Issue with taxi driver - advice please

Celui · 23-10-2012 3:46pm #1

Hi there. I’m looking for some opinions on a situation that occurred with a taxi driver this weekend. I had a friend travelling from Cork to Dublin to spend the weekend with me. As they had to work late on Friday night, they got the 1am bus and arrived in Dublin at 4am. As they are unfamiliar with Dublin I told them the address and to get in a taxi and to ring when on the way and I would meet them at the main gate (I was paying as they had no cash on them). My apartment in 5-6 minutes from the city centre so when they had not arrived 10 minutes later I rang them. They asked the taxi driver where they were and he said the Navan Road!! (Nowhere near my apartment and in the complete wrong direction) The taxi driver had taken them to the wrong location, turned around and came back.

When they pulled up outside my apartment the driver said €23! I refused to pay this amount for what should have been a 5-6 minute journey. The driver declared that there was more than one *name of my location* in Dublin and the passenger should have known were they were going. I responded that if there was more than one place called this in Dublin and the passenger was not familiar with Dublin (they had just gotten off a bus and had told the driver they weren’t from the area) that he should have clarified where they wanted to go. The driver never clarified, he just started driving when they said the location.

Long story short he said he would knock it down to 15 euro. As it was now 4.30am and we were both exhausted I agreed to pay this. I requested a receipt and told the driver I would be reporting the situation. This aggravated him and he shouted at both myself and my guest. He then informed me that conveniently his printer was out of ink. I then asked him to write down his full name and ID number (as I didn’t have a pen). He sighed, did this and handed it to me. None of the information he gave matched the information displayed on his dashboard. I handed back the paper and told him to give me the correct information. He sighed and then gave the correct information.

I’d like to point out that neither myself nor my guest had consumed any alcohol however I feel that due to the time of the morning the driver assumed we had and felt he could take advantage. Its people like this guy that give taxi drivers a bad name. I’m looking for some opinions on whether it’s worth reporting him or not? Is it likely that anything would be done by the regulator? Also I do not have a receipt to prove this journey as he was unable to provide one. Will this be an issue?

Any information would be much appreciated.

n97 mini · 23-10-2012 3:55pm

Do the printers not use thermal paper, like tills in a shop. i.e. there is no ink, the printer "burns" the characters onto the paper.

Also, where does this name occur twice, and is there another one up the Navan Rd?

Celui · 23-10-2012 4:03pm

I am not familair with the workings of a taxi printer. I just know that he said his was out of ink (something I belieive he said simply to get out of leaving evidence of the situation).

I was not aware that there was another place with the same name but I have since googled it and there are more than one. Surely in this situation the driver would ask which place they were going? Especially when they pick the fare up straight off a bus from Cork (ie: the passanger may not be familair with the city).

Mr Simpson · 23-10-2012 4:12pm

Make a complaint here.

jimmycrackcorm · 23-10-2012 4:20pm

They are thermal paper based and he should have had spare rolls. TBH I wouldn't have paid up without a receipt.

Andrew33 · 23-10-2012 4:22pm

n97 mini wrote: »

Do the printers not use thermal paper, like tills in a shop. i.e. there is no ink, the printer "burns" the characters onto the paper.

Also, where does this name occur twice, and is there another one up the Navan Rd?

Some are thermal printers, some are still ink ribbon like you'd find in an old typewriter. Moot point, driver should have a working printer regardless of type. Back to original point, its most likely a genuine mistake on behalf of the driver and boils down to poor communication. The driver did the right thing by by knocking the price down to 15. He would have been entitled to stand his ground and call the Gardai. Passenger should have given the correct address. IE: D15 not D24 for example. To add, as it was a Friday night into a Saturday morning, it was most definitely NOT in the drivers interest to take passenger to wrong address just to bump up the fare. Between 2am and 5am the best way to earn money is to get people in and OUT of your cab as quickly as possible.

Celui · 23-10-2012 4:24pm

Isnt it illegal not to pay a taxi fare? As illegal as it is to not provide a receipt I suppose..... Perhaps I should have handled it differently but at the time this is how I reacted.

My main question is if its worthwhile making a complaint and will the fact that I dont have a receipt be an issue?

Losty Dublin · 23-10-2012 4:24pm

n97 mini wrote: »

Do the printers not use thermal paper, like tills in a shop. i.e. there is no ink, the printer "burns" the characters onto the paper.

Also, where does this name occur twice, and is there another one up the Navan Rd?

Some of the older meters would use an ink ribbon so it's possible though it is rather unlikely to have happened. More likely is for the roll to run out. Some printers may be extremely awkward to fit in; I used to use an Auriga meter/printer and it would take ages to refill the printer!

