Bangkok Taxi Drivers Liable To Arrest And Fines For Fare Refusals

[pdogg]

http://www.bangkokpo...fe-driving-tips

Taxi drivers who refuse passengers will be liable to arrest and immediate fines from Saturday, traffic police announced on Friday.

Pol Col Weerawit Wajjanapukka, chief of the Traffic Police Division's ticket information centre, said unhappy passengers could now file a complaint directly to the 1197 hotline without having to submit their complaints to the Department of Land Transport as before.

He said if a taxi refuses to take the passenger, he or she must immediately report to the nearest police station.

The complainants must inform police of the taxi's registration number and colour of the car.

If possible, he said, complainants should record the conversation on their cell phones for use as evidence.

Pol Col Weerawit warned that the recording should be done discreetly to make sure that the taxi driver does not react violently.

Complainants can call the traffic police hotline 1197 or log on to www.publicpolice.go.th to place their complaints.

With the new law to poised to take effect, netizens have compiled most common excuses used by cabbies to deny services.

1. "I've to return the cab to the garage" is by far the most common excuse that people come across. Many people have pointed out that a taxi driver who is no longer providing service on that day should turn off their "vacant" sign so that people do not waste their time and can look for other cabs.

2. "The car needs refueling".

3. The driver changes his mind mid-way and drops the passenger off, claiming that the traffic is too bad to go through. Many people pointed out that traffic congestion in the city is normal and if the driver wants to avoid traffic jams they should quit driving in the city altogether.

4. Taxis parked in front of malls and bus terminals are selective of their passengers, and frequently claim the destination is too near and they don’t make any money for the trip. These drivers are usually mafia-types and normal cabs are threatened do not to get in the queue.

5. "The trip is too far, you have to pay extra". Many cab drivers trying to make extra money force passengers to pay more than the normal meter fare. Even though they do not deny service, demanding more money is also unlawful. These demands are often made to passengers travelling at night trying to get home, or people who are in a hurry. Passengers are usually forced to oblige and pay 50 to 100 baht more for the convenience.

6. Taxis that only accept foreigners as passengers. These types of taxis are found near tourist areas. Many usually do not turn on their meteres and charge excessive fare. Then there are those who turn on their meter but drive around town before reaching the destination, often close by, to increase the fare on the meter for visitors who are not familiar with the roads and streets.

7. Some just park on the side of the road, rudely waving off passengers without any explanation. Netizens said these people are "rich enough, they do not need to woo passengers to make a living".

[SLBT]

All too often we see this happening. It has happened to myself, but as I have been travelling to Thailand now for 4 years I am aware of the tricks and can inform them as such.

I'll give you an example:

Hailing a taxi from the street to go to the airport one day, I asked if the guy was available to go to the airport. He said he was then another guy next to him speaking loudly repeating ''airport, yes? ok ok no problem, we can take you no problem, ok 600 baht, this is good, ok? ok?.....

Needless to say, I looked at him and asked him, are you taking me to the airport? is this your taxi? He said no, so I said then I will speak to the taxi driver about the fare and not you... I did and said how much to the airport? He started at 600 and I started to retrieve my bags from the cab. He said why am I taking them out. I responded that he knows as well as I do the correct fare to the airport and it is definitely NOT 600 baht.

I said only stupid tourist will pay that. I know how much it cost.

I told him I will go with him if he use the meter but he said it's not enough of a fare all that way and to come back again. So being the soft touch I am, I said I will pay you 300 baht and if I am happy, then I will give u little tip extra. He agreed and off we went..

I was in a hurry so I just wanted to get there without fucking around haggling to death.

It is good this ha been introduced, but I fear nothing will really change in the long run. You will still not get the taxi you wanted to take if he refuses you and you tell him you will report him.. Nothing will be gained.. He'll mouth off to you anyway and you'll still have to get another taxi...

[deepthroat]

Taxi drivers are a pain in the ass in BKK, but at least it's not quite as bad as the Tuk Tuk Mafia in Phuket.

The BKK drivers always want to quote a fare and not use meter, and the fare is usually 30-300% more than the meter would be.

Even using a cab supplied by my hotel I've had this problem. One morning upon departure I told the doorman I needed a taxi to airport but it had to be a taxi that would use meter. "No pompem" he says. Driver pulls up, I toss my bags in the back, said "Airport - MEET-R on" and he started hemming and hawing. I immediately yanked the bags back out at which time he not only discovered he could speak english, he immediately protested that he was of COURSE going to put the meter on.

