Sign In or Sign Up To Be A Member
Search Hanoi: for Anything Places / Things Jobs Events Groups Lists Questions Newsletters Classifieds
I've noticed two "strategies" used by taxi drivers:
The fairly obvious one is when they take a long, roundabout route to inflate the meter.
The one that happened to me recently shocked me with its blatantness. The bill was about 80k, I gave him 100. He showed me his wallet - wow, no change! My gf and I looked for smaller bills, but no deal. It was late and nothing was open to get change, so after awhile we just got frustrated and said "Ok, whatever, keep it," and left.
So I know the preventive tip of making sure you call a reputable company - though they've ripped us off too. So, what can you do, basically, once you've been ripped off?
answered about 13 months ago by guadalquivir
Use MaiLinh Taxi (04 8222666). If that happens you can write down the taxi number (on the front of the taxi) and report the problem. You can also get a receipt from him for the record. If he refuses to issue it, he's sure to be fired if you report him.
answered about 13 months ago by grubby
The "sorry, no change" routine is annoying, isn't it? Though I have to say it's usually for 2,000 dong rather than 20 with me. As far as I can tell there are only three reputable taxi companies in Hanoi: Hanoi Taxi, Mai Linh, and Van Xuan. The first of these is a bit expensive, so I usually use Van Xuan, and I'm pretty happy with them overall. There's also a third "strategy" that you've missed : "broken meter" - some private taxis and smaller companies have meters that use some exponential function to calculate the fare: it starts off fairly normal, but then starts ascending in leaps and bounds. I once had a 50,000 Dong fare for a few km before I noticed the meter and leapt out. To answer your question, though: do what you would do anywhere else - take the driver's name or car number and complain to the company. Outside of the 3 companies I've mentioned you're probably not going to get much traction, though.
answered about 13 months ago by de2facon
As one can tell from the foregoing answers, there is no sure-fire way to avoid taxi issues. Indeed, cabbies are cabbies the world over. But the drivers in Ha Noi are generally quite reliable and honest in their dealings with passengers. Luckily, I've had only roundabout experience which happend while traveling from Ho Tay to the post office near to Hoan Kiem. Outside of that, things have been smooth. I've found that even if there is a meter, it's best to try to agree on a general amount before boarding. Expecting a possible "increase" in the fare, I'll mentally build in a bit extra to the price just in case. A few words of Vietnamese seem to go a long way in assuring a stable price, but there is no guarantee. My experience is that most of the cabs working the areas near the major hotels are very reputable. But again, there is no guarantee...
answered about 13 months ago by bobthebob01
yes, i agree, usually taking Hanoi Taxi or CP taxi seem more expensive on the starting fare but actually end up most of time cheaper for me, as the small taxi like the matiz one are starting very cheap but increase extremely fast. the good thing is too always have small change or keep small change when going out just for the taxi. the other thing is too be more patient than they are. don't forget "time" as no value for vietnamese. So once i told the driver who was doing the "no change" trick that i did not care and that i will wait until he gets the change. after a minute he actually gave up when he saw me squatting and lighting up a cigarette. In Rome do as the romans!!!!
answered about 13 months ago by KandA
you can add Hanoitourist taxi to the previous list of companies we have had no problems with.
answered about 13 months ago by Symmo_24
For some of the prices you are talking it sounds as though you may have got into a 'parachute taxi.' Not sure if you have noticed but some of them simply have a magnet with a fake taxi name on the side of their car and a dodgy meter. Avoid them at all costs or if its late, dont leave without pre-arranging a price.
answered about 13 months ago by kengel
Usually things like that usually happen to me on the weekends, after visiting a popular spot (water puppets, Mausoleum,...) or late at night. In theses case I now take only 'reputable' taxis (ML, CP, Hanoi) or a motorbike. Three strategies: - If they don't have change: just wait. Although it seems that you are going to lose the wait-out, usually the guys give in after 2 minutes and get change. - If they overcharge (during the ride): tell them that their taximeter is "broken" and either renegotiate a full price then without taximeter or get out. - If they overcharge and you did not realize until the end of the ride: Offer them the price you usually pay plus a bit on top "for their troubles" and tell them that this is the usual price. Then wait if they agree (see above). Some of the guys get apparently very angry and show you how many billions you owe them on the taximeter. However, they know themselves best that they overcharge big time (and that they could overcharge other people of they would only get you out of their taxi). Stay calm. If they don't agree after a good old wait-out, well, you need to give them what the taximeter says, before they get really very very angry :-(.
