British family relocated to Thailand a week before coronavirus closed down the island - now they’re homeless and without work

[from the home of CC]

'critical thinking' at it's finest - not fit to be parents imo..

[Logosone]

4 minutes ago, from the home of CC said:

'critical thinking' at it's finest - not fit to be parents imo..

This family is in difficulties through no fault of their own. They even made sure the father has a job before they went out. Now the father can not work because of the lockdown overreaction. 

 

They did the right thing. Being in the UK now would be a lot worse, more restrictions and greater risk of Covid19 for the kids.

 

Hopefully they will find a way to pull through. Not nice to see a whole family put in difficulties because of the lockdown of the world's economies. 

[ChouDoufu]

5 hours ago, webfact said:

Lauren Edwards immigrated to Koh Phangan with husband Greg Wiseman, 45, and their two boys Ifor, three, and Gryff, one, on March 2nd.

immigrated?  legally with correct visa?  or just planning on a series of 30-day visa waivers and extensions?  from the linked article:

 

The pair have been able to extend their visas, they claim thanks to a letter from the British Embassy that asks for british citizens to be allowed to stay an extra 30 days.

However this came with a £500 price tag - meaning the pair are now eating into the money they had saved to set up their life on the island.

 

did they rely on TAT tourism numbers or didn't they realize tourism was already dead...and buried....when they arrived?

[Isaanbiker]

10 minutes ago, Logosone said:

This family is in difficulties through no fault of their own. They even made sure the father has a job before they went out. Now the father can not work because of the lockdown overreaction. 

 

They did the right thing. Being in the UK now would be a lot worse, more restrictions and greater risk of Covid19 for the kids.

 

Hopefully they will find a way to pull through. Not nice to see a whole family put in difficulties because of the lockdown of the world's economies. 

No-fault of their own? Not having insurance with two kids, is asking for massive troubles.

 

  “We don’t want to come back to the UK because we have nothing there now. We gave up everything"

 

I do not think that they had much back in the UK, and why they moved to a drug party island with only a few tourists makes not much sense.

 

 Where have you read that he had a job before they arrived? There remain countless dive instructors who are jobless now.

 

 Now the father cannot work because there are no customers who want a dive instructor.

 

 The kids need to go to school, how do you think will they manage that on Ko Phangan? Selling drugs, or what?

 

  Only certain types of tourists got to this island, because of one reason.  

 

  

Edited April 1, 2020 by Isaanbiker

[Mister Fixit]

1 hour ago, cornishcarlos said:

 

They only arrived beginning of March, so maybe read again !! ????

If that's the case, how come they are doing an extension after only two week??  Have you read it again and properly?  
(I confess I haven't but will now)

[cornishcarlos]

Just now, Mister Fixit said:

If that's the case, how come they are doing an extension after only two week??  Have you read it again and properly?  
(I confess I haven't but will now)

 

Arrived on the 2nd, so that makes a bit more than 2 weeks in my reckoning... In fact 30 days !!!

 

You really should read articles before berating others ????

[Logosone]

5 minutes ago, Isaanbiker said:

No-fault of their own? Not having insurance with two kids, is asking for massive troubles.

 

  “We don’t want to come back to the UK because we have nothing there now. We gave up everything"

 

I do not think that they had much back in the UK, and why they moved to a drug party island with only a few tourists makes not much sense.

 

 Where have you read that he had a job before they arrived? There remain countless dive instructors who are jobless now.

 

 Now the father cannot work because there are no customers who want a dive instructor.

 

 The kids need to go to school, how do you think will they manage that on Ko Phangan? Selling drugs, or what?

 

  Only certain types of tourists got to this island, because of one reason.  

 

  

They'll always have health insurance in the UK, because it's free. Not like in Germany. Of course you get what you pay for, but still, they didn't cancel their health insurance, they can always go back and call on the NHS.

 

Plus, I'd imagine they'd have taken one of those very reasonable extended traveller health insurance polices for families. It doesn't say they have no insurance.

 

It says in the English article they arranged the diver's job before they came out.

 

Pretty much 80% of the children of the world are home-schooling now.

 

But yes, that island was maybe not the best place, but they'd seen it before and apparently the infrastructure is okay. Must have picked it because the father has the diver qualifications and can only do that kind of job.

 

Edited April 1, 2020 by Logosone

[metisdead]

Please use discretion in your references to the government. Phrases which can be considered as anti-coup will be removed. Referring to Thailand or the government as a dictatorship, military dictatorship or other such terms will be removed.

[Mister Fixit]

1 hour ago, jimmjam said:

In a news article i read about them yesterday. It said they extended there visa's which cost £500 gbp!!, some lies being told by these guys or the news.