[SiamSam]

You know guys there is always the other side. The good stories that seldom get reported or get the attention the bad ones get.

I once negotiated a fixed price of 900baht with a taxi driver to take me from Pattaya to Bangkok (Soi 4). The ride from Pattaya to Bangkok proper was normal and uneventful. However once we got into the traffic from Swampy to downtown it turned into a parking lot. I cannot exaggerate the extent of the traffic. It was hellish and unprecedented. It took us an hour to get from Pattaya to the airport area and then THREE hours from there to Sukhumvit. We literally stayed in the taxi bottled in traffic for 3 hours of which he played the "Eagles" over and over and over again until I begged him to turn it off. It was the worst taxi ride of my life!!! In fact it was the worst car experience of my life. The traffic was a result of an accident and all traffic was being diverted off the highway to a small, single lane soi adjacent to Sukhumvit. It was a nightmare.

During the entire ordeal I was an impatience nut-bar while this man kept smiling and remained very stoic though out the whole experience. The more I ranted and complained the more he smiled and hummed along with the "Hotel California". When we finally arrived at my destination both of us were experiencing some kind of zen-like exhaustion. I retrieved my bags and offered him 2,000baht for his time. He REFUSED the money. He said our deal was 900baht. I explained he had spent an extra 3 hours in my service through no fault of his own. This concept seemed to confuse him. I insisted he take the money and we spent 5 minutes on the street arguing the contrary to what taxi-driver and customer normally argue about. The whole moment was surreal.

In the end he agreed to take the money only if I agreed to call him back to take me to the airport on my day of departure, for free. This did not make any sense either since he was Pattaya based and would have to come back to Bangkok to take me to the airport. Nonetheless I agreed, gave him the 2,000baht and waved him goodbye. I never did call him for the airport ride.

All this to say, there are good, honourable guys out there among the swindlers.

[4:17]

I'll agree with Sam; I've had some good experiences with random cab drivers/motorbike/tuk-tuk guys in Bangkok and elsewhere in the kingdom. I've also had some grade-A assholes to deal with, although these seem to be more rare than the former.

As for the original topic, I can't see this law being very effective; if I get some cab driver who refuses to take me somewhere, am I going to lose even more time by noting his cab number and name, and then dick around some more by calling the hotline or logging onto the 'net? Either right then or after the fact? Nah, and I don't imagine most people would. Perhaps the law may occasionally net the consistent offending cab driver, when he eventually refuses to pick up someone with time on their hands and axe to grind against Thai culture, so perhaps it won't be all for naught. Granted this is better than having to physically got to the police station, but still ... meh. Can't be arsed on the rare occasions it happens.

For anyone new coming to Bangkok, I would suggest that if you don't know about what the fare should be to your destination, don't put your bags in the cab until you see the driver turn the meter on. Or, if you only have a carry-on, just put it in the backseat with yourself; then you can get out if the guy tries to dick around with you too much. Typically once you show you know what's what regarding the usual fare and are willing to barter, that does the trick. Not always, but usually.

It's been my experience that typically the metered fare (say in the last year or so) from the airport to Suk Soi 4 (Nana) is usually about 340 baht at night, give or take (going to the airport), and closer to 400 during the day (more traffic, etc.). I've gotten as low as 350 during the day, but usually anywhere from 380 to 420. Usually if I get a guy who doesn't want to use the meter, I'll offer 400 baht and he pays the tolls -- if he doesn't offer it first -- and that's usually okay with them. Like SLBT said, I can't be arsed to dick around for another 20 or 40 baht when I've got to get to the airport.

[deepthroat]

Good points Sam and 4:17. My biggest challenge is that whenever I try to use a cab for normal trips around BKK, I can rarely find one that will use the meter, and I never know what the "usual" fare should be so I feel like I'm a complete chump regarding what to bargain for. The last time I tried this I was stranded out near Patpong trying to get back to Nana and 5 consecutive cabs that stopped refused to turn the meter on so I gave up and trudged to the skytrain instead.

Gotta concur though, this new law is worthless. Seems like it's really just an excuse for more police shakedowns but no real change.

[beijo]

I agree, to get a metered cab ride from pat pong in the evening is nearly impossible. For cab rides to and from the airport to Sukhumvit I normaly offer 400 Baht including toll and never had a driver argue or refuse, if we run into bad traffic I may give an additional tip. As far as drivers insisting on NO METER rides I suspect it has to do with drivers having to rent the cars and only getting a fraction of the meter price while being able to pocket all the money on NO METER rides ?

[Kahuna]

You guys are right...This will be enforced next time it snows in Bangkok...