A New Twist On Taxi Scams At Swampy

[msg362]

Her's a new twist and one that is almost impossible to avoid.

My Nephew came from the UK to BKK so I gave him the standard advice: 'don't use taxi touts, go to the official desk for a taxi, make sure he uses the meter'.

Well he did and the ride from Swampy to the east side of town to a hotel on Sukamvit cost 700 Baht plus toll fares. The second time a few days later the fare was 400 Baht to Banglampoo, on the west, much further. The second fare was right, the first very wrong. My best guess is that the driver had rigged his meter to run at twice the rate.

Anyone else had similar problems?

[eurasianthai]

It happened to me once, many years ago, from Donmuang airport to Sukhumvit.

It is a trip I did hundred of times and it was always the same price on the meter, less than Baht 200.

And one day, the taxi meter indicated a bit more than Baht 300 for the same trip.

Whether it was rigged or malfunctionning, I'm note sure but to be fair, it happened only once.

Edited September 26, 2009 by Farangrakthai

[rfukata]

Her's a new twist and one that is almost impossible to avoid.

My Nephew came from the UK to BKK so I gave him the standard advice: 'don't use taxi touts, go to the official desk for a taxi, make sure he uses the meter'.

Well he did and the ride from Swampy to the east side of town to a hotel on Sukamvit cost 700 Baht plus toll fares. The second time a few days later the fare was 400 Baht to Banglampoo, on the west, much further. The second fare was right, the first very wrong. My best guess is that the driver had rigged his meter to run at twice the rate.

Anyone else had similar problems?

There was an increase in taxi fares recently (I think in late 2008) subsequent to the increase the Swampy taxis fares have

risen significantly as I noticed myself compared to the inner city taxi meters. ( I travel quite frequently out of Swampy)

Yes, I agree that the Swampy cabs meter are RIGGED. One way is to observe the cost versus Kilo's traveled from the fare.

Normally a fare from Sukhumvit 15 to Swampy is around 28-30 Kilo, whereas from Swampy to Sukhumvit 15 is over 40 Kilos.

Because of this nonsense, I now go upstairs to the departure hall terminal and pick up a town bound cabby which will save

you the 50 baht service fee and the inflated rigged pricing.

[slapout]

Again the old saying rings true "build a better rat trap and the rats get smarter' 50 baht surcharge and rigged meters for the official taxis would not surprise me at all.

[ThaiEye]

It is very illegal but some taxi metres in Bangkok are rigged. I've only come across it once when i arrived here about three years ago. Same story as above, i already knew the approx fare to my hotel. But instead of paying over the odds i told him how much i would pay. He didn't argue. Seeing things from the taxis point of view, some metres could just be malfunctioning at the time.

[wardje]

Had the same experience last week. I have done the trip from Suvarnabhumi numerous times so I know the normal fare.

Last week, coming down on the Sukhumvit exit I noticed that the meater already indicated 300 THB and having a closer look the small display on the meter that indicates the distance was covered. I asked the driver what that meant, he said "accident".

When I arrived at my normal destination I paid him 230 THB, the average fare that I pay, and I didn't give him the 50 THB surcharge. He complained so I told him that I would call the police and that I would ask to check his meter. I have never seen a taxi leaving that fast..

[dre1247]

Her's a new twist and one that is almost impossible to avoid.

My Nephew came from the UK to BKK so I gave him the standard advice: 'don't use taxi touts, go to the official desk for a taxi, make sure he uses the meter'.

Well he did and the ride from Swampy to the east side of town to a hotel on Sukamvit cost 700 Baht plus toll fares. The second time a few days later the fare was 400 Baht to Banglampoo, on the west, much further. The second fare was right, the first very wrong. My best guess is that the driver had rigged his meter to run at twice the rate.

Anyone else had similar problems?

Yeah, me, about 20 years ago. This is very old twist. Some do have a little switch under the dash board.

[britmaveric]

Bit over 300bht for central Bangkok - if you let know this you will have no issue.

