American TikToker condemns Bangkok taxi driver for trying to rip him off
An American TikToker condemned a Thai taxi driver in Bangkok for trying to rip him off by refusing to use a meter and charging him 300 baht for a trip to Khao San Road.
The American, Jason Rupp, shared a video on TikTok on September 5. The video showed Rupp confronting a taxi driver in Bangkok who refused to use the meter and charged him 300 baht for a trip to Khao San Road. The video’s caption reads…
“He didn’t like the meter. I said see you on TikTok and he said OKAY! LOL. TH #bangkok #taxi #travelbangkok #travel #travelthailand”
In the video, Rupp is seen approaching an orange taxi and telling the driver in Thai that he wants to go to Khao San Road. The two then engaged in conversation:
Rupp: “I want to go to Khao San Road.”
Taxi driver: “Khao San, right?”
Rupp: “Yes, near Soi Ram Buttri. Are you available? Will you use the meter?”
Taxi driver: “300 hundred baht, OK?”
Rupp: “Meter?”
Taxi driver: “No, no meter.”
Rupp: “Ok, see you on TikTok.”
Taxi driver: “Okay”
The video clearly shows the Thai taxi driver’s face. From his reaction, the driver does not appear to be afraid that his actions will be exposed on social media, or that he might not understand Rupp’s final statement.
Thai netizens embarrassed
Thai netizens expressed their embarrassment in the comments section, many complained about Thai taxi drivers for their dishonest behaviour, and some shared their experiences of being scammed by Thai taxis, proving that the overcharging problem is not just for foreigners.
“It’s a shame… Thai taxi…”
“The government has done nothing about it.”
“The taxi driver charged me 1,500 baht for a trip from Mo Chit bus terminal in Chatuchak district of Bangkok to Suvarnabhumi Airport. I took a bus from Phuket to Bangkok and it was even cheaper than 1,000 baht.”
“The Land Transport Department just summons them, warns them and lets them go to rip off passengers again and again.”
“These taxi drivers cried for help when they had no passengers during the pandemic, but look at them now…”
“Taxi drivers are angry when we use the services of ride-hailing applications, but look what they have done.”
“I saw the taxi driver refuse to give change to a Japanese passenger. I am sick of it.”
“Well, no surprise. And so many tourists still say it’s OK because the price will be cheaper than their hometown anyway. ”
Only one offender found by the DLT
Some Thai netizens tagged government departments such as the Royal Thai Police and the Department of Land Transport (DLT) to investigate the video. Netizens wanted the departments to take the issue seriously and punish all taxi drivers who refuse to turn on the meter.
Reports of taxi drivers refusing to turn on meters have continued to make headlines, yet the DLT has done little to penalise these drivers.
In a previous case, in March, taxi drivers at the IMPACT Exhibition and Convention Centre were charging foreign passengers exorbitant fares of 4,000 to 5,000 baht to travel to the Sukhumvit area.
However, the DLT’s investigation resulted in only one taxi driver being found guilty of overcharging passengers.
The Thai authorities last year made it known they were concerned about the nation’s bad boy taxi drivers sullying the good name of Thailand yet did little to punish the offenders. Their words appear to be disingenuous and nothing more than empty rhetoric.
@jasonruppvlog He didn’t like the meter. I said see you on TikTok and he said OKAY! LOL. ✌️🇹🇭😅 #bangkok #taxi #travelbangkok #travel #travelthailand
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