Thai Transwomen Expose Bangkok Taxi Overcharging in Viral Video

[webfact]

Photo via TikTok/ @aisayawarin

 

In a stunning move to highlight a prevalent issue in Bangkok's transport scene, two Thai transwomen took on the guise of foreign tourists to expose taxi drivers overcharging unsuspecting passengers. Their recorded escapade, which swiftly went viral on TikTok, has reignited discussions on fare integrity and ethical practices among taxi operators in Thailand's bustling capital.

 

Released on TikTok by the account aisayawarin on February 17, the video sees the two women concealing their identities as locals by adopting broken Thai, akin to that spoken by many tourists. The charade begins as they hail a taxi and request a ride to the popular Huay Kwang area.

 

However, the driver, deviating from legal protocol, demanded a flat rate of 100 baht (approximately 135 THB) instead of using the meter, a tactic well-documented among certain taxi drivers in the city.

 

The true nature of the passengers was revealed when, confronting the driver's unethical practice, they switched back to fluent Thai, calling out his behaviour.

Displeased by the unexpected turn, the driver ejected them from the taxi. The video, both eye-opening and entertaining, concludes with the women appealing directly to Thailand's Prime Minister, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, urging governmental intervention in these persistent issues within the taxi industry.

 

Among the flood of reactions to the video on social media, many Thai netizens shared similar experiences. One commenter recalled, "I was once kicked out of a taxi because the driver didn’t want to deal with traffic." Another noted, "Silom area taxis almost always pull these stunts."

 

Such issues are not isolated incidents. Overcharging by taxi drivers in Bangkok impacts both tourists and locals alike. The incident serves as a reminder of numerous confrontations between passengers and drivers, often escalating into altercations, especially when passengers refuse to comply with unjust fare demands.

 

For instance, earlier in the year, a conflict in Silom left a Thai man injured after refusing to pay an unfairly inflated fare. Last August saw another notorious case where a driver attacked a passenger after being denied an additional 500 baht.

 

These frequent reports underscore the pressing need for regulatory bodies to clamp down on such practices. The brave exposé by these Thai transwomen not only sheds light on these misdemeanours but also urges authorities to foster a safer, fairer system for everyone travelling across Bangkok, reported The Thaiger.

 

 

@aisayawarin นายกช่วยด้วยค่ะ @ฟูหลิจุ 🗻 ♬ เสียงต้นฉบับ - aisayawarin

 

 

-- 2025-02-19

 

 

[farang51]

Where do I change my 100 baht notes to 135 baht? Seems like a good deal.

[proton]

No need for a disguise, many drivers do the same to everyone, including Thais around the centre of Bangkok, demanding ludicrous prices for short trips.

[richard_smith237]

Good call....     the greater the exposure these taxi scammers receive, the better the services will be.

 

These people are doing the jobs police 'should' be doing...  it would be such an easy clampdown for the police to execute with regular and consistent stops, with real penalties...   These 'things' are only ever an issue when the go viral in social media.

 

 

 

And, yes, being a taxi driver is ropey job, especially at night with drunk and / or impolite passengers etc... But, that was their choice to be a taxi driver and in doing so they agreed a 'code of conduct'.

 

Taking a taxi in Bangkok, especially at night can be anything from a regular non-eventful journey, to a pleasant chat with a driver to a rip-off followed tirade of expletive riddled erratic driving.

 

 

Most drivers are decent, but take a taxi after 9pm from any area of higher tourist footfall from Ekammai up to Siam and across to Silom and expect it to be impossible for them to use the meter. 

 

This has been an issue for decades - nothing has been done about this at all.

 

Other cities are far worse, so Bangkokians can consider themselves lucky that we only get 'partially' ripped off half the time.

 

-------

 

Now cue the 'day timers' quoting:  I've never had an issue...  or the obvious golden droplets of grade A1 genius... "just take the sky-train" !!!... 

 

 

 

 

[richard_smith237]

34 minutes ago, farang51 said:

Where do I change my 100 baht notes to 135 baht? Seems like a good deal.

 

Yup... usually at night time... I'm charged 200 or 300 baht for what would usually be an 80 baht journey.

 

I think the drivers deserve a little more... and do understand their requests for higher flag-fall rates.

 

BUT...  I don't believe for a second that this would prevent them from continuing to rip off passengers, for most of the drivers, its in their 'blood'... the entitlement to 'demand more' is already ingrained... 

 

 

I just wish GRAB and BOLT were more reliable...  these services too have allowed Thainess to slip in.

I recently waited 15 mins for a BOLT or GRAB (can't remember), who was 1m away (according to the Map)...    when he arrived I asked him why it took so long. 

.... the driver admitted to 'eating' when he accepted the ride....   a perfectly polite and nice guy, but this was just one example of 'Thainess' that I see slipping in...   

