Land department to prohibit Uber Taxi service saying it’s unsafe and overcharge customers

[Lite Beer]

Land department to prohibit Uber Taxi service saying it’s unsafe and overcharge customers

BANGKOK: -- The Land Transport Department has banned the Uber Taxi app and its online taxi booking service reasoning that the taxis used to provide such service are illegal and not registered.

The department’s reaction to the online taxi service via mobile application click came as the service is receiving growing acceptance by the people.

The department discussed the illegal taxi service via online booking with the Information and Communications Technology Ministry, the Business Development Department and the 11th Army Circle.

The Land Transport Department reasoned that drivers of Uber taxis used illegal taxis and their fares did not meet the standard while the drivers do not have public service driving license.

Director-general of the department Mr Thirapong Rodprasert said operators used green and black license plate cars (personal car) to service passengers and overcharge fees.

To prevent the problems such as use of credit cards in paying taxi fares and unsafe service from escalating in the future, he said it was necessary for the department to curb such service from now.

He warned that any driver found to continue providing the service will face a maximum fine of 2,000 baht for using improper license to provide service, of 1,000 baht for not using distance meter, and 1,000 baht for having no driving license for public service.

Source: http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/land-department-prohibit-uber-taxi-service-saying-unsafe-overcharge-customers

-- Thai PBS 2014-11-29

[whybother]

In other news, Bangkok taxis have been banned because they're unsafe and often overcharge customers.

... Banning of taxis in other Thai cities will follow shortly.

Edited November 29, 2014 by whybother

[Thai at Heart]

This UBER thing has really put the cat among the pigeons.

Overcharging and dangerous. Can't they find a slightly less hypocritical logic?

[Snig27]

Is there an IQ test you need to fail to get a job in a department like this?

This is simply an attempt by a corrupt monopoly to protect itself from competition using "connections".

[TVGerry]

Oh yeah Uber sucks. I mean what self respecting car service picks you in a clean car and brings you to wherever you want regardless of traffic and destination? Kudos to the local taxi service for having dirty and sometimes smelly taxis and rejecting you because your final destination is too troublesome to go!

[ColdSingha]

i thought the point is uber sets the rate not some smelly bangkok cabbie with a shit eating grin and "meter mai dai" attitude

[casindonet]

Yeah....those pesky uber. How dare they offer better service.....

[MrJohnson]

More idiocy. Perhaps too hard to extort money from Uber.

[Bobobirdiebuddy]

And the next taxi driver who, when asked to take me somewhere, looks blankly down the road, shakes his head and says, "Mai pai." Golly, I thought THAT was illegal. That said, most taxi drivers are really OK.

[zaphod reborn]

They refuse to admit that registered taxis can't compete with uber, so they resort to protectionism. Expect the same response when AEC integration begins. The Thai economy has always been artificially propped up by subsidies and protectionism, whether it's agriculture (rice, tapioca and rubber) or industry (automotive and textiles).

[kmj]

Uber has a pretty strong legal team, you may see this go to the courts, not that it would make much difference I guess.

[Pib]

Taxi union and mafia prevail.

[Tatsujin]

How about improving the service and quality of the existing taxi services and actually enforcing the fines for refusing fares rather than this protectionism crap. If that was fine and dandy, people perhaps wouldn't feel the need to use Uber in the first place. I'm personally getting sick of being refused to be taken where I want to go to, especially when there's a cop standing right next to me, refusing to do <deleted> all other than shrug his shoulders and give me a blank stare when yet another taxi can't be <deleted> arsed to take a fare that's on the meter.

And please, don't try to tell me it's cos it's the end of their shift or too far away etc, that's their <deleted> job.

[Pib]

. I'm personally getting sick of being refused to be taken where I want to go to, especially when there's a cop standing right next to me, refusing to do <deleted> all other than shrug his shoulders and give me a blank stare when yet another taxi can't be <deleted> arsed to take a fare that's on the meter.

You must be in error because the govt/BIB already had a crackdown or two just this year end such practices.

[kaobang]

Taxi union and mafia prevail.

lol Bangkok taxi fares are between the cheapest in the world and most of the drivers are nice

if the driver refuses to use the meter, just stop an other taxi

Uber should understand the situation and limit the presence in expensive places

2 or 2.5 us dollars from Pra Ram 9 to RCA come on

Edited November 29, 2014 by kaobang

[JOC]

Taxi union and mafia prevail.

lol Bangkok taxi fares are between the cheapest in the world and most of the drivers are nice

if the driver refuses to use the meter, just stop an other taxi

Uber should understand the situation and limit the presence in expensive places

2 or 2.5 us dollars from Pra Ram 9 to RCA come on

Not about the cost, but about the right to use the service-provider of your choice!!