I looks as though they could have been doing a first extension which is 1900 baht each.  No need for an embassy letter for that either.

Seems to me the newspaper has messed up the reporting here or the couple have no idea.  I can't tell from the article just when they arrived in Thailand.  There's just a vague mention of 'two (or was it three?) weeks after they arrived the island closed down/.  But when did KPG close down?

It also seems to me they may have got some visa agent to do the extensions for them and were ripped off badly.

[Mister Fixit]

50 minutes ago, Logosone said:

It's 40 degrees in Thailand, why would you not get a house with a pool? Plus if you have two kids it's practically an essential.

Yeah, let's rent a house with a pool and spend money we don't have and let's not bother with that beachside hut right on the shoreline where the kids can play in the sea for free all day.  Jesus wept, SERIOUSLY ...?

[ChouDoufu]

3 minutes ago, Mister Fixit said:

I looks as though they could have been doing a first extension which is 1900 baht each.  No need for an embassy letter for that either.

Seems to me the newspaper has messed up the reporting here or the couple have no idea.  I can't tell from the article just when they arrived in Thailand.  There's just a vague mention of 'two (or was it three?) weeks after they arrived the island closed down/.  But when did KPG close down?

It also seems to me they may have got some visa agent to do the extensions for them and were ripped off badly.

for a family of four, works out to about 5000 baht each.

 

according to the article, they "immigrated" march 2nd.

 

with their boys, Ifor (3) and Gryff (1).

[mickymouse1]

My heart bleeds for them. Shall we start a collection now? ????????

[Bert got kinky]

15 minutes ago, Logosone said:

It's 40 degrees in Thailand, why would you not get a house with a pool? Plus if you have two kids it's practically an essential.

 

I'm not getting my food flown in on a private jet, but a small pack of Boursin is 250 Baht, a pack of Prosciutto 300 Baht, two Australian Ribeyes 360 Baht, Waitrose croissants 290 Baht, it all adds up. With a family of four you can easily spend 30,000 Baht.

 

I don't think spending 3000 pounds a month is a lifestyle above what this UK family of four is used to.

 

"The median annual earnings for full-time employees in the United Kingdom was approximately 30.35 thousand British pounds in 2019. "

 

https://www.statista.com/statistics/1002964/average-full-time-annual-earnings-in-the-uk/

 

it's 40 degrees in Thailand, why would you not get a house with a pool? Plus if you have two kids it's practically an essential.

No it is not, stop talking absolute tripe.

Bangkok has many Western expats living here with their families, how many houses in Bangkok have a pool?

How could they all possibly survive without a pool.

You are living in cloud cuckoo land.

 

I'm not getting my food flown in on a private jet, but a small pack of Boursin is 250 Baht, a pack of Prosciutto 300 Baht, two Australian Ribeyes 360 Baht, Waitrose croissants 290 Baht, it all adds up. With a family of four you can easily spend 30,000 Baht.

Really, who is stupid enough to pay 290 Baht for croissants?

You forgot to add Beluga Caviar White Truffles, Foi Gras and Dom Pérignon champagne.

For Christ sake, I am talking of living comfortably not like a king.

I tell you what, if ever you need a battleship I have one for sale.

 

The median annual earnings for full-time employees in the United Kingdom was approximately 30.35 thousand British pounds in 2019.

I don't think spending 3000 pounds a month is a lifestyle above what this UK family of four is used to.

How is it possible to spend £3,000 on an average salary of £2,500 per month not forgetting that due to the fact that averages are calculated to also include the massive amounts that the super rich earn most families will be below the average?

 

I don't think

And that really does seem to be your problem, you don't think.

 

Your suggested lifestyle is not a reality for most ex-pats here and if you had ever been to the UK you would know that very few people would live your suggested lifestyle in the UK.

I would be as bold as to suggest that most Brits on this forum do not even know someone with their own pool in the UK.

 

 

 

[Mister Fixit]

15 minutes ago, cornishcarlos said:

 

Arrived on the 2nd, so that makes a bit more than 2 weeks in my reckoning... In fact 30 days !!!

 

You really should read articles before berating others ????

I have read the article now and I saw nothing about arriving on the second (of March, I take it?)

If that is so, they didn't need an embassy letter to extend at all.  They could have just done their normal first extension with no drama.  I am thinking they didn't really have much idea of visas, extensions or anything much tbh.  I get the strong feeling they went to some tour place or visa agent who royally screwed them over due to their ignorance.

If however, they arrived on the 2nd of February (again I can't see any dates mentioned), then they would need an embassy letter but until the arrival date is clarified we can't be certain of anything.

Either way, if they were charged 20 grand for any form of extension they were screwed over big time.

