At a bar the other night, the topic of taxicab scams around the world came up - how there are a number of region-specific taxi or transport-related scams that guidebooks often warn travelers about but still catch some victims off guard. I thought it was interesting how these scams have evolved, and thought it was worth cataloguing the ones we'd heard of.
How timely then, that only a day later we encountered a DC-specific taxi scam after a late train ride home from New York. I always doubt the honesty of DC cabbies (and happily for New York, have found almost every single one to abide by their regulations - DC, what are you doing wrong here?) and this experience absolutely confirmed why that doubt should continue. Indeed, despite the perception that taxi scams only exist in developing countries, or target foreigners who don't speak the language in the country they're traveling in, cabbies often try their "luck" within the heavily regulated taxi commissions across the US, too. The more you know...
Below, a few DC-based scams - which have been going on for a while according to the Internet - and a few others we came up with.
And outside DC:
- Forced taxi-share: at Union Station (and possibly elsewhere), taxi dispatchers will group passengers going the same direction. You can decline, but if you opt to share a cab, the taxi driver may keep the meter running the whole time, which means everyone ends up paying a little extra for a non-direct route home AND the driver only records one 'official' fare. Cabbies may lie when questioned about this practice, claiming that Union Station (or whatever the point of origin was) is an exception to the law/rule/regulation. Fortunately, you now know that the cabbie is required by law to reset the meter each time a passenger gets out. No exceptions or exemptions.
- The time-honored trick of having the meter set at fare code 3: Next to the “Extras” display there’s a single-digit display that will show a 1 (in-DC fares), 2 (interstate fares), or 3 (snow emergency). The snow emergency code automatically adds 25% to the base DC fare. Consider waiting a block or 2 before saying anything. That way they have to reset the meter and lose $2-3 of fare value.
And outside DC:
- Ukraine: I'll wait for you! If you pre-pay, the taxi driver claims he'll stick around until you're ready to go back for one low price. Chances are, once you get dropped off you will never see the driver again. Never pre-pay, and know that you will almost always be able to hail or have someone call you a taxi.
- Thailand: Need jewelry? The scam is by tuk-tuks, offering to take you to their "friend" or "family member", where you'll get a great deal on jewelry. I'm told that saying yes to this involves being driven out to the middle of nowhere, and being extorted for way too much money to get back to where you started. Be careful, say a forceful no, and go to the next tuk-tuk driver if the first one is insistent.
- Thailand & India: Better hotel! Taxi and three-wheeler drivers will insist that your hotel recently closed for renovations, and they can take you to one that is open and has rooms available. Be prepared with your hotel address, an idea of the route the driver should take, and how much it will cost before closing the door or fully stepping into the vehicle. And no matter how persuasive the driver is, insist you go to your hotel anyway.
What scams have you encountered?
The other thing they do here in Thailand (I'm back on a temporary assignment) is they won't turn the meter on and then try and negotiate a rate higher than what you would pay if they use the meter. It's never happened to me, but my Thai friends say that it's because I'm big and mean-looking (one advantage to the haircut), and because I speak Thai well enough the drivers figure out they won't be able to cheat me.
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