What is an insurance excess?

The excess is the amount you'll only be liable for in case of damage (under Collision Damage Waiver) or theft (under Theft Protection) of the vehicle. Information about the excess will be clearly stated in the price inclusion when you reserve a car on QEEQ.

How can I add an additional driver?

You are advised to make a request upon your arrival at the rental counter. Additional charge per day will incur unless '1 Additional Driver Included' is stipulated on the rental. Please note that the same licence and age requirement applies to the additional driver. The additional driver is supposed to present the required licence document along with the main driver at pickup.

Essential Thailand Self-Driving Tips & Traffic Rules

The Complete Thailand Driving and Rental Guide

Hiring a car to drive in Thailand can be very pleasant as highways are well maintained throughout the country. However, when you are driving in the big cities, heavy traffic may make your road trip far more challenging. This brief guide will provide a complete cover-up aiming to help you when planning a trip to Thailand.

Speed Limit and Traffic Signs

Driving in Thailand is on the left-hand side of the road. Some driving norms in Thailand can somewhat be seen as particular depending where you come from. For instance, tailgating is quite common and accepted by the locales, and people often cut each other off or cut into lines of cars.

Speed Limit

The speed limits for Thailand are 90 km/h on open roads, 50km/h in towns and 120km/h in motorways unless signs say otherwise.

Traffic Signs

There are mainly three types of road signs in Thailand, including regulatory signs, warning signs, and informational signs.

Thailand regulatory signs have different shapes, most of them featuring red border and white background. Note that the Stop Sign is written in Thai language instead of English or by pictogram, but a typical Octagon is applied to imply its meaning like most of the countries.

Stop(Thai Language)

Give Way(Thai Language)

Slow Down(Thai Language)

No Overtaking

Give Way to Oncoming Vehicles Used to Traffic Bottleneck Points

Thailand warning signs mostly feature a yellow background with black pictogram.

Hump

Divided Road Begins

Divided Road Ends

Pedestrian Crossing

Wild Animals Crossing

No Overtake Zone

Thailand information signs are blue with rectangular or square shapes.

Dead End

Clinic

End of Motorway

Seatbelt and Child Safety

Seatbelt Laws

A new law has come into effect from the 5th of April 2017, stating that passengers in the rear seat of a car are now required to wear seatbelts in addition to the driver and front seat passenger. Failure to do so can result in a fine of up to 500 Thai Baht.

Booster Seat Laws

The Thailand law states that children should be restrained in an age-appropriate system. Children under 12 years old should not sit in the front of a vehicle.

Parking, Fuel and Toll

Parking

Because of the heavy traffic, parking in some Thai cities can be difficult to find. Parking rules and rates are usually marked on signs with English translations in tourist areas.

· Permitted Parking

- White rectangle on the road indicates a designated car parking space. Many shops, malls, restaurants, sights and hotels offer to park and if payment is needed, it will not be expensive.

- Yellow and white markings indicate a short-term parking space only, for usually no more than five minutes. These markings also indicate a bus stop. It is therefore not advised to park there.

· No Parking

- Red and white markings indicate a no parking zone, which means cars may not park here.

Thailand Parking Red and White Markings (Image from shutterstock.com)

- Multiple white diagonal lines indicate parking spaces for motorcycles only and no cars can park here.

Thailand Multiple white diagonal lines

Fuel Prices

The average price for Thailand gasoline price between July and November 2017 was 34.36 Thai Baht, and diesel was 26.79 on 4th Dec.2017.

Toll

Only the big Bangkok-area expressways demand electronic payment, while cash can be used in other places. The usual charge is between 40 and 50 Thai baht. If you do not have an electronic sensor (automatic deduction), do not go to the easy pass lane with blue marks on the ground.

Failing to pay the toll in time may lead to the car rental company paying on your behalf by debiting your credit card, charging a total amount of the toll fee and its management fee from your credit card. Please be aware that this management fee can be costly.

Traffic Violation

DUI Laws

Drivers who have had their licenses for over five years are allowed to have a Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) of up to 0.05% when behind the wheel, while divers under 20 years are only allowed to have maximal BAC of 0.02%. A hefty fine of 60,000 THB and/or a 6-month prison sentence will be applied in case of DUI.

Foreigners driving after an excessive consumption of alcohol may also risk being deported, depending on the severity of the case.

Traffic Fines

Speeding fines in Thailand are between 200 THB to 400 THB. Parking in the wrong place or exceeding the time allowed will result in a parking ticket. Finally, parking in a non-parking area may result in a fine of 200 Thai Baht.

Some of the fines can be paid on the spot. In case you have not paid a fine, your car hire company will collect the fine’s charge as well as an added administration fee directly from your credit card.

Should you have questions in terms of traffic fines collection, you are always welcome to contact QEEQ for assistance.

Driving Licence and Age Requirements

As a tourist or visitor driving or renting a car in Thailand, it is necessary to have a valid foreign driving licence with a photograph. Many car hire companies require a full driving licence held for a minimum of 2 years with no major endorsements.

If your domestic driving licence is not in English (Arabic, Japanese, Cyrillic etc), an International Driving Permit (IDP/IDL) or an official translation in English or Thai is required when you drive in Thailand. Please note that an International Driving Permit (often referred to as an International Driving Licence) does not replace the requirement for a regular driving licence. And you must carry your current overseas driver’s licence, IDP or translation with you all the time when driving in Thailand.

Minimum age in Thailand is 21 years(age may vary by car category). If you're 21-25, you are likely to have to pay a young driver fee. If you're 65 or older, you may have to pay a senior driver fee.

Guest reviews

1 /

Caroline Polly

August 5, 2025

Destination: Bangkok

10Excellent

Excellent! Great experience.