[cornishcarlos]

5 hours ago, webfact said:

Lauren Edwards immigrated to Koh Phangan with husband Greg Wiseman, 45, and their two boys Ifor, three, and Gryff, one, on March 2nd.

 

 

 

@Mister Fixit there you go buddy... 2nd line of the OP 

 

[soi3eddie]

2 hours ago, Mister Fixit said:

I doubt they'd be living the high life, not with two very young children with them.

It seems that they may not have been living the "high life" but they were certainly partying on Khao San Road before heading to the islands to get "chilled under the palm trees".

[Logosone]

3 minutes ago, Bert got kinky said:

 

it's 40 degrees in Thailand, why would you not get a house with a pool? Plus if you have two kids it's practically an essential.

No it is not, stop talking absolute tripe.

Bangkok has many Western expats living here with their families, how many houses in Bangkok have a pool?

How could they all possibly survive without a pool.

You are living in cloud cuckoo land.

 

I'm not getting my food flown in on a private jet, but a small pack of Boursin is 250 Baht, a pack of Prosciutto 300 Baht, two Australian Ribeyes 360 Baht, Waitrose croissants 290 Baht, it all adds up. With a family of four you can easily spend 30,000 Baht.

Really, who is stupid enough to pay 290 Baht for croissants?

You forgot to add Beluga Caviar White Truffles, Foi Gras and Dom Pérignon champagne.

For Christ sake, I am talking of living comfortably not like a king.

I tell you what, if ever you need a battleship I have one for sale.

 

The median annual earnings for full-time employees in the United Kingdom was approximately 30.35 thousand British pounds in 2019.

I don't think spending 3000 pounds a month is a lifestyle above what this UK family of four is used to.

How is it possible to spend £3,000 on an average salary of £2,500 per month not forgetting that due to the fact that averages are calculated to also include the massive amounts that the super rich earn most families will be below the average?

 

I don't think

And that really does seem to be your problem, you don't think.

 

Your suggested lifestyle is not a reality for most ex-pats here and if you had ever been to the UK you would know that very few people would live your suggested lifestyle in the UK.

I would be as bold as to suggest that most Brits on this forum do not even know someone with their own pool in the UK.

 

 

 

I'm not saying they had a pool in the UK. But in Thailand it's very common. I don't know what I'd do without a pool, it's good for exercise, keeps the kids entertained. It may not be common in Bangkok, but in Chiang Mai and the islands many people have a pool. I know someone in Phuket who has a pool.

 

That's a bag of 8 frozen croissant, they're delicious and works out at 36 Baht per delicious croissant. Are you seriously too cheap to pay 36 Baht for a croissant?

 

A croissant is not Beluga caviar or Truffles or Foie Gras or Champagne. I buy German liver pate from a local German butcher, I'm not a caviar or truffles guy. But to have a normal lifestyle you easily spend 30,000 Baht on food.

 

Precisely because the £ 30,000 per annum is an average you forget that a lot of people will earn somewhat above 2500 which is not that far away from 3000. Tens of thousands of people in the UK live on more than 3000 per month.

 

Who's talking about other expats? I'm talking about this family from the UK, who have two kids.

 

 

 

 

[Mister Fixit]

4 minutes ago, cornishcarlos said:

 

@Mister Fixit there you go buddy... 2nd line of the OP 

 

Thank you.  I missed that in amongst all the other numbers!  ????

 

However, this brings me back the point I have now made twice upthread.  There was absolutely no need for them to have had an embassy letter, because this extension would be their first extension and so there was no need for a letter.

An embassy letter is only needed to make a third, emergency, extension when you can't get a flight back to your home country.

So again I say, I strongly suspect that an unscrupulous tour or visa agent has misinformed them and royally ripped them off. 

I have to say that I was initially somewhat sympathetic to their plight, but their lack of planning and basic knowledge of the country and its laws has become glaringly obvious as I read more.

 

 

[Logosone]

Just now, Eindhoven said:

 

Why are you posting this nonsense? Have you ever visited Koh Pha Nghan? Pray tell us where you can buy Waitrose frozen croissant there?

 

I didn't say they buy it, I was merely illustrating that buying Expat food can add up quickly. And they have Big C and Tesco Lotus there which have expat food.

[Mister Fixit]

24 minutes ago, soi3eddie said:

It seems that they may not have been living the "high life" but they were certainly partying on Khao San Road before heading to the islands to get "chilled under the palm trees".

Where does it say that?  I can't see it in the original article.  

Are there other articles you've read which confirm what you say?  If so, do you have a link? @soi3eddie

Edited April 1, 2020 by Mister Fixit

[Logosone]

So you think they travelled to Koh Pha Nghan to eat expat food? <snip>

 

 

If you think expats don't buy expat food when they come to Thailand you're in a minority of one.

