Question Are You Tired of the Taxi Ripoff?

[living4experiences]

I've just arrived in Cozumel and have been ripped off four times by taxi drivers! I thought I did enough due diligence to be informed about what I should be paying from point A to point B, but the taxi Mafia has little care about adhering to their rules. The first three drivers refused to provide me the rate card. The fare should have been 260 pesos from Casa Mexicana to Iberostar. The first two drivers quoted 350 pesos to which I countered with the correct fare. The price was lowered to 300 pesos. Once I mentioned I wanted to see the rate card, they all of a sudden didn't understand what I was talking about. I walked away and headed down the road on foot to catch another taxi. Driver number three said 300 pesos and also refused to provide the rate card. Now I was running out of time to get to my destination, so I paid the $300 pesos.

Coming back from iberostar, with no option, I was forced to pay the $300 pesos from Iberostar to Casa Mexicana. Once we arrived, I waited till my stuff was out of the van and then I asked the driver for his rate card, to which he did not know what I was talking about. I then typed the question into Google Translate and showed it to him. He looked dumbfounded and wouldn't answer, even seeing the question in his own language. I then went to the front of the van and took a picture of his license plate. He conveniently found a rate card. This rate card was in USD for cruise ship passengers only, for transportation from the International and Punta Langosta Piers. It occurred to me now that the drivers are charging regular tourists the cruise ship passenger rates all the time. This was not a zone rate card and it was not in Spanish or Pesos. When I asked to take a photo of the rate card, he refused. Now I'm angry and telling him that by law he needs to show it to me. He finally let me get a photo, but he didn't make it easy and wouldn't let me touch it. He says that Casa Mexicana is at Punta Langosta Pier. So somehow that means I'm a cruise ship passenger?

I would be interested to know what the community here does in these situations in Cozumel. Besides taking a picture of the license plate, what other photos should one gather in the event of filing a formal complaint? I'm not saying I would take time from my vacation to do so, but this might be enough of an intimidation to the driver that I'm not a customer that will be taken advantage of.

I'm thinking that Maybe I should just get in the cab, knowing the price, and pay it at the destination. If he has a problem with it, then that would be another issue.

 

[34109411]

So what exactly is your experience that you reference? Driver get mad and knife the passenger? Run him over?

Maybe not that much, a heated argument ? At one point the taxi driver will call the police and everyone will chill out and take different directions. Be the one arguing with the police you will end up in jail for the night.


Before going there and ruin your vacation i suggest to ask politely question to the driver. If he doesn't cooperate to show you this or that or to confirm a price just walk away. Like another suggested you could take info about the driver and ask him to do taxi ride for you during your holidays this work great.


Cheers.

 

[ggunn]

what you saying in the last part is really good.

Is thsi what you were referring to?
"One thing I will say, If you find a taxi driver you like get their name/number. Call them ahead of time if you can. It's very helpful to have a good relationship with a driver you trust."

Five stars. We have been using the same taxi grande driver for the past six years or so to cart our large-ish group around the island. We contact him a couple of weeks before we head down.

 

[ggunn]

truth
and most tourists never give a moments thought to how their spending habits affect the locals in the area.
well said.

Sorry, but I do not consider it to be my responsibility to get into arguments with Cozumel taxi drivers to try to get them to change their behavior. So sue me.

The "spending habits" of tourists on the island is driven by the pricing set by the merchants; if it's too much for me, I walk away.

 

[rick00001967]

Sorry, but I do not consider it to be my responsibility to get into arguments with Cozumel taxi drivers to try to get them to change their behavior. So sue me.

no reason to argue. pay what is fair. pay the posted rate.

perhaps more people need to take responsibility for how their actions affect others. the world might be a better place for everyone. even people in texas. lol

 

[Lorenzoid]

Sorry, but I do not consider it to be my responsibility to get into arguments with Cozumel taxi drivers to try to get them to change their behavior. So sue me.

Just to be clear, by doing what I can to follow the authorized rates, it's not my intent to try to change the behavior of taxi drivers or, as someone else put it, to "enforce" the rules. I have to believe that if I am patient and polite (no "arguments") then I will find another taxi driver who will comply with the authorized rates on the card. I don't have to participate in the scam. Maybe I'm naive?

 

[ReefHound]

Maybe not that much, a heated argument ? At one point the taxi driver will call the police and everyone will chill out and take different directions. Be the one arguing with the police you will end up in jail for the night.


Before going there and ruin your vacation i suggest to ask politely question to the driver. If he doesn't cooperate to show you this or that or to confirm a price just walk away. Like another suggested you could take info about the driver and ask him to do taxi ride for you during your holidays this work great.


Cheers.

Even more reason to have video, to show police that you are the one being calm and it's the driver acting aggressive, yelling and threatening. Assuming that is the case.

The above assumes the situation has already deteriorated. Of course, you should try to peacefully resolve issues and be polite at all times. And best to just walk away. But there might be situations where you cannot walk away. Like what if the driver told you a price before you got in then at the destination demanded another price?

But taking a pic of a car before you get in is good safety protocol. Not to mention helps if you forget something in the car. (Unless it is the phone you took the pic with.) Of course, there are different ways of doing this. A quick snap of the taxi number or plate is different from being all dramatic about it while saying this is going on the internet. And situations vary. Getting out at a remote destination late at night might call for a much more restrained response than getting out in centro on a busy afternoon.

 

[ggunn]

no reason to argue. pay what is fair. pay the posted rate.

perhaps more people need to take responsibility for how their actions affect others. the world might be a better place for everyone. even people in texas. lol

I dunno; Texas may be a lost cause.

 

[ggunn]

Even more reason to have video, to show police that you are the one being calm and it's the driver acting aggressive, yelling and threatening. Assuming that is the case.

If things have gotten to that point I have already screwed up in a couple of ways. There is no way I I am going to push the issue that far no matter how "outrageous" the fare is. We must choose our battles wisely, and I do not choose that one; the most I will do if polite discourse isn't sufficient to resolve the situation is to cheerfully make it clear that it's the last time I will ever get in his cab and then walk away. Fool me once, etc.

Someone else posted something about the police being called. Seriously? Will the Cozumel police actually respond to a fare dispute between a cab driver and a tourist? If so, they must be really bored.

I guess my response to the question posted in the thread title would be, "No, not really."

 

[brsnow]

Locals in the USA in certain areas cannot get picked up by taxis or Ubers. Not really specific to Cozumel. I don’t recall ever seeing a rate card posted in the taxi, where in the car are they posted?

 

[ggunn]

Locals in the USA in certain areas cannot get picked up by taxis or Ubers. Not really specific to Cozumel. I don’t recall ever seeing a rate card posted in the taxi, where in the car are they posted?

They aren't posted in the cabs but the taxista is supposed to have one with him to show you if you ask. Getting him to show it to you may be another thing entirely, though.