.... Another facet of this 'Thainess' is that once they accept the ride, only then do they find out the destination.... If they don't want it, they don't move and just play a waiting game for the customer to cancel the journey (if they driver cancels themselves so many times they get penalised).

 

 

The only other country where I witness such behaviour is Turkey - and we all (many of us) know what bunch of lying cheat the the taxi drivers are there - Thailand seems to be vying for a close second !!!.... but then pulls it out of the bag when we do get a really nice driver !!! 

[farang51]

20 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

1 hour ago, farang51 said:

Where do I change my 100 baht notes to 135 baht? Seems like a good deal.

 

Yup... usually at night time... I'm charged 200 or 300 baht for what would usually be an 80 baht journey.

My comment was not directed at the over charging taxis, although they are a problem. My comment was to the article equating 100 baht with 135 baht. AI written articles are a problem too. Which parts can we believe and which parts can we not believe?

[hotchilli]

1 hour ago, proton said:

No need for a disguise, many drivers do the same to everyone, including Thais around the centre of Bangkok, demanding ludicrous prices for short trips.

Foreigners are a target for taxi rogues

[J Branche]

What I don't understand is a new 

Toyota Camary is approximately 

1,400,000 baht 27 times more expensive than motorbike

 

New Honda Click 125i

52,000 baht

 

The motorbike generally burns less gas, the insurance and maintenance is less than a car.

 

But the motorbike fare is only 20% to 30% less.  The motorbike taxi is not Air Conditioned and does not shade you from the sun.

 

Definitely some flawed logic in the pricing structure.

 

[richard_smith237]

1 hour ago, farang51 said:

My comment was not directed at the over charging taxis, although they are a problem. My comment was to the article equating 100 baht with 135 baht. AI written articles are a problem too. Which parts can we believe and which parts can we not believe?

 

Yep... fully understood that....     No proof reading....    100 baht equivalent to 135 baht !

 

Unfortunately, every article we read now, even when human written and 100% factual is taken with cynicism because with the onset of AI no reports at all can be trusted - all we end up with is arguments on forums such as this about statements (I refused to use the word facts) which make no sense.

[richard_smith237]

6 minutes ago, J Branche said:

What I don't understand is a new 

Toyota Camary is approximately 

1,400,000 baht 27 times more expensive than motorbike

 

New Honda Click 125i

52,000 baht

 

The motorbike generally burns less gas, the insurance and maintenance is less than a car.

 

But the motorbike fare is only 20% to 30% less.  The motorbike taxi is not Air Conditioned and does not shade you from the sun.

 

Definitely some flawed logic in the pricing structure.

 

Wrong - there is only flawed logic in your logic... 

 

We [the customer] are not only paying for the 'value of the vehicle' we are paying for the value of someones time.

 

A Motorcycle Taxi riders time is not worth 27x less than a Taxi Drivers Time, theoretically, there time is worth the same as each other.

 

 

With your logic a 100 baht taxi ride would cost 3.7 baht....   there would be no motorcycle taxis at all.

 

 

[richard_smith237]

32 minutes ago, hotchilli said:

1 hour ago, proton said:

No need for a disguise, many drivers do the same to everyone, including Thais around the centre of Bangkok, demanding ludicrous prices for short trips.

Foreigners are a target for taxi rogues

 

True....  I've even had taxi drivers say 'No' as soon as I ask them in Thai....  its seemed clear to me that they only want Foreigners (Tourists) who do not speak Thai (i.e. who do not know what the real prices are or what the real deal is so they can take advantage of them).... 

 

.... That was a few years ago.... Now, in area's such as Sukhumivit Soi 11 after 10pm they are so brazen its just 300 baht flat fare... they don't care....

 

... It would be so easy for the BiB to run repeated 'stings' weekly all year round and clean all of this up.... 

 

-----

 

OK... so its only 300 baht....  and at that time of night, for my 80 baht journey I'd likely give an honest taxi driver 200 baht for his 'honesty' anyway....  BUT, the starting rip off always leaves bad taste.

 

-----

 

Another facet to such media publicity is that the more famous these rip offs become and the less the police do about them, the more the taxi drivers feel a sense of entitlement that this behavior is perfectly acceptable - the ineffectiveness of the police actively enables such behavior. 

 

 

 

 

[J Branche]

3 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

 

Wrong - there is only flawed logic in your logic... 

 

We [the customer] are not only paying for the 'value of the vehicle' we are paying for the value of someones time.

 

A Motorcycle Taxi riders time is not worth 27x less than a Taxi Drivers Time, theoretically, there time is worth the same as each other.

 

 

With your logic a 100 baht taxi ride would cost 3.7 baht....   there would be no motorcycle taxis at all.