answered about 12 months ago by MissCat
Simply pay the taxi driver the right amount (if you know how much it is, of course) and get out of the taxi. The driver will be probably shouting and screaming after you but just ignore it and walk away. That's what I've done when some taxis have been trying to overcharge me on a familiar route.
answered about 12 months ago by Stosskraft
First off don't ever just let them get away with taking your money like that, first it makes it worse for us living here as you give them incentive to rip off people and second it makes us easy targets with the other Vietnamese. Most Vietnamese guys will keep there change in their front pocket a good habit everyone should get into. If you notice every time you open your wallet/purse everyone will eye up what amount of cash you have. I always keep small change in my front pocket and pull this out when ever you use a exom or taxi. To avoidd being ripped off by taxi's you can do the following: Use your phone and take a photo of the plaque and drivers information or write it down. I always sit in the front seat when alone. Have you noticed how they always play with the radio or some controls when you get in ?? This is how they change the meter while your sitting there, increasing the speed or shorting the distance between fare changes. Second if you use a specific route set the price before you go, and take that money out show it to them and put in back in your pocket. It is also helpful to learn some Vietnamese phases and threaten to get the police involved, even if it is a small amount...don't be a victim....if the police get involved it will cost the drives several weeks pay and they know this. If your going far have them set the trip odometer in front of you and you can check it with the meter when you get to your destination. Also the person who suggest walking away is correct, they will try to save face by yelling at you but nothing else will occur. Make sure to get the information of the car and driver and REPORT them...its the only way they will learn not to try to steal from everyone. Recently Vietnamese police in HCMC found that 90 percent of all taxi meters are BS, I am sure it is the same up here. Sorry can't find the link to that story it was on http://www.thanhniennews.com/ somewhere. (search taxi HCMC)
answered about 12 months ago by Angel
I only use xe oms now :) Fed up with going the long route and being late everywhere!! :)
answered about 12 months ago by dangchi
If you use taxi usually, why don't you book the monthly taxi. When you use it, they will give you a list of tickets and when you pay taxi meter, they will write the amount on it. That's something my old company to use it.
answered about 11 months ago by DaveM
Learn some Vietnamese. Works wonders on keeping prices down and avoiding trickery in general.
answered about 10 months ago by Raould
In general, prevention is better than cure. Everyone should know that if they cannot negotiate a price in advance in Vietnamese, they should stay away from all cabs in main tourist areas except for the main reputable companies like Hanoi Taxi, CP, Mai Linh, Van Xuan. You won't get ripped off every time, but you will get ripped off a lot otherwise. If you do end up in a cab and you don't have exact change, you're at a disadvantage. Your best bet is to just pay and call it the "unprepared tax." Much as it may pain you, you can't teach all cab drivers in Vietnam a lesson by making a stink. They generally have more time to wait than you do. And escalating it into an actual conflict is a horrendously bad idea. I got into a conflict with a cab driver one time. He was running a cab with a souped up meter, and I got in by my office for the ride home, a trip I took every single day. The fare, as I well knew, was 30-32,000 dong. We reached my apartment and his meter read over 100,000. He quoted the meter price, and I laughed and told him not to joke with me. I gave him 30,000. He said I owed the whole 100+ and I answered, "well, then let me see your driving/cab license." Of course he didn't have one, so I said "fine, don't show me. I'm leaving 30,000 on the seat, and if you want the rest, call the police and have them come and we'll straighten it all out." Then I got out. He got really, really angry, red face, screaming obscenities. Fortunately there are security guards at my building so I told them the situation, asked them to call the police, and said if the driver was still there when the police arrived, I would be happy to come down and continue the discussion. Then I went in. The police did not, in fact, come. And that cab driver sat in front of my building screaming for a half hour. No skin off my nose, in the end, but that was a lot of psychic energy to expend and I resolved to keep an eye on the meter and get out if I saw a speedy one again.
answered about 10 months ago by dior2k5
Hanoi-535353/CP-262626/Hanoitourist-565656 actually under the same company-same operation.. they can be trusted... you could notice that taxis from small companies have their meter plastic box removed, with no lock and the meter looks messed up... they're most probably the ripping off one... time strategy seems to work also, if youu're in no hurry, stay in the taxi, wait until the driver gives up...