To be fair on the address issue, a lot of newer estates and apartment bulidings have rather generic names which are repeated citywide and even worldwide. A mistake like that can easily be made but unless you ask for a specific place it is going to be word versus word; there is a onus on a passenger to give the driver the right destination as much as there is for him to get you there. Even some district and steeet names are repeated more than once; there are a couple of Granges, two Cherrywood's and and two Newcastles for example. Or the afternoon when a woman got into my car and asked for Baggot Street. When I asked which end she said the one with Tesco's and Burger King beside it to which I replied which ones.

OP, the complaint about the driver needs to be made by the passenger and not you. Though by all means they should report him if you felt it was a bad experience.

Losty Dublin · 23-10-2012 4:26pm

Celui wrote: »

Isnt it illegal not to pay a taxi fare? As illegal as it is to not provide a receipt I suppose..... Perhaps I should have handled it differently but at the time this is how I reacted.

My main question is if its worthwhile making a complaint and will the fact that I dont have a receipt be an issue?

Yes you do have to pay the fare as asked. A report can be made about not getting a receipt

Celui · 23-10-2012 4:28pm

Thanks Losty Dublin. As I was the person who paid I suppose I'm the one that has the biggest gripe about the situation but fair point as the issue was between the passanger and driver.
And very valuable lesson learned about being specific on the exact address. I still do however feel that the driver should have at least questioned which location (ie: D1,D2 etc) when the person told them they werent from Dublin and were just visiting.

desbrook · 23-10-2012 4:34pm

Andrew33 wrote: »

Some are thermal printers, some are still ink ribbon like you'd find in an old typewriter. Moot point, driver should have a working printer regardless of type. Back to original point, its most likely a genuine mistake on behalf of the driver and boils down to poor communication. The driver did the right thing by by knocking the price down to 15. He would have been entitled to stand his ground and call the Gardai. Passenger should have given the correct address. IE: D15 not D24 for example.

Have to agree . Firstly I have no axe to grind - I amn't involved in the Taxi business in any way . Also I don't know the actual rules in this situation and if there is a stipulation that the passenger must give the full address .
While I don't know the actual rules I know what's fair in my opinion . Note the phrase FULL ADDRESS . Did you give your guests the full address ? did they give it to the driver ? The answer to one or both of these questions is "no" . If the driver was given the full address the mistake would not have happened .
In short I'm saying you or your guests have to take AT LEAST 50% responsibility for this mix up morally . The driver imo came to a very fair settlement by knocking the fair down to 15euro . The airport to Swords can be that much ! You didnt even say thanks for the concession..and instead took up more of his time by demanding a reciept ?

Celui · 23-10-2012 4:37pm

desbrook wrote: »

You didnt even say thanks for the concession..and instead took up more of his time by demanding a reciept ?

Are you having an absolute laugh? I took up more of him time by asking for something that by law he is required to give to me????

riffmongous · 23-10-2012 4:42pm

desbrook wrote: »

Have to agree . Firstly I have no axe to grind - I amn't involved in the Taxi business in any way . Also I don't know the actual rules in this situation and if there is a stipulation that the passenger must give the full address .
While I don't know the actual rules I know what's fair in my opinion . Note the phrase FULL ADDRESS . Did you give your guests the full address ? did they give it to the driver ? The answer to one or both of these questions is "no" . If the driver was given the full address the mistake would not have happened .
In short I'm saying you or your guests have to take AT LEAST 50% responsibility for this mix up morally . The driver imo came to a very fair settlement by knocking the fair down to 15euro . The airport to Swords can be that much ! You didnt even say thanks for the concession..and instead took up more of his time by demanding a reciept ?

Would you thank someone who you thought was trying to scam you? Especially when he had just tried to provide the OP with false information. Also he's entitled to a receipt.

mickoneill30 · 23-10-2012 4:44pm

desbrook wrote: »

If the driver was given the full address the mistake would not have happened .

If the driver knew there were two places named the same he could have asked the passenger. The "mistake" wouldn't haven't happened then either. It seems kind of convenient that the driver assumed it was the far drive rather than the short drive. The OP says the passenger told the driver they weren't from the area. I'm not inolved with taxis either but I'd assume the driver should have enough cop on to ask the passenger if there was any doubt.
A 5 minute drive isn't that close. It'd be a few miles at 4AM in the morning.

mickoneill30 · 23-10-2012 4:47pm

desbrook wrote: »

.and instead took up more of his time by demanding a reciept ?

The driver also took up more of his precious time by writing down the incorrect name & ID when asked for it by the OP. Should the OP have thanked him for that too?

desbrook · 23-10-2012 4:52pm

Celui wrote: »

Are you having an absolute laugh? I took up more of him time by asking for something that by law he is required to give to me????

