Rome Taxi Scam
 

I came across the following on <http://www.romebuddy.com/givesadvice/crime3.html>. A search doesn't seem to show any mention of it on Fodor's:

"You are probably paying too much for your taxis to and from the airport [in Rome] but are not even aware of this.

From the airport, you will see on the meter under 'Tariffa' it is on 2. This means you are paying at a higher rate than if you are driving in the city. Once you pass the GRA they are supposed to switch this to '1' at which point you are charged at the lower city rate. The problem is these buggers don't change the meter and assume we are stupid and will not see the difference. EVERY time, I take a taxi from the airport once we pass the GRA heading back in to the city I have to remind the driver to change the 'Tariffa' at which point they always say 'scusa' and give the excuse that they were talking to you and forgot. I am sick and tired of this and will also lodge a formal complaint with the taxi company 'RadioTaxi' 3570.

... Also be careful that when you call a cab to go to the airport that they don't start your ride at the 'Tariffa' 2 rate. It should only be changed to 2 once they reach the GRA line. RadioTaxi has done the same thing until I notice and tell them to change it back to 1. Please pass this message along to anyone you know to stop this overcharging which is directed at innocent foreigners who they think don't know any better. I have not had these problems with ProntoTaxi."

Note: The "GRA" is the "Grande Raccordo Anulare" in Rome; the ring road that circles the city.

A comment: I've seen the same thing in New York City. JFK airport is outside the city limits; it is in Nassau County. Taxi drivers taking you to the airport are allowed to double the meter reading <i>for the part of the trip in Nassau County only</i>. The theory is that you've taken them out of the city, so you have to pay for their return to the city limits (in fact, they'll probably pick up a fare at the airport). But cab drivers routinely tell you that they are allowed to double the meter for <i>the entire trip</i>.

- Larry

You learn something new every day. Thank you very much for the heads up.

That's why from the airport it's always best to fix a price for the trip before you even get in.

Or use one of the reputable limo services which charge a fixed rate, e.g

www.limoservicerome.com
www.airportshuttle.it

Steve

Ha! If this is the most dishonest act you've experienced from an Italian taxi driver, you're doing good. I hate to generalize but they're far worse than taxi drivers in any other country that I've visited!

To Steve_James: Simple, good advice. Saves a personal a lot of grief.

Hi Larry- re your comment about NYC, the rate to and from the airport is clearly posted by law in every NY taxi. It's usually on a sign facing the passenger in the back seat. This has been in place for a couple of years now.

sbp17--Oh, there's good and bad everywhere. A Florence taxi driver adamantly told my husband he had overpaid him considerably! We were at the airport--he could have driven away and never seen us again. Instead, he was painstakingly honest.

I hat to disagree but the info here on JFK is all wrong.

First of all it is not in Nassau county - it is in Queens - part of NYC.

The fare to JFK is not fixed - it is whatever is on the meter - no doubling - just the meter (plus any appropriate tolls and the tip). (It's true that for NYC cabs trips outside the city run at double the meter - only for the distance actually outside the city limits. Generally I don;t reco taking cabs outside the city limits - you're much better off with a car service - which can give you the price in advance - and usually the driver knows where he/she is going - which the typical cabbie often doesnt.)

The fare from JFK into Manhattan is fixed - at $45 - to which the toll (if any) and tip must be added.

nytraveler, thanks for the correction! I was indeed in error; I was remembering (wrongly) an experience from many years ago.

I remembered my NY taxi experience in reverse: in fact, I took a cab from JFK (which as you correctly point out is IN the city) to an office in Nassau County, and the cab driver tried to double the entire meter reading. Since the ride was short, and the portion inside the city limits before crossing into Nassau was even shorter, it didn't make that much of a difference.

At JFK, I was handed a yellow flier by the taxi dispatcher with all the rules on it, written out clearly. But the dispatcher, upon hearing my destination, also said something about the cabbie being able to &quot;double the meter&quot;, without going into greater detail. You had to read a bit of text in the handout to find out all the details (but in fairness, it was all in there). I was not going into Manhattan, so the fixed fare was not at issue.

And the Manhattan fare was not always fixed - cabs used to use the meter for that as well (after all, the length of the trip depends on <i>where</i> you're going in Manhattan). A story was told years ago by a British novelist who visited NYC often. He arrived at JFK in his British tweeds, and evidently looked like good pickings to a cab driver, who probably took him for a first-time tourist. The driver informed him that Manhattan was a long way off, and quoted him an outrageous fixed price. He nodded back at the driver for a while, and then asked, &quot;What would it be if you drove up the Van Wyck Expressway to the Long Island Expressway, and then in through the Midtown Tunnel with the meter on?&quot; The driver didn't have much more to say during the trip.

I was actually born in New York City, but I've lived in the Boston area so long that I'm getting a little rusty. You certainly don't need to feel at all bad about politely correcting my error.

- Larry