Overcharged - what to do?

ElChe32

So here's my story,
Had an early flight new years day, stayed up at my sisters place for the night. She organized a taxi for me with a company she uses regularly and always gets a flat fee to the airport of 20€. She asked the dispatcher for the fee and was told it was her usual 20€ fee for the 8km drive to the airport.

So 5:30am taxi arrives, I put my bags in the car with the taxi man's help I say "airport please, flat rate" he just looks at me says nothing and we drive off. Get to the airport he turns and says 35€, I told him about what was agreed with dispatcher..he doesnt say anything but give me 15 quid back. I'm in a rush so I don't argue too much.

I know I should have stood my ground but was in a hurry. Gave the company a call and was told they'd "get back to me"..2 days later no reply from them.
Thoughts?

ElChe32

Literally as I posted this the company called and offered the refund..it's like they were in my braaaaain. Anyway...ignore above post!

Losty Dublin

ElChe32 wrote: »

So here's my story,
Had an early flight new years day, stayed up at my sisters place for the night. She organized a taxi for me with a company she uses regularly and always gets a flat fee to the airport of 20€. She asked the dispatcher for the fee and was told it was her usual 20€ fee for the 8km drive to the airport.

So 5:30am taxi arrives, I put my bags in the car with the taxi man's help I say "airport please, flat rate" he just looks at me says nothing and we drive off. Get to the airport he turns and says 35€, I told him about what was agreed with dispatcher..he doesnt say anything but give me 15 quid back. I'm in a rush so I don't argue too much.

I know I should have stood my ground but was in a hurry. Gave the company a call and was told they'd "get back to me"..2 days later no reply from them.
Thoughts?

Flat fares must be agreed beforehand in writing. In the case of taxis, a waiver needs to be signed by passenger and driver alike; for hackneys the fare simply has to be agreed before departure with a recepit issued at the end of the trip. But 35 for 8 KM? Sounds totally excessive unless you got a limo sent out to you :eek:

Now for the tricky bit. While cab companies regularly advertise fixed fares and discounted rates the driver actually isn't bound by taxi laws to honour them. Granted, common sense suggests that they honour these promotional fares if their radio base is promoting such a fare but as it's the driver who provides the service and not the base, it's up to them to apply it.

You won't get much ground here in complaining to the Taxi Regulator (Now the NTA) as you haven't been overcharged the metered fare as such. While you will say their was a flat fare offered you don't proof of same from the driver (This is where the waiver comes in) so an query on this boils down to your word, the base and the driver. Take it up with the base again and maybe ask to speak to somebody beyond the switchboard. On the surface, it sounds as if you hired a hackney so you may get somewhere on this if you are pleasant to them

Edit, just seen your good news

ElChe32

Aye they were actually very professional and the lady was nice on the phone, all in all a great bunch of lads.

bikeman1

Ive had a similar experience in the past. Rang my excellent local cab company for the €14 flat fare tothe airport. Got in the taxi and quickly dropped to the airport. I noticed he had the meter on.

Anyway we got to the airport he goes €19, I said, sorry but I had a pre arranged flat fare of €14. He said he wasnt told and there was nothing he could do. I said I wasnt told I had to pay the metered fare by the cab company.

I had the €14 ready, I opened the door, gave him the €14 and said you can sort it out with your cab company. Thank you and goodbye.

Yourwellcum

bikeman1 wrote: »

Ive had a similar experience in the past. Rang my excellent local cab company for the €14 flat fare tothe airport. Got in the taxi and quickly dropped to the airport. I noticed he had the meter on.

Anyway we got to the airport he goes €19, I said, sorry but I had a pre arranged flat fare of €14. He said he wasnt told and there was nothing he could do. I said I wasnt told I had to pay the metered fare by the cab company.

I had the €14 ready, I opened the door, gave him the €14 and said you can sort it out with your cab company. Thank you and goodbye.

While common sense should always prevail in these cases as in the op. Your contract is with the driver, not the dispatch company. The driver is legally entitled to the metered fare. If the journey has been completed then he has fulfilled his side of the deal.

foggy_lad

Yourwellcum wrote: »

While common sense should always prevail in these cases as in the op. Your contract is with the driver, not the dispatch company. The driver is legally entitled to the metered fare. If the journey has been completed then he has fulfilled his side of the deal.

If you ring a company and ask for a hackney and agree the price beforehand but a taxi is dispatched and arrives with the meter running where do you stand?

once you ring the company your contract is with them and not the driver, you have asked/contracted the company to provide you a service and it is up to them how or who they get to provide that service.

Yourwellcum

foggy_lad wrote: »

If you ring a company and ask for a hackney and agree the price beforehand but a taxi is dispatched and arrives with the meter running where do you stand?

once you ring the company your contract is with them and not the driver, you have asked/contracted the company to provide you a service and it is up to them how or who they get to provide that service.

If you asked for a hackney and a taxi was sent, you politely inform the driver of the situation and refuse to accept it. Its that simple, his problem is with the company, not you.

