Phuket rules and safety index: October 2026 edition

By Tony · ScootZone Patong · Published October 16, 2026 · Updated October 16, 2026

In short: in October 2026, riding without a helmet in Phuket costs up to 2,000 ฿ (double if your passenger is bareheaded), riding without a motorcycle licence up to 1,000 ฿ and one month in prison, with a court appearance announced by the province since May 2026. Running a red light or speeding: up to 4,000 ฿. With only a car licence, your alcohol limit drops to 0.2 g/l. And motorbikes account for 83.8% of road deaths in Thailand.

This index comes out every month at the same address. It gathers in one place what tourists usually piece together from ten different forums: the real amount of each fine, what the Phuket police are checking right now, and the latest accident figures. Every figure has its source, and when sources disagree, we say so.

The 2026 fine scale, offence by offence

Two laws share the subject. The Land Traffic Act (amended by Amendment No. 13, in force since September 5, 2022) sets the traffic fines. The Motor Vehicle Act sets the licence fines. Here are the maximum amounts in the texts, and what we see in Phuket.

Sources: Land Traffic Act B.E. 2522 and Amendment No. 13 (summaries by KTC 2024 and Grab Thailand 2025), Motor Vehicle Act B.E. 2522 sections 42, 64 and 65, Royal Thai Police (helmets, May 2025), The Phuket News (Patong, February and June 2025), Pattaya Mail (May 2026). Points only apply to Thai licences. "n/a": no points provided for this offence.

Fines were multiplied by two to four in 2022, and the police started applying them at the maximum in 2025. Many online guides still show the old amounts (500 ฿ for the helmet, 1,000 ฿ for speeding).

No licence: 500, 1,000 or 10,000 baht? We settled it

This is the figure that varies most from one website to the next. We went back to the text. Verdict: the maximum fine is 1,000 ฿, with up to one month in prison (section 64 of the Motor Vehicle Act). Five independent sources confirm it, including the Bangkok Post and The Nation.

• The "10,000 ฿" comes from a single undated source that nobody else repeats. It is most likely confused with the penalty for driving while your licence is suspended (up to 10,000 ฿ and 3 months).
• The "50,000 ฿" was a 2018 proposal, dropped by the government of the time. It was never passed.
• The "500 ฿" is the old helmet ticket, not the licence fine.

Be careful, a car licence alone, or an international permit without category A, counts as having no licence, with the same penalty. And the amount matters less and less: since May 2026, the Phuket authorities say that riding without a licence will go to court, with no exceptions, and that serious offences can lead to visa cancellation. Without a motorcycle licence, your travel insurance also has a good chance of refusing to pay after an accident. Our guide to renting a scooter without a licence in Phuket goes through the options.

Alcohol: the 0.2 g/l limit that catches tourists with a car licence

Since a regulation published on September 20, 2024, Thailand has two alcohol limits:

This third case is rarely explained to tourists. If you rent a scooter with only your car licence, you stack two offences from the first beer: riding without the right licence and alcohol over the limit. Drink driving penalties run from 5,000 to 20,000 ฿ and up to one year in prison the first time, 50,000 to 100,000 ฿ for a repeat offence within two years, and 60,000 to 200,000 ฿ with 3 to 10 years in prison if someone dies. Refusing the breath test counts as being drunk.

What the Phuket police are checking in 2026

Every year is stricter than the one before. The dates to know:

• June 1, 2025: the national police apply the 2,000 ฿ helmet fine at the maximum, nationwide.
• First half of 2025: according to the Phuket police, quoted by The Phuket News, 28,809 foreign tourists were fined on the island between January 1 and June 22, including 1,365 French nationals. Russians, Chinese, British, French and Indians top the list.
• January 25, 2026: the governor of Phuket announces checkpoints dedicated to rental vehicles across the province. Tourists must show their national licence and international permit, and rental shops are inspected.
• May 2026: "zero tolerance". Riding without a licence sent to court, and possible visa cancellation for serious offences.

Checks focus on what can be seen at a glance: the helmet first, then the licence. Around Patong, you mostly meet them on the way out of town, on the Kathu road and on the routes towards Kata and Karon, often in the evening. No figures for the 2026 checks have been published yet; we will add them as soon as they come out.

If you are handed a ticket, you have 7 days to pay, online on the police e-ticket website or by QR code. The points system (12 points, 90 day suspension at zero) applies to Thai licences. We found no source that extends it to foreign licences.

Accident figures: Thailand and Phuket

Official Thai figures are lower than the WHO estimates, which cross three databases. The full 2025 figures for Phuket are not yet published (94 deaths as of October 20, 2025 according to the local press).

The danger is concentrated at night, over the holidays, and among those who ride without a helmet. During Songkran 2026 in Phuket, the accident peak came after midnight. Kathu district, the one with Patong, had 9 of the 32 accidents. Riding by day, helmet fastened and without having drunk takes away a good part of the risk. Our 10 tips for riding safely in Phuket go further.

What the compulsory insurance pays, and what it does not

Every vehicle registered in Thailand carries a compulsory insurance called "Por Ror Bor". It covers people, never the vehicle. Its amounts, in force since April 1, 2020:

If you are at fault in the accident, you only get the basic payout, 30,000 ฿ of medical costs. Treatment in a private hospital in Phuket after a fall can go past that amount quickly. So you need travel insurance that covers two-wheelers. Almost every insurer sets the same conditions: a valid motorcycle licence in your country and in the country you are visiting, a helmet worn, and compliance with local rules. Refusals are documented, for example a British tourist in 2025 who did not hold the licence matching the vehicle.

At ScootZone, the insurance included in the rental is basic cover, with personal injury covered up to 30,000 ฿. It is not comprehensive cover, and we would rather say so clearly: take out travel insurance that covers motorbikes. Details in our guide to scooter insurance in Phuket.

Your checklist before you take the handlebars

For a big bike like the TMAX or the X-ADV 750, check that your licence category covers the engine size: an A1 licence, for example, stops at 125 cc. And if you are staying over the holidays, keep in mind the "seven dangerous days" of New Year (late December to early January) and Songkran (around April 10 to 16): breath tests multiply and the roads are the busiest of the year. The official 2027 dates have not been published yet.

Method: where these figures come from

• Survey date: October 16, 2026.
• Fines: Thai legal texts (Land Traffic Act B.E. 2522 and Amendment No. 13, Motor Vehicle Act B.E. 2522) through their summaries published by Thai sources (KTC, Grab Thailand, Autospinn), cross-checked with the Bangkok Post, The Nation and Thai PBS.
• Police checks: announcements by the Royal Thai Police and Phuket province, reported by Pattaya Mail, Khaosod English and The Phuket News.
• Accidents: World Health Organization (2023 report), the Thai national road safety centre (holiday reports), Phuket province, ThaiRoads Foundation for helmet use.
• Licences and insurance: Thai government Public Relations Department (November 2024), Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), the 2020 order of the Office of Insurance Commission (OIC), conditions published by travel insurers.
• Limits: amounts paid on the spot vary from one checkpoint to the next and are not published anywhere; we give the legal maximums and the cases observed. The 2025 figures quoted by the Phuket local press could not be read on the original page and are flagged as such.

How to cite this index: "Phuket rules and safety index, ScootZone, October 2026 edition", with a link to this page.

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