá-sàp, bàt khree-dìt, gàp ngoen sòt bprà-maan ... bàat khâ

A phone, credit cards, and roughly ... baht in cash.

Female speaker

Fill the blank with your own figure. bprà-maan is approximately, and it is the honest word to use when you are estimating cash. Name the phone model and have the IMEI if you can, because the report is worthless to an insurer without something identifiable. Cancel the cards from the counter while you wait.

โดนขโมยที่ตลาดนัด ตอนประมาณบ่ายสองค่ะ

doon khà-mǒoy thîi dtà-làat nát, dtawn bprà-maan bàai sǎwng khâ

It was stolen at the weekend market, around two in the afternoon.

Female speaker

Place and time are the other half of every theft report and the officer will not write it up without them. bàai covers one to four in the afternoon, so bàai sǎwng is two. If you only know a window, say dtawn bàai, in the afternoon, rather than inventing a time you cannot stand behind later.

จะแจ้งความดำเนินคดี หรือลงบันทึกประจำวันครับ

ja jâeng-khwaam dam-noen khá-dii, rěu long ban-théuk bprà-jam-wan khráp

Do you want to press charges, or just a log entry?

Male speaker

The question that decides everything, and it is asked fast and quietly. dam-noen khá-dii is opening a criminal case; long ban-théuk bprà-jam-wan is writing a line in the day book. The second is quicker for everyone at the counter and useless to your insurer. Listen for the word ban-théuk and do not nod at it.

ขอเป็นใบแจ้งความเพื่อดำเนินคดีนะคะ ไม่เอาบันทึกประจำวันค่ะ

khǎw bpen bai jâeng-khwaam phêua dam-noen khá-dii ná khá, mâi ao ban-théuk bprà-jam-wan khâ

I need a formal report to open a case, not a daily-log entry.

Female speaker

Say it once, politely, with ná to keep it soft. Naming both documents shows you know the difference, which is usually enough. Before you leave, look at the top of the slip for the words jâeng-khwaam rather than ban-théuk, and check there is a case number on it.

เกิดอะไรขึ้นครับ

gòet à-rai khêun khráp

What happened?

Male speaker

The first thing an officer at the scene, or a 191 operator, will say to you. Answer with one short true sentence, not the whole story: at this point they are only deciding who to send.

ขอดูพาสปอร์ตหน่อยครับ

khǎw duu phâat-sà-bpàwt nàwy khráp

Let me see your passport, please.

Male speaker

Police open with a document request far more often than with a question about the incident, so expect this before gòet à-rai khêun. A photo of the ID page and the visa stamp on your phone is accepted almost everywhere and is safer than carrying the book. If you have a Thai driving licence, offer that first: it is the ID a station is happiest with.

ขอดูใบขับขี่กับทะเบียนรถหน่อยครับ

khǎw duu bai khàp-khìi gàp thá-bian rót nàwy khráp

Licence and vehicle registration, please.

Male speaker

bai khàp-khìi is the driving licence, thá-bian rót is the blue book or the registration copy. Keep a copy of the book with the bike rather than the original. An international permit alone is fine for a visitor but a resident is expected to hold a Thai licence, and insurers read that line too.

อยู่ในกระเป๋า ผมหยิบนะครับ

yùu nai grà-bpǎo, phǒm yìp ná khráp

It is in my bag, I am reaching for it.

Male speaker

Narrate the movement before you make it. yìp is to pick something up with your fingers, and ná turns the statement into asking permission without stopping to ask. Same sentence works for a pocket, a top box or a glovebox: swap grà-bpǎo for grà-bpǎo sêua, chest pocket, or the box itself.

ตอนนี้อยู่ที่ไหนคะ

dtawn-níi yùu thîi-nǎi khá

Where are you right now?

Female speaker

1669 asks this before anything else, and the dispatcher is usually a woman, so expect khá. Answer with a landmark rather than a street address. If there is a blue soi sign above you, read the number on it.