answered about 5 months ago by TJEP
The ultimate answer is get a motorcycle or maybe just a bicycle :-) I startet out with a bicycle after around 3 months of endless taxi annoyances. Shortly after I decided to make the jump to a motorcycle. I remember how incredibly happy I was to be free of all that kind of hassle and aggrevation. Also, with a motorcycle, you're no longer regarded a blueeyed tourist, as such ... :-)
answered about 5 months ago by Stosskraft
here is a strong case for taxi's: (quoted from another site) ...in this rapidly developing country (sic), traffic controls are - like the Pirate's Code in Pirates of the Caribbean - more what you'd call guidelines than actual rules. "It happened very quickly," Moxham recalls. "A young woman on her motorbike was knocked from behind. She dropped her bike, fell off, hit her head on the road and died. Just like that." She shakes her head. "Dead." During the previous 18 months, Moxham says, she'd seen traffic in this capital soar, and along with it, a mounting carnage. Government estimates put the death rate at 30 a day - like losing a 737 planeload of passengers every two weeks. "We were seeing dead bodies everywhere," she says. "The traffic here is so awful and it has become exponentially worse within less than a year." Since then, officials report a drop of 20 to 30 percent in traumatic head injuries and deaths from motorbike accidents, making it one of the world's most successful public-health initiatives in years. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- To cross a street in Hanoi requires an act of faith. With over 60 percent of the nation under age 30, a noticeable contingent of riders is fueled by youthful impatience and testosterone. They text while driving, whip by pedestrians within a heart-attack's breadth, and weave in and out of traffic. Pedestrians learn to cross streets steadily and slowly, while the honking flocks of motorbikes approach, part, fly around them, regroup and carry on. The chaotic courtesy impressed Seymour Papert, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor and expert in artificial intelligence. Papert was at a conference in Hanoi in 2006. On the last day, walking from his hotel to the meeting, he was talking to a colleague about creating a mathematical model of Hanoi's traffic when he was hit in the chest by a motorbike. After weeks in a coma, he was airlifted back to Massachusetts. Several surgeries and months of rehabilitation later, he now lives in Maine, severely debilitated. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- As Pennsylvania's ardent anti-helmet groups have maintained, the protection helmets provide is no guarantee of safety in all circumstances. For example, in Hanoi two weeks ago, Moxham spent the afternoon at the bedside of her friend, Hania Galan. Galan, a young Canadian artist and former teacher at the U.N. Independent School, was found by the side of the road on June 9, her motorbike by her side. Her friends have heard that a motorbike cut her off and she swerved into a concrete barrier. "She's been in a coma," Moxham said. "Someone found her and dropped her off at the hospital. She was wearing a helmet." An e-mail circulated among Galan's friends last week reported that she opened her eyes in response to her name. Her family was joining her, and there were plans to have her flown back to Canada as soon as possible. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- http://www.philly.com/inquirer/front_page/20080628_Vietnam_shows_effect_of_motorcycle_helmets.html
answered about 5 months ago by April1
tell you what guys, I was totally ripped off last night too. He was taking me by shortcut, which is a good thing (plus Im local he cant cheat on me) But couldnt take my eyes off the meter clock and see how fast it could go. I complained and he said It's like that.. blah blah. From Trang Tien St to Softel Plaza cost me 80K VND, can you believe that. And the 'no change' drama repeats too. What a jerk! I got off and toke another taxi from Hanoi Tourist or st, it was expensive too. Im renting a bike! No more taxi problems. But from all of my experience, Mai Linh Taxi is good and reliable, but the price is a litter higher than others. I always use 2666666, it's super cheap! I never have any problem with them.
answered about 5 months ago by db88
Does anyone have information about a monthly bill for taxi service?
You can call CP taxi and request a book of taxi coupons. You can also use these with Hanoi Taxi and CP taxi and you never have to look for change. Also if you have a dispute with the drive (and I can't say I have had trouble with these 2 in the last 6 months) you can call and complain to the head office and sometimes get your money back..sometimes...but if you want to use taxi's regularly this is the best way I think.
answered about 5 months ago by jestert79
Wow, this question is still rockin' many months later. I've learned how much it should cost from the Old Quarter to my place, and I always try the reputable taxis first. If I can't find one I use any ol' taxi but negotiate with the guy before I get in. If he wants more than my normal price, I just start walking away and 90% of the time they change their minds. I once had a guy agree on a price and then after we drove for 5 mins quickly said a price 10k higher and "OK!" We said no and started telling him to stop until he relented, but it's really annoying. I've also befriended a local driver who I can call or text. No negotiation, but sometimes he's asleep or unavailable, and he sends a friend. In amusing news, I had friends take a random taxi with a meter that went too fast. They just paid how much it should be, and the driver immediately got really aggressive and eventually shoved the girl, which made her boyfriend lose it and crack an umbrella over the driver's head. The driver spent a few hours outside the restaurant they went to, but they waited until he left.
