Speaking of helping people on the street.
I hear there is no “Good samaritan law” in Taiwan.
In Canada if you try to help someone who is in a near death situation or injured in an accident and they die or are more hurt (because of your “negligence”) you are not responsible.
I know First-Aid/Emergency Response and I worry that if I try to help then I will get in trouble. I have also heard of situations of people being sued in these situations…
Anyone have any input?
i don’t have any actual data that i can give you, but i will say this: i used to stop and try to help, when my chinese was much poorer … but my taiwanese wife (gf back then) discouraged this with a warning that if you stop to help, and there is no one around to blame for the accident, you may well get blamed, and it’s your word against the injured party’s 
we got hit in kenting a while back, at some 1:30 in the morning. stopped for a red light 10 minutes outta town (sort of weird to just sit there at a red light waiting with NO cars on the road at that time in the morning, but we knew there was a cop up ahead waiting to ticket - been there all weekend). we got slammed into by a drunk doing about 80. it didn’t take the police long to get there (they could, after all, have seen the collision from their vantage point), but after they had looked around a little, they were of the opinion that i had been driving the drunk’s car, and i had hit my gf. she’s explaining the situation to them, but they had failed to notice that the driver was still in his car, passed out cold, basically on the floor next to the gas and brake pedals. once they saw the guy, it all became clearer what had happened … they hadn’t asked any questions, but from the people all around (who heard the crash and came out of their houses to look), they choose me, the only foreigner around, as the likely suspect.
so be wary if you wanna stop - it’s hard to pass people by who need help, but harder still to pay some asshole off who blames you later …
[quote=“xtrain_01”]if you stop to help, and there is no one around to blame for the accident, you may well get blamed, and it’s your word against the injured party’s[/quote]Sad, but true.
In my time here in Taiwan I’ve helped about 20 accident victims. I’ve been blamed out right for 3.
The funniest one being when I was walking home one night down a pitch black road just outside of Kaohsiung. There was a sharp bend veering to the right ahead of me.
In the ploughed sugar cane field ahead of the bend I could see feint flashing lights. Obviously my curiosity was heightened and I ventured into the field. I walked about two hundred yards into the field where I found a lone scooter with one of its brake handles digging into the ground (Hence the flashing rear brake lights).
A quick scout around for the owner ensued where I found a a trail in the recently ploughed earth. At the end of the trail I found the drunk owner where he had crawled and subsequently lay face down.
Converstaion ensues (in chinese):
“Alright mate, are you hurt?”
“My arm hurts.”
“I have a mobile, do you want me to call an ambulance?”
“OK.”
I then helped him back to the road.
At the road he said “Can you call the police, I’ve had an accident.”
So I did. Police arrive before ambulance.
Police: “What happened?”
Drunk: “The foreigner was lying in the middle of the road and I crashed into the field.”
Police: “Stupid. Why were you lying in the road? It’s dark.”
Me: “I wasn’t. I was walking down the road and I found him in the field.”
I explain what happened.
Police: “Yes, but why were you lying in the middle of the road?”
Me: “I wasn’t!” He’s obviously drunk. Look at him. Smell his breath. He crashed all by himself!"
Drunk: “I was riding. Then I saw him infront of me and I crashed into the field.”
Police: “How long ago?”
Drunk: “About ten minutes ago.”
Me: “Check his engine. I bet it’s cold and his battery is running out. He’s been there for much longer than ten minutes.”
They did. They stood around debating in Taiwanese for a while and eventually decided to believe me over the drunk. They took the drunk home as far as I know, even though he crashed his scooter because he was drunk and tried to blame it all on me. Then the ambulance turned up.
Can’t believe the police would believe such an unlikely story, even in Taiwan.
However, I still can’t drive past someone lying down in the road next to their trashed scooter while everyone else drives by. I couldn’t live with myself if they copped it.
[quote=“Maoman”]Wow. Contrast that with the traffic chaos experienced in Canada during the [url=Blackout in North America: 'Serious looting' in Ottawa? - #13 by maoman American power blackout[/url] of last summer:
Taiwanese drivers treat each other like shit. :raspberry:[/quote]
I was in Toronto when that happened, I was surprised, people actually took time out of their day to become voluntary traffic guards and direct traffic. It was soo bizarre, just ppl off the street directing traffic, something U think would only happen in the movies…some cops thought they were great, others thought what they were doing was totally illegal, but under the circumstances everyone was quite proud of Toronto’s citizens…
I won’t have anything to do with accidents here. There is a vicious nastiness and selfishness about the Taiwanese when it comes to vehicles and I don’t like it or want anything to do with it. I can live with myself.