อยู่หน้าโรงแรม ตรงข้ามปั๊มน้ำมันค่ะ

yùu nâa roong-raem dtrong-khâam bpám nám-man khâ

I am in front of a hotel, opposite a petrol station.

Female speaker

Landmark first, then something across the road from it, which is how Thai people give a position to a driver. Dropping the pronoun is normal and faster. Swap in whatever is actually there: a 7-Eleven, a temple, a hospital gate.

ขอเบอร์โทรกลับหน่อยค่ะ

khǎw boe thoo glàp nàwy khâ

Give me a callback number.

Female speaker

1669 will not release the call without this, because the crew rings back when they cannot find you. boe is the everyday word for a phone number. If you are calling from a borrowed phone, say so and give that number, not yours.

เบอร์ผมคือศูนย์แปด...ครับ

boe phǒm kheu sǔun bpàet ... khráp

My number is zero eight ...

Male speaker

Thai mobile numbers start sǔun bpàet, sǔun hòk or sǔun gâo, read digit by digit. Practise your own ten digits out loud now, in Thai, before you ever need them: this is the one sentence in the set you cannot improvise under stress. Say them slowly in pairs and expect the dispatcher to read them back.

มีใครบาดเจ็บไหมครับ

mii khrai bàat-jèp mǎi khráp

Is anyone injured?

Male speaker

You will get this from both 191 and 1669. bàat-jèp is injured. If someone is unconscious, say mòt sà-dtì, or mâi rúu-sèuk dtua, which sends a different level of response. Do not use mâi rúu dtua for this: that means unaware, and it describes their state of mind before the impact, not loss of consciousness.

มีครับ เขาเลือดออกเยอะ

mii khráp khǎo lêuat àwk yóe

Yes. He is bleeding a lot.

Male speaker

Thai answers a yes or no question by repeating the verb, so mii on its own is the yes. lêuat àwk is literally blood comes out and covers any visible bleeding. khǎo is he or she, so this works either way.

ใจเย็นๆ นะครับ

jai yen yen ná khráp

Steady. Take it easy.

Male speaker

The single most common thing said to a rattled foreigner, and it is reassurance, not a rebuke. It means I have you, stand still, not stop making a fuss. Hearing it as criticism and pushing back is how a helpful bystander turns into a hostile one. The right response is to slow down and say khàwp-khun khráp.

รอสักครู่นะคะ กำลังส่งรถไปแล้วค่ะ

raw sàk khrûu ná khá, gam-lang sòng rót bpai láew khâ

One moment, a vehicle is already on the way.

Female speaker

What 1669 says once it has your location, and it is a statement, not a request for more information. gam-lang plus láew means it is happening now and already under way. Stay on the line if the dispatcher does not hang up, and keep the phone free afterwards for the crew's callback.

เดี๋ยวตำรวจมาครับ

dǐao dtam-rùat maa khráp

The police are coming shortly.

Male speaker

dǐao is in a minute, and Thai uses it to close a subject as much as to give a time. Said to you at a roadside it means stop asking and wait. Nothing useful happens between now and then except photographs: the vehicles where they stopped, the plates, and the other driver's licence.

ไม่เป็นไรนะ เดี๋ยวจัดการให้

mâi bpen rai ná, dǐao jàt-gaan hâi

It is all right, we will sort it out.

No particle, because it is said warmly and quickly by whoever has decided to take charge of you: a shop owner, a security guard, a passing rider. jàt-gaan hâi is I will handle it for you. Let them. In a Thai emergency the person who starts organising is a genuine asset, and refusing help politely costs you far more time than accepting it.

จะไปโรงพยาบาลไหนครับ

ja bpai roong-phá-yaa-baan nǎi khráp

Which hospital do you want?

Male speaker

You get a say, and in Thailand that choice is money. Government and private hospitals differ enormously in cost, and most expat policies are tied to named private hospitals. Know the name of yours in Thai before you need it. If you are unconscious the crew takes you to the nearest one, which is another reason to carry the card.