[ChaangNoi]

Over charge? Should it not be the customer who knows what is fair or not?

In a free market Uber should be able to charge anything people are happy to pay.

[CiaranO]

Since when did anyone in Thailand care about overcharging

[FritsSikkink]

Is there an IQ test you need to fail to get a job in a department like this?

This is simply an attempt by a corrupt monopoly to protect itself from competition using "connections".

They are illegal in the Netherlands too. Don't abide by the local taxi rules.

[djjamie]

If it is popular with the end user then the most popular PM in the last decade should look at integrating it into society by allowing them to conform to the law.

I think it is a great idea.

With that said though it is refreshing to see the law actually being applied now and not ignored.

Edited November 29, 2014 by djjamie

[kaobang]

Taxi union and mafia prevail.

lol Bangkok taxi fares are between the cheapest in the world and most of the drivers are nice

if the driver refuses to use the meter, just stop an other taxi

Uber should understand the situation and limit the presence in expensive places

2 or 2.5 us dollars from Pra Ram 9 to RCA come on

Not about the cost, but about the right to use the service-provider of your choice!!

and where are the rights of the taxi drivers?you can live without uber in Bangkok but they cant live without customers

Edited November 29, 2014 by kaobang

[impulse]

Not about the cost, but about the right to use the service-provider of your choice!!

I'm always amazed at the number of guys I meet here in Thailand that can afford to live here only because their livelihood was protected by trade unions and licensing requirements "back home" during their career.

Yet, the minute they have to reach into their own pocket, or give up an iota of their "choice", that all goes out the window as "protectionism". (Not specific about JOC, his was just a convenient post to use)

There's a reason you can't call a non-union plumber or electrician, or unlicensed taxi, (or unaccredited plastic surgeon) back home. Some of it is training, some of it is fees and taxes the legal ones pay to the government.

A hack license in New York City costs $600,000 last I checked. To make them compete with unlicensed guys in their $10,000 personal vehicles just isn't reasonable.

Renting a licensed taxi in BKK is a lot more expensive than bopping around in your own Toyota Corolla. To make licensed taxis compete with unlicensed private vehicles is about more than "your choice".

Edited November 29, 2014 by impulse

[WhizBang]

This UBER thing has really put the cat among the pigeons.

Overcharging and dangerous. Can't they find a slightly less hypocritical logic?

LOL... Indeed.

Plus, they are going to charge them with NOT using distance meters. So that should include the Land Department ordering the police to charge the Taxi-Meters in Phuket, Samui, Pattaya and many many in Bangkok with also not using the distance meter.

I know of no taxi, outside of Bangkok, that uses the meter, and half the drivers in Bangkok refuse to use it too.

How many of the 'official' taxi drivers have the proper license, or even, any license?

Just another protectionist move is all it is. Thailand and Thais simply cannot and will not compete on a level playing field.

[Gunna]

Taxi union and mafia prevail.

lol Bangkok taxi fares are between the cheapest in the world and most of the drivers are nice

if the driver refuses to use the meter, just stop an other taxi

Uber should understand the situation and limit the presence in expensive places

2 or 2.5 us dollars from Pra Ram 9 to RCA come on

Far from the cheapest, but I wouldn't do it for double the fares.

I presume if a Uber taxi accepts a customer ( because he is nearby ), I assume he cannot refuse to take them, otherwise the driver is struck off Uber.

I find drivers refusing to take me the biggest problem in Bangkok, and one I haven't experienced much in other cities

All prices converted into US dollars on April 16, 2011

The left price reflects little to no waiting in traffic, the right price reflects high-traffic situations plus night or weekend surcharges.

$0.90 – $1.58 Delhi, India

$0.97 – $1.29 Mumbai, India

$1.01 – $1.68 Cairo, Egypt

$1.15 – $1.73 La Paz, Bolivia

$1.16 – $1.85 Manila, Philippines

$1.25 – $3.00 Panama City, Panama

$1.27 – $1.73 Kuta, Bali, Indonesia

$1.28 – $1.91 Fez, Morocco

$1.29 – $2.14 Mexico City, Mexico

$1.32 – $1.98 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

$1.43 – $1.91 Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

$1.53 – $3.06 Beijing, China

$1.53 – $1.91 Hanoi, Vietnam

$1.66 – $2.32 Bangkok, Thailand

$1.69 – $3.38 Kathmandu, Nepal

$1.84 – $2.76 Shanghai, China

$1.91 – $3.19 Marrakech, Morocco

$2.00 – $4.00 Quito, Ecuador

$2.06 – $2.94 Sofia, Bulgaria

$2.11 – $3.69 Montevideo, Uruguay

$2.13 – $3.19 Lima, Peru

[Diplomatico]

Not about the cost, but about the right to use the service-provider of your choice!!