[quote=“hsiadogah”][quote=“Bu Lai En”]Try the road rage test:
queendom.com/tests/minitests … _rage.html
The road rage test depends on your age and location.
I got 80 going back to remembering being an overaggressive young driver in Australia who had difficulty distinguishing between the motocross race track and the road.
A score of 30 now as a 46y.o. driver in Taiwan, only because of driving on the sidewalk, through red lights and the gas station bypass.
In Australia, 10 only because of the gas stations (petrol stations)
Anyway, they have not dealt with Taiwan correctly because there should be questions like;
Do you honk your horn if you are turning right through a red light and a car is blocking you from completing the turn.
Do you get angry because you are driving on the wrong side of the road and a car is coming out of the Md Donalds drive through without looking left and right.
And so on…
One night me and my girl were both driving our own scooters back to my place and we came up on an insanely busy intersection, which I knew about in advance so was more or less prepared.
Anyway, a “gang” of college boys on their black bikes in black helmets dressed in black were all stopped in the middle/side of the road with all of this traffic crawling past them. They were 90 per cent at fault for the slow traffic. But they were all having a good laugh about something so WTF?
So I weave in between a couple of them and blow my horn. Had no choice really.
They didn’t like that. 
I had only been driving in Taiwan for a few months so I had no idea what was coming. We stopped at the insanely busy intersection (because the light was red), and I guess I didn’t notice this gang had somehow squirted through.
They had stopped up ahead and I guess they were carrying on their converstation (still on/off the street), and I did basically the same thing. So off me and my gal go, only to be pursured by these boys. Before I realize what was REALLY going on, one of them had unstrapped his helmet and BAM! Snacked me a good one in the back of my helmet. Felt it pretty good too.
So out of my mouth come all the nice things I would say to someone who had just tried to knock me off my bike at 70 km/h. Thankfully I have good balance and wasn’t really hurt, just the pride.
I know any one of those weasels wouldn’t swat a fly if they were by themselves. But a white boy beeping at them whilst they’re chatting in the middle of the road? Heavens NO! Can’t let that happen.
The moral of the story? I don’t really know. Guess the next time I’ll wait until I can separate the main offenders from the pack and then ask some serious questions?
At any rate, I now check the reaview mirrors constantly. 
That must have been really frustrating. Good thing you kept your cool though. Where is that 007 oil dumping gadget when you need it? 
I got a 35 on the road rage test, but driving my old car, Matiz, would have been higher. Now that I drive a Wish I could care less about those petty things.
I always wondered what the attraction was for the Matiz. If I owned one my rage factor would be 100 from just looking at it. Anyway, not to go too far off-topic, but how much does a Wish cost?
As I said earlier, upgrading to something larger does make a difference.
I always wondered what the attraction was for the Matiz. If I owned one my rage factor would be 100 from just looking at it. Anyway, not to go too far off-topic, but how much does a Wish cost?
As I said earlier, upgrading to something larger does make a difference.[/quote]
You don’t get much change from NT$750,000
In order to smooth out any differences of opinion on the roadways, I’ve prepared a small “road rage” kit for myself:
The most amusing case of road rage was
BTW: Where is the spell-check? My spelling sucks
I don’t leave home without pepper spray. I give them away regularly to any girl I meet for their own use. Guys should have one too…but they can go buy it themselves. 
Never had to use it yet. But it’s great fun in crowded bars.
Why do you go to bars, if you do not drink? Do you like to pay lots extra for Coca-Cola?
Why do you go to bars, if you do not drink? Do you like to pay lots extra for Coca-Cola?[/quote]
Again, I was just kidding…I don’t really go into bars and spray pepper spray into the air…don’t think I’d last long if I did.
You are very mysterious.
So, you do go into bars… but, you do not spray pepper there.
So, why do you go into bars, if you do not spray pepper there and you do not drink alcohol?
Taiwan is uncivilized. It is a DEVELOPING country, not a developed one. I just got back from my first trip to Japan. Taiwan is a toilet in comparison, and the driving conditions here highlight how far behind ‘we’ are here. Taiwan should have its named changed to “Taibodia”, and our capital can be called Phenom Pei. Drive at your own risk here -blood pressure, accidents, road rage. It’s horrendous. I’m out soon.
[quote=“EEzzee!”]This is a funny example of road rage…
poststuff.entensity.net/021405/m … rivers.wmv[/quote]
That is freaking hilarious… 