พาไปโรงพยาบาล...ได้ไหมครับ ผมมีประกันที่นั่น

phaa bpai roong-phá-yaa-baan ... dâi mǎi khráp, phǒm mii bprà-gan thîi nân

Can you take me to ... hospital? My insurance is with them.

Male speaker

Fill the blank with your hospital's name. phaa bpai is to take a person somewhere, which is the right verb for being carried rather than driving yourself. Saying mii bprà-gan thîi nân is what makes the request reasonable rather than fussy. For anything time critical, take the nearest hospital and argue about the billing afterwards.

นี่บัตรประกันสุขภาพครับ

nîi bàt bprà-gan sùk-khà-phâap khráp

Here is my health insurance card.

Male speaker

Hand it over at admissions and the hospital bills the insurer directly instead of asking you for a deposit. Keep it in the same pocket as your ID, or a photo of both faces on your phone. Without it, private hospitals want cash or a card before treatment for anything not immediately life threatening.

มีประกันไหมครับ ประกันชั้นอะไร

mii bprà-gan mǎi khráp, bprà-gan chán à-rai

Do you have insurance? What class?

Male speaker

The first question the other driver and the police both ask. Thai voluntary cover is graded chán nèung to chán sǎam, class one being fully comprehensive, and the answer changes the whole conversation. The compulsory sticker cover, phaw raw baw, pays medical costs only and is not what they are asking about.

นี่บัตรประกันของผมครับ ถ่ายรูปได้เลย

nîi bàt bprà-gan khǎwng phǒm khráp, thàai rûup dâi loei

Here is my insurance card, you can photograph it.

Male speaker

dâi loei is go ahead, do it now, and offering the photo first is what keeps the exchange friendly. Photograph theirs at the same time, plus their plate and their licence. Hand over the card, not your passport, and never let either out of sight.

จอดข้างทางครับ ขอดูใบขับขี่

jàwt khâang thaang khráp, khǎw duu bai khàp-khìi

Pull over. Licence, please.

Male speaker

For a foreigner living here the most frequent police contact by far is being waved into a dàan dtrùat checkpoint, usually on a motorbike, over a licence or a helmet. Pull in where they point, put your feet down, take the helmet off, and hand the licence over with a wâi or a nod. Nothing about the stop is personal.

ผมทำผิดอะไรครับ

phǒm tham phìt à-rai khráp

What have I done wrong?

Male speaker

Ask it flatly and pleasantly. You are entitled to know the offence and the officer will name it: no helmet, no licence, wrong lane. Keep your hands visible and stay on the bike until told otherwise. Getting annoyed is the one move that reliably makes a checkpoint slower and more expensive.

จะยอมความไหมครับ

ja yawm khwaam mǎi khráp

Do you want to settle it between yourselves?

Male speaker

yawm khwaam is private settlement at the station, and it is how the large majority of minor Thai incidents actually end. The officer will ask you point blank, often early. Recognise the words, because agreeing on the spot can close your insurance claim, and refusing rudely makes an enemy of both the other party and the counter.

ขอคุยกับประกันก่อนนะครับ ยังตอบไม่ได้

khǎw khui gàp bprà-gan gàwn ná khráp, yang dtàwp mâi dâi

I need to speak to my insurer first, I cannot answer yet.

Male speaker

The safe answer to yawm khwaam. yang dtàwp mâi dâi is not yet able to answer, which is a delay rather than a refusal and nobody loses face. Never agree to a figure at the counter before your insurer has seen the damage, and never sign anything you cannot read.

ยอมความได้ครับ แต่ขอเป็นลายลักษณ์อักษร

yawm khwaam dâi khráp, dtàe khǎw bpen laai-lák-àk-sǎwn

I will settle, but I want it in writing.

Male speaker

For small matters, settling is genuinely the sane outcome and it is what the station expects. laai-lák-àk-sǎwn is the formal phrase for in writing, and asking for it is normal at the counter, not an insult. The paper should say what was paid, by whom, and that neither side will pursue it further. Keep your copy.