 

 

You obviously have never run a business.  Cost of equipment, cost of operation, labor, other expenses are all factored if a venture is worth the effort.

 

If my logic was so flawed how come the Taxis have blocked the roads in Bangkok, complained to the government, and feel the need to scam tourists?

[thesetat]

8 hours ago, proton said:

No need for a disguise, many drivers do the same to everyone, including Thais around the centre of Bangkok, demanding ludicrous prices for short trips.

Yeah, In Hua Hin just 2 days ago, I wanted a motorcycle taxi to take me to the burger king for lunch. He said 100 baht. I walked out onto the street and looked down the road and the burger king was only about 300 meters away. I laughed at the taxi driver and walked there instead. On my return the driver still had no fare and was sitting there. I told him his fee was breaking the Thai laws and he laughed. They have no fear or repercussions for overcharging. 

[portisaacozzy]

10 hours ago, webfact said:

Photo via TikTok/ @aisayawarin

 

In a stunning move to highlight a prevalent issue in Bangkok's transport scene, two Thai transwomen took on the guise of foreign tourists to expose taxi drivers overcharging unsuspecting passengers. Their recorded escapade, which swiftly went viral on TikTok, has reignited discussions on fare integrity and ethical practices among taxi operators in Thailand's bustling capital.

 

Released on TikTok by the account aisayawarin on February 17, the video sees the two women concealing their identities as locals by adopting broken Thai, akin to that spoken by many tourists. The charade begins as they hail a taxi and request a ride to the popular Huay Kwang area.

 

However, the driver, deviating from legal protocol, demanded a flat rate of 100 baht (approximately 135 THB) instead of using the meter, a tactic well-documented among certain taxi drivers in the city.

 

The true nature of the passengers was revealed when, confronting the driver's unethical practice, they switched back to fluent Thai, calling out his behaviour.

 

Displeased by the unexpected turn, the driver ejected them from the taxi. The video, both eye-opening and entertaining, concludes with the women appealing directly to Thailand's Prime Minister, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, urging governmental intervention in these persistent issues within the taxi industry.

 

Among the flood of reactions to the video on social media, many Thai netizens shared similar experiences. One commenter recalled, "I was once kicked out of a taxi because the driver didn’t want to deal with traffic." Another noted, "Silom area taxis almost always pull these stunts."

 

Such issues are not isolated incidents. Overcharging by taxi drivers in Bangkok impacts both tourists and locals alike. The incident serves as a reminder of numerous confrontations between passengers and drivers, often escalating into altercations, especially when passengers refuse to comply with unjust fare demands.

 

For instance, earlier in the year, a conflict in Silom left a Thai man injured after refusing to pay an unfairly inflated fare. Last August saw another notorious case where a driver attacked a passenger after being denied an additional 500 baht.

 

These frequent reports underscore the pressing need for regulatory bodies to clamp down on such practices. The brave exposé by these Thai transwomen not only sheds light on these misdemeanours but also urges authorities to foster a safer, fairer system for everyone travelling across Bangkok, reported The Thaiger.

 

 

 

 

-- 2025-02-19

 

 

i would get thePM to congratulate them on getting the word out to tourist and TAT to learn how to get through to the people who matter instead o chasing 'high income tourist ' !!!!!. 

[Liverpool Lou]

2 hours ago, thesetat said:

In Hua Hin just 2 days ago, I wanted a motorcycle taxi to take me to the burger king for lunch. He said 100 baht. I walked out onto the street and looked down the road and the burger king was only about 300 meters away. I laughed at the taxi driver and walked there instead. On my return the driver still had no fare and was sitting there. I told him his fee was breaking the Thai laws and he laughed. They have no fear or repercussions for overcharging. 

Win bikes do not have regulated, or meter, charges, they can charge whatever they want to and are not breaking the law...that's why he laughed at you.    And he may well have had a couple of rides whilst you were scoffing your lunch for all you know.

[thesetat]

2 hours ago, Liverpool Lou said:

Win bikes do not have regulated, or meter, charges, they can charge whatever they want to and are not breaking the law...that's why he laughed at you.    And he may well have had a couple of rides whilst you were scoffing your lunch for all you know.

Who said they were WIn drivers.. Or that I ate my lunch there at the BK? I never said that? 

[still kicking]

13 hours ago, proton said:

No need for a disguise, many drivers do the same to everyone, including Thais around the centre of Bangkok, demanding ludicrous prices for short trips.

Remind me of a show I watched of a show on OZ tv about how the ripp of pensioners and disabled people 

[madone]

 

 

14 hours ago, webfact said:

However, the driver, deviating from legal protocol, demanded a flat rate of 100 baht (approximately 135 THB) instead of using the meter

err wot?