[kingstonkid]

[Bert got kinky]

8 minutes ago, Logosone said:

I'm not saying they had a pool in the UK. But in Thailand it's very common. I don't know what I'd do without a pool, it's good for exercise, keeps the kids entertained. It may not be common in Bangkok, but in Chiang Mai and the islands many people have a pool. I know someone in Phuket who has a pool.

 

That's a bag of 8 frozen croissant, they're delicious and works out at 36 Baht per delicious croissant. Are you seriously too cheap to pay 36 Baht for a croissant?

 

A croissant is not Beluga caviar or Truffles or Foie Gras or Champagne. I buy German liver pate from a local German butcher, I'm not a caviar or truffles guy. But to have a normal lifestyle you easily spend 30,000 Baht on food.

 

Precisely because the £ 30,000 per annum is an average you forget that a lot of people will earn somewhat above 2500 which is not that far away from 3000. Tens of thousands of people in the UK live on more than 3000 per month.

 

Who's talking about other expats? I'm talking about this family from the UK, who have two kids.

 

 

 

 

 

OK, I give up.

You can't understand most basic facts and I can't explain them to someone who puts their fingers in there ears while loudly shouting "la, la, la, la".

Are you really sure that you are living in Chiang Mai and not Cloud Cuckoo land?

[Mister Fixit]

It seems like this Devon newspaper have a bit of a thing for stranded couples stories.

https://www.devonlive.com/news/devon-news/devon-couple-stranded-morocco-make-3966342

https://www.devonlive.com/news/devon-news/stranded-torquay-couple-idyllic-island-3994921

 

And indeed Devon seems to have bred quite a few of them

https://www.thebreeze.com/southdevon/news/local-news/we-feel-abandoned-say-stranded-couple/

Cornwall too @cornishcarlos  ????

https://www.cornwalllive.com/news/cornwall-news/cornish-couple-stranded-portugal-fear-3978659

 

[Lacessit]

3 hours ago, TopDeadSenter said:

 Again please tone down the aggression, this is not a thread about Australian arson attacks, and re-read and carefully consider the available facts at hand here. 

No it's not. However, it is a good indicator of your propensity to publish statements that are untrue or misleading. Noted you don't mention the millions of baht you alleged they have socked away anymore.

Did I spoil your critical rant? If you want to be a judge in Israel, you'll have to try harder.

Your nom-de-plume does puzzle me, because bottom of the barrel IMO would be a more appropriate soubriquet.

[soi3eddie]

It seems that they are on a "family gap year" whatever that is. They don't seem to be suffering too much hardship on their island in the sun. Once this is over they can look back on the experience as educational and perhaps plan their next adventure a little more carefully. The 3yr old should benefit from the experience but 1yr is still too young. As for the mother it seems that her husband (Instagram here - @familygapyear_dad) is the boss and was the instigator of the whole thing. Sure, the idea of a life in the sun is certainly better than gloomy Devon at any time of the year (and I'm a Devonian). I hope they stop whingeing and complaining and make the most of their situation. Nobody should feel sorry or sympathy for them or their children. They are still in good health and not "homeless" as they say they are. Rice and noodles are not expensive!

[Logosone]

6 minutes ago, Bert got kinky said:

 

OK, I give up.

You can't understand most basic facts and I can't explain them to someone who puts their fingers in there ears while loudly shouting "la, la, la, la".

Are you really sure that you are living in Chiang Mai and not Cloud Cuckoo land?

You're not explaining anything. It's widely known that a lot of people live cheaply in Thailand. This does not apply to families in all cases, with two children. 

 

You're the one who's closing your ears and mind to the fact that not everyone lives cheaply in Thailand. It could easily be this family is spending as much as they say they are.

[Just Weird]

5 hours ago, Logosone said:

They sold their home in Essex and their car. So that's 250,000 GBP plus 10000 GP, minimum given the UK's absurd house prices. Okay subtract their existing mortgage, so that's maybe 25,000 GBP left. Less travel costs, leaves 20,000 GBP

Interesting that you know so much about their personal financial situation.  What sort of house did they sell and what car were they driving at the time?  And you know what their mortgage was?  Maybe they need you to be their financial advisor.

[Megasin1]

let he who is without sin cast the first stone because let's face it many of you who are stone casting are 30 day stayers, it's going to get interesting....

[qwertyuiop]

57 minutes ago, Logosone said:

They'll always have health insurance in the UK, because it's free.

No they won't. The NHS is not available free of charge to Non-Residents. They would have to show that they had resettled in the UK, not simply returning for health care.

This particular couple sold everything and have nothing to go back to