[tw25rw]

That's why they give you that slip of paper at the desk. If something like this happens, tell them.

[fatfather]

Her's a new twist and one that is almost impossible to avoid.

My Nephew came from the UK to BKK so I gave him the standard advice: 'don't use taxi touts, go to the official desk for a taxi, make sure he uses the meter'.

Well he did and the ride from Swampy to the east side of town to a hotel on Sukamvit cost 700 Baht plus toll fares. The second time a few days later the fare was 400 Baht to Banglampoo, on the west, much further. The second fare was right, the first very wrong. My best guess is that the driver had rigged his meter to run at twice the rate.

Anyone else had similar problems?

There was an increase in taxi fares recently (I think in late 2008) subsequent to the increase the Swampy taxis fares have

risen significantly as I noticed myself compared to the inner city taxi meters. ( I travel quite frequently out of Swampy)

Yes, I agree that the Swampy cabs meter are RIGGED. One way is to observe the cost versus Kilo's traveled from the fare.

Normally a fare from Sukhumvit 15 to Swampy is around 28-30 Kilo, whereas from Swampy to Sukhumvit 15 is over 40 Kilos.

Because of this nonsense, I now go upstairs to the departure hall terminal and pick up a town bound cabby which will save

you the 50 baht service fee and the inflated rigged pricing.

I agree 100%. I also travel regulary in and out of Thailand and since the new airport is open I always picked up the taxi at departure level to leave the airport. No queue and the drivers are quite happy to get a job back to town. Till up now I've never been tricked.

[bkkjames]

Her's a new twist and one that is almost impossible to avoid.

My Nephew came from the UK to BKK so I gave him the standard advice: 'don't use taxi touts, go to the official desk for a taxi, make sure he uses the meter'.

Well he did and the ride from Swampy to the east side of town to a hotel on Sukamvit cost 700 Baht plus toll fares. The second time a few days later the fare was 400 Baht to Banglampoo, on the west, much further. The second fare was right, the first very wrong. My best guess is that the driver had rigged his meter to run at twice the rate.

Anyone else had similar problems?

Keep an eye out for taxis with smaller than usual tyres.

[krading]

Keep an eye out for taxis with smaller than usual tyres.

and the ones who spin their wheels

[Daewoo]

Anyone know whether the typical Corolla Cab has a mechanical (cable) speedo or Electronic???

In days of old (in Australia anyway), you could tell if the meter was rigged, because they would change the speedo drive gear in the gearbox... the speedo would read 100km/h when you were only doing 80, and you could pull the driver up on it...

I guess with a meter driven using an electronic signal, it would be easy enough to introduce a small current into the wire to the meter only, without increasing the current to the speedo...

Either way, I would be watching the speedo to check if it matches with your sensation of the vehicle speed...

Cheers,

Daewoo

[bkkjames]

As a footnote, I happened to be at Poom today for a meeting. Afterwhich went down to the arrivals level to go get a taxi. The line was all the way inside the terminal like a snake. Walked up to departures level and hopped in one of several that were there, no line, no surcharge, no bs.

[nidhogg]

That's why they give you that slip of paper at the desk. If something like this happens, tell them.

Yeah, and you will get zero help.

I live outside of bangkok limits (just) and when taking a cab from the airport it is a fixed fare (approx double the real meter rate). A while back I got into a stonking argument with one driver who tried to charge me treble the rate. He went from "this is what they told me at the airport", to "you must pay extra for the suitcase" etc etc etc. None of which was right, as I have probably made the trip 100 times over the years (and many times since).

Anyway, got the Thai wife to call the number, and quite simply they did not give a shit. The ONLY thing they would deal with was if a bag had left in the taxi.

By no means the assurance that that little slip of paper is supposed to give.

[tw25rw]

That's why they give you that slip of paper at the desk. If something like this happens, tell them.

Yeah, and you will get zero help.

I live outside of bangkok limits (just) and when taking a cab from the airport it is a fixed fare (approx double the real meter rate). A while back I got into a stonking argument with one driver who tried to charge me treble the rate. He went from "this is what they told me at the airport", to "you must pay extra for the suitcase" etc etc etc. None of which was right, as I have probably made the trip 100 times over the years (and many times since).