answered about 5 months ago by 4inhanoi
In answer to db88: Mai Linh taxi gives out taxi cards with a monthly bill. You just have to sign on the receipt (they will imprint your card info on the receipt) and then they will bring over the monthly bill. If you use it over a certain volume (but I forgot the treshold), they will give you discount over the total. You can use it in any Mai Linh taxi, not just in Hanoi, but also in HCMC or Danang, or whatever. I have never had any problem with that and it means that you never have to worry about change or about being ripped off. Not sure if there are any other taxi companies who use such a card system. It's official name is MCC (Mailinh customer club).
answered about 5 months ago by maihanoi
Hmm... Lemme jump onto the bandwagon: Vietnamese does not help all the time-- One year ago, I wanted to take a cab from Hoan Kiem lake to Van Mieu, my friend and I hopped into one of those cute little cabs, and I told him where we wanted to go. Idiot went round Hoan Kiem district three times-- he couldn't be clueless about where it was, given that he was going round and round the same places three times. He must really think we're dumb or blind. And though I repeatedly told him the destination, he just nodded and pretended that he was indeed bringing us to our destination in the shortest way possible. It took superhuman effort for me not to start cursing at him. Total bill? 75k. To top things off, the clown then decided to ask for 8USD for the price, instead of VND. I declined, whipped out 100k dong, and he tried the "no change" tactic. Totally furious at being already ripped off, and refusing to be ripped off a second time, I just sat in his car until he produced change. Six weeks ago, going by the philosophy of "small cabs bad, big cabs good", I flagged down a big SUV cab on the southern edge of the West Lake, with the company name "Thanh _____" (can't remember the second word). After entering, I stated the destination, and even pointed it out on a map, just to be sure. Dude pretended not to know where it was... Okay... Bad news... Then, my eyes started scanning for a meter, only to notice that no meter was visible. Okay, worse news... So, about 10m into the journey, I asked him where was the meter. And he opened the GLOVE COMPARTMENT, and viola! There was the meter. Seriously, which taxi meter is kept IN THE GLOVE COMPARTMENT? Extremely disturbed, my friend and I tried to get him to stop, and it took some shouting on our part, before he would let us alight. 20m journey worked out to 20k dong. Although I can't remember the name of the company, I am avoiding all taxi companies that start with "Thanh"
answered about 5 months ago by dior2k5
use CP,Hanoi or Mai Linh for hassle-free... At late hours, avoid taxis waiting outside the bars (in Old Quarter) just pick up the god damn phone and call a cab ! If you want to save a couple of bucks try these alternatives: Taxi Thanh Nga 8215215 Taxi 3 Sao 2202020 Taxi Van Xuan
answered about 5 months ago by mattvietnam
My advice: - Choose a taxi affiliated with a company: 8222888, 8535353, 8262626, 8616161, 2525252 are numbers that come to mind. - Note, there are unaffiliated taxis that paint incorrect numbers on the side in order to overcome this problem. Be wary. - If you are willing to wait a few minutes (e.g. 8222888 will usually take less than 5 minutes) or can plan your trip, you can call and guarantee that you will get a reliable taxi. - A taxi affiliated with a company should have a laminated white piece of paper on the front windscreen - An affiliated taxi should have a CB radio. - Keep an eye on the meter. If it starts increasing quickly ask the driver to stop and get out ASAP. You might be asked to pay the full fee but you should try to pay what you deem to be the fair fee (see #1 rule below however). - I always avoid the little green taxis with whom I have always had bad experiences. - Try to carry spare change. If they don't have change, take your money and only pay what you can LESS THAN the amount (see #1 rule below however). - #1 rule that is never to be ignored: if it appears that any sort of physical abuse may occur then pay and walk away. - To those who can go by motorbike taxi (Xe Om) choose older looking drivers. If you can smell alcohol you should probably avoid them. By the way, those of us with families or those who do not wish to take the risk on the extremely dangerous roads can not afford this luxury so this is not always a valid option. - Push Bikes are no good in summer if you are riding to work.
Ask A Question
Subscribe to This Question