ไปสถานีตำรวจกับผมนะครับ

bpai sà-thǎa-nii dtam-rùat gàp phǒm ná khráp

Come to the police station with me.

Male speaker

You are not in trouble: the report is written at the station, not at the roadside. ná softens it into an invitation, but it is not really optional. Two things to hold on to there: ask for the report slip before you leave, and do not sign anything you cannot read.

ขอใบสั่งด้วยครับ ผมจะไปจ่ายที่โรงพัก

khǎw bai sàng dûay khráp, phǒm ja bpai jàai thîi roong-phák

I would like the written ticket, I will pay at the station.

Male speaker

bai sàng is the written ticket and asking for it is completely normal, not confrontational. It is the documented route: the fine is fixed, you pay at the roong-phák within seven days, and you get a receipt. Say it once, calmly, and expect it to end the conversation. Your licence may be held until you pay, which is why the copy on your phone is worth having.

ผมตกใจ พูดช้าๆ ได้ไหมครับ

phǒm dtòk-jai phûut cháa-cháa dâi mǎi khráp

I am shaken up. Could you speak slowly?

Male speaker

Saying you are rattled buys patience, and dtòk-jai is the ordinary word for it. cháa-cháa is slowly, doubled the way Thai doubles adverbs. Asking for slow Thai gets you further at a district station than asking for English.

ขอโทษค่ะ ฟังไม่ทัน พูดอีกทีได้ไหมคะ

khǎw-thôot khâ fang mâi than phûut ìik thii dâi mǎi khá

Sorry, I could not keep up. Could you say that again?

Female speaker

fang mâi than is I could not keep up, which is more accurate than saying you do not understand and gets you a slower repeat rather than a switch to broken English. Note the particle change: the statement takes khâ, the question takes khá. mǎi is written with a rising tone but in fast speech it comes out closer to mái. One place to avoid khǎw-thôot is at a crash scene, where an apology is read as accepting fault.

มีคนพูดภาษาอังกฤษได้ไหมคะ

mii khon phûut phaa-sǎa ang-grìt dâi mǎi khá

Is there anyone who speaks English?

Female speaker

Ask whether such a person exists rather than requesting one be assigned to you, which is how it lands if you build it with khǎw. At a busy district station the honest answer is usually no, so have the next card ready. The Tourist Police line 1155 answers in English around the clock and will translate over the phone for a local station.

งั้นขอโทรสายด่วนนักท่องเที่ยวนะคะ เดี๋ยวให้เขาแปลให้

ngán khǎw thoo sǎai dùan nák-thâwng-thîao ná khá, dǐao hâi khǎo bplae hâi

Then I will call the tourist hotline and have them translate.

Female speaker

ngán is in that case, the word that moves things along without complaint. Dial 1155 yourself, explain in English, then hand your phone to the officer. This works at any station and is far quicker than waiting for someone at the counter to be found. Announce it rather than doing it silently, so the phone coming out is not misread.

ไม่ใช่ความผิดผมครับ

mâi châi khwaam-phìt phǒm khráp

It was not my fault.

Male speaker

Not your opening line: ask after the other person first, then hold with rating for the police and the insurance people. When you do say this, say it once, calmly, then stop talking and let the report be written. Arguing at the roadside changes nothing. Do not move the vehicles until the police and the assessor have seen them, because fault is judged from where they ended up.

ในใบแจ้งความ ชื่อดิฉันสะกดผิดค่ะ

nai bai jâeng-khwaam chêu dì-chǎn sà-gòt phìt khâ

My name is spelled wrong on the police report.

Female speaker

Read the slip at the counter before you leave: name spelling, passport number, date, and the list of what was taken. A name that does not match the passport is a routine reason for a claim to be sent back, and it is a two minute fix while you are standing there. dì-chǎn is the pronoun for a police counter or any office desk, chǎn is for friends, and dropping the pronoun altogether is always safe.