I'm always amazed at the number of guys I meet here in Thailand that can afford to live here only because their livelihood was protected by trade unions and licensing requirements "back home" during their career.

Yet, the minute they have to reach into their own pocket, or give up an iota of their "choice", that all goes out the window as "protectionism". (Not specific about JOC, his was just a convenient post to use)

There's a reason you can't call a non-union plumber or electrician, or unlicensed taxi, (or unaccredited plastic surgeon) back home. Some of it is training, some of it is fees and taxes the legal ones pay to the government.

A hack license in New York City costs $600,000 last I checked. To make them compete with unlicensed guys in their $10,000 personal vehicles just isn't reasonable.

Renting a licensed taxi in BKK is a lot more expensive than bopping around in your own Toyota Corolla. To make licensed taxis compete with unlicensed private vehicles is about more than "your choice".

THIS. ^^^

Thailand is only one of several countries and/or States in the U.S. to ban Uber for exactly the reasons listed above...mainly, that they circumvent local and state licensing/regulation. Add to that the fact that the company is beginning to develop quite the reputation as being run by scumbags who utilize guerilla-style tactics against critics and competition.

If Uber wants to compete it should be on a level playing field with everyone else and I'm certainly no fan of Bangkok taxi drivers overall.

[MobileContent]

Not about the cost, but about the right to use the service-provider of your choice!!

I'm always amazed at the number of guys I meet here in Thailand that can afford to live here only because their livelihood was protected by trade unions and licensing requirements "back home" during their career.

Yet, the minute they have to reach into their own pocket, or give up an iota of their "choice", that all goes out the window as "protectionism". (Not specific about JOC, his was just a convenient post to use)

There's a reason you can't call a non-union plumber or electrician, or unlicensed taxi, (or unaccredited plastic surgeon) back home. Some of it is training, some of it is fees and taxes the legal ones pay to the government.

A hack license in New York City costs $600,000 last I checked. To make them compete with unlicensed guys in their $10,000 personal vehicles just isn't reasonable.

Renting a licensed taxi in BKK is a lot more expensive than bopping around in your own Toyota Corolla. To make licensed taxis compete with unlicensed private vehicles is about more than "your choice".

THIS. ^^^

Thailand is only one of several countries and/or States in the U.S. to ban Uber for exactly the reasons listed above...mainly, that they circumvent local and state licensing/regulation. Add to that the fact that the company is beginning to develop quite the reputation as being run by scumbags who utilize guerilla-style tactics against critics and competition.

If Uber wants to compete it should be on a level playing field with everyone else and I'm certainly no fan of Bangkok taxi drivers overall.

Well said. Grab a Taxi did the right thing and went in deals with many Taxi drivers and they operate 100% legal. I have used them many times and I love it.

Uber has no business model except taking private cars. They should have gone for Uber Taxi but they used a different business model so they get banged up now.

[Time Traveller]

what business is it of the government who I decide to ride in a car with?

Seriously f'd up taxi service is the reason Uber exists. Even some parts of the city no taxi will use a meter. Then when you try to get his taxi ID to make a complaint the driver will threaten you with violence.

The Land dept obviously are part of the taxi mafia monopoly scam.

Edited November 29, 2014 by Time Traveller

[Rooo]

Off topic post & reply deleted.

[whybother]

what business is it of the government who I decide to ride in a car with?

Seriously f'd up taxi service is the reason Uber exists. Even some parts of the city no taxi will use a meter. Then when you try to get his taxi ID to make a complaint the driver will threaten you with violence.

The Land dept obviously are part of the taxi mafia monopoly scam.

As in most countries, the law says that to be a taxi you have to be registered as a taxi.

[Expat Girl]

Arhhh, i love Uber, use them several times a week. Drivers typically speak English, in most cases you do not need to tell them were to go, never refuse, cars are very clean and you always get a receipt delivered to your email address. The existing taxi's are very poor, both in vehicle and the drivers, i would hazard to say in many cases dangerous.