Fare play: Pattaya teens make amends after ride mix-up

A group of teenagers in Pattaya apologised and compensated a ride-hailing driver after a misunderstanding led to an unpaid fare. The incident came to light when a 25 year old driver for a popular ride-hailing app, Sirawat shared his experience on social media. Sirawat claimed that five teenagers in Pattaya failed to pay him a 70-baht fare.

The event occurred yesterday, August 22, when Sirawat picked up the group from a house near Wat Thamsamakkee and dropped them off in front of a hotel on Soi Bongkot in South Pattaya. The journey covered approximately 2.5 kilometres. According to Sirawat’s Facebook post, the teenagers, consisting of three males and two females, did not pay him and left him waiting for over an hour before disappearing.

“I waited for more than an hour, but they never returned to pay the fare as Sirawat shared on social media, aiming to warn others in the same profession.”

The Chief of Bang Lamung Police Station, Police Colonel Navin Sinthurat, today ordered an investigation into the matter. The police swiftly located the teenagers and brought them in for questioning.

They were identified as 21 year old Thidarat, her boyfriend 24 year old, Wutichot, and three younger siblings aged 12, 13, and 16. Their surnames were withheld by the police to protect their privacy.

According to the police, Thidarat stated that her boyfriend had booked the ride to take them to a nearby restaurant in Soi Bongkot. Upon arrival, she informed the driver that they were waiting for her stepfather, a foreigner, to exchange dollars into Thai baht and deposit it into her account before they could pay the fare.

“I told the driver to leave his account number so we could transfer the money later but he chose to wait.”

Thidarat mentioned that she eventually went to her mother’s restaurant to get the money but when she returned, the driver had already left.

Thidarat apologised to the driver, assuring him that avoiding payment was never their intention. She later contacted Sirawat via phone to clarify the situation and offered to pay the 70-baht fare. The driver accepted the apology and expressed gratitude to the police for their assistance, reported the Pattaya News.