Ok ...granted he is required but the full fare was not being paid so the reciept would have been incorrect . Do you not agree with the other points I raised ?

Andrew33 · 23-10-2012 4:54pm

mickoneill30 wrote: »

If the driver knew there were two places named the same he could have asked the passenger. The "mistake" wouldn't haven't happened then either. It seems kind of convenient that the driver assumed it was the far drive rather than the short drive. The OP says the passenger told the driver they weren't from the area. I'm not inolved with taxis either but I'd assume the driver should have enough cop on to ask the passenger if there was any doubt.
A 5 minute drive isn't that close. It'd be a few miles at 4AM in the morning.

mickoneill30 wrote: »

The driver also took up more of his precious time by writing down the incorrect name & ID when asked for it by the OP. Should the OP have thanked him for that too?

The issue here is not the receipt, its being taken to the wrong address. Believe me, its usually the passengers incorrect information which leads to problems. Pax will tell you "take the next left" and when you do they say "ah sh1t I meant right". Ive had pax ask me to take them to the "new bridge", drive to docklands (Samuel Beckett bridge) and pax says "no, the one near Heuston station (James Joyce bridge). Seriously, are we meant to be mind readers????

mickoneill30 · 23-10-2012 4:57pm

Andrew33 wrote: »

The issue here is not the receipt, its being taken to the wrong address. Believe me, its usually the passengers incorrect information which leads to problems. Pax will tell you "take the next left" and when you do they say "ah sh1t I meant right". Ive had pax ask me to take them to the "new bridge", drive to docklands (Samuel Beckett bridge) and pax says "no, the one near Heuston station (James Joyce bridge). Seriously, are we meant to be mind readers????

Nope. Verbal communication in this case would have worked.
e.g. "Do you mean the one here or the one here?"

I know customers can be daft but in the case talked about in the OP the driver assumed the further of two possible destinations.

Celui · 23-10-2012 4:59pm

desbrook wrote: »

Ok ...granted he is required but the full fare was not being paid so the reciept would have been incorrect . Do you not agree with the other points I raised ?

Absolutly. You made some very valid points and as I said - valuable lesson learned. However I still no not feel the driver acted appropriately in light of the fact they knew the passanger did not know the area. If the driver knew there was more than one location of that name and that the passanger was not local, it would have been logical to confirm which one they meant and not automatically drive to the furthest away. And his behaviour with the reciept and false information was unacceptable

Andrew33 · 23-10-2012 5:05pm

mickoneill30 wrote: »

Nope. Verbal communication in this case would have worked.
e.g. "Do you mean the one here or the one here?"

I know customers can be daft but in the case talked about in the OP the driver assumed the further of two possible destinations.

I take your point Mick and agree but at 4am driver has possibly worked 12-14 hrs and its very very easy to make a mistake. I've done it, a lot of drivers have done it and its not about inexperience or trying to take the pi55. As I've said, best way to make money at that time of day is pax in and out as quick as possible. Driver could just have easily taken the closer option and still been in the wrong place (not on this job perhaps but in another situation). As a driver, the last thing I want in my car is a pi55ed off passenger. It's a stressful enough job without that sh1t.

desbrook · 23-10-2012 5:08pm

Celui wrote: »

Absolutly. You made some very valid points and as I said - valuable lesson learned. However I still no not feel the driver acted appropriately in light of the fact they knew the passanger did not know the area. If the driver knew there was more than one location of that name and that the passanger was not local, it would have been logical to confirm which one they meant and not automatically drive to the furthest away. And his behaviour with the reciept and false information was unacceptable

Just to clarify it was another poster that you said valuable lesson learnt to

. Thanks anyway . I was just making the point that both sides needed to take some responsiblility for the original error . The false information:eek: however is unacceptable and you should report that .

Losty Dublin · 23-10-2012 5:12pm

mickoneill30 wrote: »

If the driver knew there were two places named the same he could have asked the passenger. The "mistake" wouldn't haven't happened then either. It seems kind of convenient that the driver assumed it was the far drive rather than the short drive. The OP says the passenger told the driver they weren't from the area. I'm not inolved with taxis either but I'd assume the driver should have enough cop on to ask the passenger if there was any doubt.
A 5 minute drive isn't that close. It'd be a few miles at 4AM in the morning.

Mick, unless you know the name of the area the driver was told then it's pointless making assumptions. I can think of an estate off the Navan Road that sounds quite like the name of an estate in the inner city; there is a pub on the Navan Road which shares it's name with one in Drimnagh while there is a Baggot Road off of it as well. And that's before you consider apartment blocks etc around the area.