You dont pay the company( except in the case of account customers, then the situation is different). You have asked the company to send a taxi. They have done this,thats all they do. In most cases where there is an agreed fare with the company, the drivers have agreed to pass on these offers and there is no problem.Sometimes there is a communication issue which can easily be resolved. Then you will always have the rare case of a driver who just wont play ball at all. These guys are breaking a deal made with the dispatch company. However they have made no such agreement with you and therefore can force you to pay the metered fare.

The only way to 100% guarantee this never happens is to check with the driver at the start of the journey that all agreed deals are going to honoured.

bikeman1

I would say there are a few drivers who just try it on and play the - I was never told about your flat fare - card. There are a lot of people who would not begrudge them a few extra quid.

I on the othet hand will only pay a taxi driver exactly what is due and thats all. I dont get tipped for merely doing my job. Same with a taxi. Especially since most are either grumpy, dont know where they are going or keep moaning about everything and anything! However there are a few good guys in the game.

schemingbohemia

bikeman1 wrote: »

I would say there are a few drivers who just try it on and play the - I was never told about your flat fare - card. There are a lot of people who would not begrudge them a few extra quid.

I on the othet hand will only pay a taxi driver exactly what is due and thats all. I dont get tipped for merely doing my job. Same with a taxi. Especially since most are either grumpy, dont know where they are going or keep moaning about everything and anything! However there are a few good guys in the game.

But you paid what you thought was due not what the taxi driver (having started his meter) thought what was due. I think in cases like yours it's only fair to mention again that you'd agreed with the base a flat fare. As yourwellcum states, it's a communication issue.

oisindoyle

bikeman1 wrote: »

Ive had a similar experience in the past. Rang my excellent local cab company for the €14 flat fare tothe airport. Got in the taxi and quickly dropped to the airport. I noticed he had the meter on. .

You noticed he had the meter on,which he is has to do by law.

bikeman1 wrote: »

Anyway we got to the airport he goes €19, I said, sorry but I had a pre arranged flat fare of €14. He said he wasnt told and there was nothing he could do. I said I wasnt told I had to pay the metered fare by the cab company. .

You are obliged by LAW to pay whats on the meter .He should have called the Gards are you refused to pay the metered fare

bikeman1 wrote: »

I had the €14 ready, I opened the door, gave him the €14 and said you can sort it out with your cab company. Thank you and goodbye.

You ran away without paying the correct fare and the driver should have called the Gards.
If you argeed a "fixed fare" you must before hand sign a waiver form ,which you didnt so again YOU were in the wrong.

oisindoyle

bikeman1 wrote: »

I would say there are a few drivers who just try it on and play the - I was never told about your flat fare - card. There are a lot of people who would not begrudge them a few extra quid..

IF there was a fixed fare you should have sign the waiver from before hand .
You also say " a lot of people would not begrudge them a few extra quid .But YOU did ,YOU refused him his entitled legal fare,

bikeman1 wrote: »

I on the othet hand will only pay a taxi driver exactly what is due and thats all..

But you didnt ,,The driver was due 19€ and YOU refused to pay it ,YOU broke the law.

.

bikeman1 wrote: »

Especially since most are either grumpy, dont know where they are going or keep moaning about everything and anything! However there are a few good guys in the game.

Well by the looks of things your driver was far from grumpy knew where he was going and YOU stole from him.The only one moaning is YOU .

bikeman1

The driver I had that morning was not grumpy, he was normal enough. I told him to call the cab company and sort it out there.

I had done that journey at that fare 4 times before and never had an issue and didnt have to say it to the driver when I got in. I now explicitly say it when I get in. The same company has flat fares everywhere not just the airport so it is common that you pay the flat fare. I even carry the flyer withtheir advertised fares with me now just in case.

Oisin in all the taxis I have taken for a flat fare or a redreduced fare such as 82020 cabs I have never once signed a waiver sheet!!

Can you imagine the guards coming to a poor taxi driver who didnt get his fare because of a communication breakdown between him and the company HE pays money to, to get such work!!

Losty Dublin

bikeman1 wrote: »

The driver I had that morning was not grumpy, he was normal enough. I told him to call the cab company and sort it out there.

I had done that journey at that fare 4 times before and never had an issue and didnt have to say it to the driver when I got in. I now explicitly say it when I get in. The same company has flat fares everywhere not just the airport so it is common that you pay the flat fare. I even carry the flyer withtheir advertised fares with me now just in case.

Oisin in all the taxis I have taken for a flat fare or a redreduced fare such as 82020 cabs I have never once signed a waiver sheet!!

Can you imagine the guards coming to a poor taxi driver who didnt get his fare because of a communication breakdown between him and the company HE pays money to, to get such work!!

Bikeman, people are generally having the fixed fare honoured and there aren't any reasons for disagreement almost all the time. Where it becomes messy is in the few cases when either party doesn't stick to it, regardless of who is in the right or wrong. I can assure you of something here; when a Garda is called for the non payment of a fare and he sees a meter saying €19, €19 is what he will tell you to pay the driver. Unless you have a waiver or some meaningful proof (A flyer, say) to justify the discounted fare then you are stuck with it. I am sure than you would be honest enough to pay a fixed fare if it came to more than what was on the meter but dozens out there wouldn't be as decent as you

A driver is entitled to discount the metered fare; this is how it works for a 20% fare.