Mavis Eveline

Destination: Pattaya

Highly satisfied

Clarence Yerkes

The service was excellent! No upselling.

Wendell Nehemiah

August 4, 2025

Destination: Phuket

Extremely satisfied.

Claude Kipling

Great service, the staff were very patient.

Marina Pitman

Good experience.

Richard Wesley

Satisfied

Walker Boyle

The car is quite worn, with over a hundred thousand kilometers on it.

Leif

The car this time was really great.

Wright Jasper

August 3, 2025

The process is convenient, and car pickup is quick.

Eileen Doherty

Very satisfied

Lynn Partridge

August 2, 2025

Nathan Thomson

Excellent service.

Dave Winifred

Annabelle Robeson

August 1, 2025

6Average

There was basically no service. The vehicle was in terrible condition with damages everywhere, even on the roof and door frames.

Wilbur Saxton

Very satisfied, giving a big thumbs-up to the rental company.

Donna Beard

Destination: Chiang Mai

The standard process was smooth without any issues.

Dean Humphr(e)y

July 31, 2025

There are fewer staff members, so the process isn't very fast. However, Thai people are known for their relaxed nature, and it's the same everywhere.

Freda Mackintosh

Not bad.

Morgan Tony

Very satisfied, although the vehicle is relatively old.

Giles Geoffrey

The overall service was quite good. The staff at the rental location and those handling car pick-up and return spoke Chinese. Whether picking up or returning the car, the process was convenient and fast. However, there were two issues that negatively affected the rental experience. First, the car was in poor condition, with dozens of scratches and dents, and the air conditioning worked intermittently. Second, there were two Chinese-language rental company markings near the license plate and front windshield, which made it obvious to the police that the car was driven by a Chinese person. As a result, the car was routinely stopped for checks. Without an international driver's license or a Thai driver's license, fines are unavoidable. Additionally, if a traffic accident occurs, the insurance company has grounds to deny coverage. Presenting a translated version of the basic driver's license booklet was ineffective.

Allen Bertram

July 30, 2025

Easy pickup and return, satisfactory service

Barton Hart

The staff told me I was very lucky as I was the first renter of this car, a brand-new vehicle with only 63 kilometers on it.

Gwendolyn Elinor

Very satisfied. Convenient and fast, having a car makes traveling anywhere easy.

Thera Jeames

July 29, 2025

8Very good

Valentina Bethune

2Poor

This rental company is extremely unreasonable. The vehicle had unknown damage, yet they refused to use insurance and forced maximum compensation.

Denise Robin

Convenient

Sabina Michael

Very satisfied, warm and friendly service.

Yvonne Carllyle

The car is over two years old with 150,000 kilometers on it, but the condition is okay.

Joy Julian

July 28, 2025

Registration was pretty quick, though I waited about 20 minutes for the car.

Quintion Noel

July 27, 2025

Poor attitude.

Christian Kingsley

Very satisfied.

Hermosa Charlotte

July 26, 2025

Barry Bobby

July 24, 2025

Very good.

Claude Peter

The service was acceptable, overall it felt okay and pickup and drop-off were convenient. However, the battery broke down midway, costing us around half a day. Thankfully, some local residents helped us to communicate!

Marsh Carey

The Chiang Mai loop trip was made much more enjoyable thanks to this car rental experience—the vehicle was in excellent condition and handled the mountainous roads of Northern Thailand perfectly! The self-driving environment in Thailand is also fantastic; I come back every year!

Rachel Lucia

Overall satisfied, but the last-minute vehicle replacement wasn't communicated in advance. The replaced car had a hard-to-open side door, a missing exterior door guard, and an unpleasant smell inside, which affected the experience. However, the driving condition was decent.

Marcus Grantham

July 23, 2025

Destination: Koh Samui

Pretty good.

Heloise Esther

Great service attitude, easy-to-find location, and very simple procedures.

Uriah Hemingway

The car was old and in poor condition. Filled the tank at the gas station, but it showed as not full. The female staff at the return counter had a bad attitude and watched closely, not allowing us to leave.

Jennifer Sapir

July 22, 2025

Overall, very good.

Jessica MacArthur

It was quite troublesome. They mentioned that WeChat could be used during the booking process, and they confirmed its availability, but they didn’t use it in practice. Communication was difficult. WhatsApp is no longer accessible for mainland China phone numbers, so there was no solution.

Miriam Lily

July 21, 2025

Very satisfied. However, cheap rental cars in Thailand don't have a reverse camera or radar, so beginners should be extra cautious.

Harriet Finn

Very efficient, and the store was easy to locate.

Deborah Joshua

The service was excellent, and the staff were very helpful.

Justin Maugham

4Average

First of all, there were no staff members during working hours. I had to call her to come to the counter, which was very small and had no clear signage. The vehicle was in terrible condition, and it was only after we strongly insisted on changing the car that they provided a replacement. I actually arrived at the store at 8:20 AM, but I didn’t get the car until 9:00 AM. The onsite staff told me that I could return the car by 9:00 AM. In fact, I returned before 9:00 AM, but now they are trying to charge me extra fees for extended usage. I have always used the Zuzuche platform, and this is the first time I’ve encountered such a situation. Moreover, I contacted Zuzuche’s customer service on the evening of the car return to explain the situation. Now Zuzuche has directly sent me an email stating they will deduct the charges. I’m wondering if the platform does not protect its customers’ rights?

Darnell Nixon

July 20, 2025

Very satisfied!

Miles Judson

Rosalind Wilmot(t)

July 19, 2025

Very satisfied, they proactively reached out.

Tyrone Kelsen

The car was too old.

Thailand Car Rentals