BostonB · 23-10-2012 5:14pm

Losty Dublin wrote: »

Mick, unless you know the name of the area the driver was told then it's pointless making assumptions. ....

Its pointless of the driver to make assumptions.

Unless its to his gain. By deliberately driving to the wrong one first.

Del2005 · 23-10-2012 5:21pm

Celui wrote: »

They asked the taxi driver where they were and he said the Navan Road!! (Nowhere near my apartment and in the complete wrong direction) The taxi driver had taken them to the wrong location, turned around and came back.

Did you or your friend have to tell them the correct location? The driver may have only known the one they where heading or more usually the other one may be the one everyone goes to. A mate of mine lives close to a place with the same name, whenever they get taxis they have to state not bigger one.

The receipt and false info would definitely warrant a complaint.

Where To · 23-10-2012 6:34pm

If he wasn't able to provide a receipt he shouldn't have been working. Report him.

Andrew33 · 23-10-2012 6:45pm

Where To wrote: »

If he wasn't able to provide a receipt he shouldn't have been working. Report him.

Very difficult (impossible) to make a complaint without receipt. Taxi Regulator (now part of the NTA) couldn't give a flyin fuk about complaints. I, as a driver tried to report another driver for over charging and TR was more interested in MY details rather than pursue the bogey driver.

foggy_lad · 23-10-2012 6:46pm

Taxi driver picks up passenger from cork at 4am and tries to rip them off by doing a tour of the county, nothing unusual about this apart from him actually giving his correct details the second time he was asked instead of just exploding in a torrent of verbal abuse at the op and passenger and then driving off at speed in search of another victim.

Losty Dublin · 23-10-2012 6:52pm

BostonB wrote: »

Its pointless of the driver to make assumptions.

Unless its to his gain. By deliberately driving to the wrong one first.

Yeah because he knew he was going to the wrong one first :rolleyes:

Where To · 23-10-2012 6:52pm

Andrew33 wrote: »

Very difficult (impossible) to make a complaint without receipt. Taxi Regulator (now part of the NTA) couldn't give a flyin fuk about complaints. I, as a driver tried to report another driver for over charging and TR was more interested in MY details rather than pursue the bogey driver.

It's actually very simple to make a complaint.

'If any of these details are incorrect, or the driver is unable or unwilling to provide a receipt, the driver may be operating illegally. Keep a note of the discrepancies and contact a member of An Garda Síochána or the Authority’s Consumer Information Line on 0761 064000'

doubletrouble? · 23-10-2012 6:56pm

Celui wrote: »

As they are unfamiliar with Dublin I told them the address and to get in a taxi and to ring when on the way and I would meet them at the main gate (I was paying as they had no cash on them).

The driver declared that there was more than one *name of my location* in Dublin and the passenger should have known were they were going.

i disagree with most of the comments here. first of all the passenger didn't know where they were going. it's the same with most people when they visit dublin for the first time.
second point here is the taxi driver knew straight away when the passenger gave the address that there was more than one place with the same name. it's like someone asking for the clarion hotel and the taxi taking them to the furthest one away. then turning around and saying but you didn't tell me which one it was even he knows there is more than one.
one or two posters pointed out about the longs hours and tiredness etc. well if thats the case no taxi driver should be driving as they are a danger to themselves and others around them.
now as for being overcharged.
it's the only service that a person can pay for in this country ,get overcharged by a mile and still not get a refund. maybe if people got refunds then the taxi business might be a better place, but as all taxi drivers say it's the law you have to pay whats on the meter.

oisindoyle · 24-10-2012 5:30pm

Celui wrote: »

Absolutly. You made some very valid points and as I said - valuable lesson learned. However I still no not feel the driver acted appropriately in light of the fact they knew the passanger did not know the area. If the driver knew there was more than one location of that name and that the passanger was not local, it would have been logical to confirm which one they meant and not automatically drive to the furthest away. And his behaviour with the reciept and false information was unacceptable

You should have in all fairness given your friend the EXACT address and a phone number .
The driver was decent enough to reduce the fare but unfortunately your attitude towards him wasn't appropriate .

To me it was a genune mistake (it happens )but because YOU didnt give your friend your EXACT address somehow the driver is in the wrong ??!!!

As usual we have the "usual suspects" on here saying drivers or this driver was only trying to rip the passenger off .But if a driver is given only part of the address he cannot be blamed.

Yes all drivers should by law have a working taxi receipt ,but this is not the issue in this case .

Unfortunately your behaviour left a lot to be desired .
Next time give your friend/s the exact address with your phone number to avoid confusion

Issue with taxi driver - advice please

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