Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Kimchifart]

I'm sure this has been discussed before, but couldn't find a decent discussion on it via search.

I've read a lot of stuff regarding the road 'laws' and the no fault aspect of Korean law. Essentially it seems the law is washing its hands of the matter by making it utter madness not to 'privately settle' out of court. In short the law seems to be a total ass when it comes to driving.

That's the theory as I see it, but how many on these forums have been driving for years and have been involved in accidents? How did the process go? What's the day to day reality of driving here?

I'm a new, very inexperienced driver in my home country (been driving a couple of months) and the US road system the Koreans partially emulate is pretty alien to me, although it does seem simpler than the UK system. I'm thinking of giving driving in Korea a crack, but want to hear if you think I'm mad to do it or not. If any Brits have some decent driving experience here I would be glad to hear how it compares to the UK system.

[Dodge7]

driving in korea scares the living daylights out of me (as my English Grandma would say.)
I'm American, and yes, the Koreans drive on the right side of the road, but it's just "different" here.
I know for one, in USA you can turn left on a solid green light, but here you can't, and you have to wait until you have the green left arrow (which also appears in American traffic lights), so there's a bit of confusion.

The U-turns also have me confused.

Frankly, I'd sooner have my wife drive me around everywhere, and when she can't, I'll be more than happy enough to take the bus or subway.


Screw driving in this country. I'll be here for the next 10-15 years, but I ain't getting behind a wheel, that's for sure.

[Kimchifart]

[CentralCali]

You can't turn left on most solid green lights because the solid green is only for traffic proceeding straight. For left turns, there is a green left turn arrow. As I said, that's for most cases. You can turn left on a solid green light if there is a 비보호 (biboho/unprotected) sign.

U-turns are permitted in designated areas. Those areas also have signs indicating if the U-turn is permitted with a green U-turn light, a green left turn light, or even on a red light. Personally, I'm happy with the U-turn and left-turn rules here.

[denverdeath]

u'll b fine. i've been driving here since about 2001. started with a scooter, then went on to a car. have been in two, very minor, fender-benders since then - both of which were the other driver's fault.......granted, they were both called as 70/30 splits even though they would've been a no-contest 100/0 in canada. heard brits often give a little toot of the horn for correcting the other drivers' problems? well, u'll find that to b quite different here. the honking is usu because ur not going fast enough, arent close enough to the car in front of u, or ur car is smaller and less-pricey than the honker's one. if ur on a scooter, just stay where u are and let the idiots pass u - better than u politely swerving to the side to have them cannonball u into oblivion. insurance? get a black box, have ur smartphone for pics, and some paint for spraying the area if u have to get out of the way for other traffic. most(all?) koreans have the cops come and make a visit to the hospital for extra compensation if they know it's in their best(monetary) interest - (sad but true). the biboho mentioned by cali means "at ur own risk".

[PatrickGHBusan]

You get used to it and frankly once you do its not that bad.

You do have to adapt your driving style to the local traffic and conditions and understand how it all works here.

In Busan I drove on occasion and got used to it. Frankly speaking your challenge will be city driving because outside the cities driving in Korea is a piece of cake.

[detonate]

When I started to drive the Korean way, things got easier (Who has the right of way? ME!).

Wouldn't taking the taxi back after shopping be fine for you?

[coralreefer_1]

Agree with Patrick. It's not all that bad assuming you actually know how to drive, and go in expecting that people around you will and often do perform movements or actions that are dangerous. So long as you expect this kind of behavior and plan ahead/drive defensively...then other than the traffic, driving should not be much of an issue.

[Kimchifart]

[drydell]

I'm a Brit - and I drive all the time in Busan- the h