Anyway, got the Thai wife to call the number, and quite simply they did not give a shit. The ONLY thing they would deal with was if a bag had left in the taxi.

By no means the assurance that that little slip of paper is supposed to give.

Yuck.. Did you call the police? I know I know...

I suppose when things like this happen, it's best to stay quiet and get your luggage out before making any offer of payment.

[tw25rw]

I'll be looking out for

next time...

[Whale]

Maybe he didn't rig the meter. he just never zeroed it after the last customer left (2 x 350 baht = 700 baht)

[dr_Pat_Pong]

I'll be looking out for

next time...

What a bloody nutter that cabby is.

[BNZ]

 Yesterday leaving the airport I noticed the fare was already 75 Baht.

Probably switched on and left running whilst he was waiting for the next passenger. Most customers wouldn't know or realise the increase.

I paid my usual 220 Baht.

[tw25rw]

I'll be looking out for

next time...

What a bloody nutter that cabby is.

Thinking about it, I can't remember ever actually sharing a laugh with a Thai male.. But with that guy I'd be peeing myself the whole way.. I'd book him for day trips, but the gf might be a bit freaked..

[wjmark]

Happened to me a couple of years ago. The meter was already near 300 bt and we were nowhere near Banglambpu.

I watched the meter as it would move normally and then jump really quickly. We stopped the cabby just as we got off a major highway. I plunked 200 down on the back seat (him shouting "300 300"), left the back door open, and walked back against traffic. We hopped in another cab and the second half of our trip cost 70bt.

One thing I noticed is that the meter itself was different from normal ones. Usually they have little 'distance' and 'time' windows on the meter. This one did not...

Other than that one incident my experience with cabs has been great in Bkk. Honest, fast, cheap, and usually very friendly. A different story with the tuk tuk drivers!

Edited October 4, 2009 by wjmark

[tingtong]

There was an increase in taxi fares recently (I think in late 2008) subsequent to the increase the Swampy taxis fares have

risen significantly as I noticed myself compared to the inner city taxi meters. ( I travel quite frequently out of Swampy)

Yes, I agree that the Swampy cabs meter are RIGGED. One way is to observe the cost versus Kilo's traveled from the fare.

Normally a fare from Sukhumvit 15 to Swampy is around 28-30 Kilo, whereas from Swampy to Sukhumvit 15 is over 40 Kilos.

Because of this nonsense, I now go upstairs to the departure hall terminal and pick up a town bound cabby which will save

you the 50 baht service fee and the inflated rigged pricing.

sad, but this method isnt fool proof anymore

i do also countless frequent Swampy taxi rides, and i do also this go upto the departure to get a cab trick.

just the most recent 4 days ago, the driver dared to ask for service fee 50 baht, and though we didnt agree, he dared to return only 50 baht from the 70 he should, without any comment....well, not much oney to complain about, but i just dont like the method, that is it!

secondly, i also got a rigged mater this way the other time, when the distance to my house magically got about 15 km and 200 baht more!!

funny, it is always about 65 or so km, then it became over 80....

and the guy dared to put in a fight when asked about this!

going up isnt mean any protection against the usual maffia anymore, you still taking you chances as i learnt.

[gorshar]

In about 200(?) airport taxi rides I've only encountered rigged meters three times, all Don Muang.

-one going to the airport. I realized about halfway to the airport the meter was running a little fast but I kept my mouth shut until we arrived. Then I just handed him what the fare should have been (about 180 and not the 245 the meter read) and told him (in Thai) I've done this trip a hundred times and this is what you get. He took the money without a word.

-leaving the airport I noticed every time the driver floored the accelerator the meter spun wildly and in less than a km the meter had already spun to around 2.5 kms. I said something to him about it, he gave a nervous laugh and magically the meter operated normally the rest of the way.

-leaving the airport again I noticed the meter was clocking quickly but as in the first case I decided not to say anything. However, our apartment was about 50m from a police station so rather than having him pull in front of our building I had him stop in front of the station. I handed him 180 baht and told him if he wanted the 300 or so on the meter he could ask the police for it. Likewise the 50 baht airport surcharge. He took the 180 without argument.

Curiously, one time I had a taxi with a meter running *slow*! Arrived at my apartment and the meter was at about 155. I handed him 230 (180+50) and told him his meter was whacked. Hope he fixed it.

[fxe1200]

Her's a new twist and one that is almost impossible to avoid.

My Nephew came from the UK to BKK so I gave him the standard advice: 'don't use taxi touts, go to the official desk for a taxi, make sure he uses the meter'.

Well he did and the ride from Swampy to the east side of town to a hotel on Sukamvit cost 700 Baht plus toll fares. The second time a few days later the fare was 400 Baht to Banglampoo, on the west, much further. The second fare was right, the first very wrong. My best guess is that the driver had rigged his meter to run at twice the rate.

Anyone else had similar problems?

I had similar problems. My taxi ride startet at Naradhiwat Oakwood Apt. (close to the intersection Ratchadapisek) all the way to Suvarnabhumi, very early on a Sunday morning. When we got there, the meter showed 77 Baht. And the friendly driver did not even ask for more.

[scorecard]

I suggest there's another point, but I'm not suggesting that taxi drivers cheating people is OK.

Here's my point - taxi drivers, like all Thais, know very well that many politicians, many beaurocrats, many public servants, many headmasters, many police and more (probably several million in total)have their fingers in the pie and many for very very large amount of taxpayers funds. And quite often it's very open to see.

So, what do many people like taxi drivers think? "Everybody else gets 'free' money, so why shouldn't I also have a little extra/" or something very similar.

I say again, I'm not saying it's OK, it's not.

[agudbuk]

Most times if I'm not in a rush and an average extra 15 minutes is not a problem I use the bus service. If the hotel I want is not on the route I grab a cab once I'm in central Bangkok, Much cheaper for one person.

[BangkokHank]

After living in Thailand for 14 years, I just experienced my first "doctored" taxi meter the last time I came home from the airport a couple of months ago. Normally I take a taxi from the departures area, but as I had my elderly parents with me, I thought I would take an "official" one - just to be safe. By the time we got to my home, the meter showed a distance of 40 kilometers - but my home is exactly 30 kilometers from the airport. I pointed out this discrepancy to the driver. He smiled and said "Okay, just pay me what you normally pay." His lack of defending himself was a sure sign that he knew that he was cheating - obviously.

From what I have read about this practice on Thai Visa and other Thailand-related websites lately, this is the new scam for the taxi mafia to make up for revenues lost through other crackdowns. The point is that these airport taxi drivers are going to cheat - one way or another. They think it's their Buddha-given right. So as soon as one scam is clamped down on, they will come up with another one. The current one is tampering with the meter. So be warned.

As for the complaint form that we are given at the airport: I filled mine out, brought it to the post office and paid the postage on it. When I handed it to the postal clerk for mailing, the she read it - and I swear I could read her mind: She was thinking "No way I'm going to let a bloody farang complain about a fellow Thai. We Thais have to stick together in cheating foreigners." And I'm pretty sure she never mailed the complaint form. In any case I was never contacted by the people responsible.

Next time this happens, I'm not going to pay the taxi ANYTHING at all. I'll ask him to wait for the police to get there to clarify the matter.

[MJo]

Got rigged meter from Scampy twice in past 6 months. Both times paid the usual fare and the drivers kept complaining. Past 10 years not a single cheat from airport taxis so i guess rigged meters are more common nowadays...

[selftaopath]

Again the old saying rings true "build a better rat trap and the rats get smarter' 50 baht surcharge and rigged meters for the official taxis would not surprise me at all.

I agree. And to think that the "police" LOLOLOL or some govt agency would check meets is ???? too ???? 1st world???? Welcome to LOS ) Land of Scams.