MEL taxi scam

[Q Class Plebeian]

On guard and keeping the touts at bay .At the carpark crossing at T4.
Mind you may have already walked passed at least 3 touts to get there.

 

[Happy Dude]

SYD has done something about their tout problem as part of a wider blitz on bad behaviour by taxi drivers. It may be paywalled.

Gist is the bloke was given many warnings/chances but persisted in touting whilst being a registered driver for an authorised service.

Interesting take-aways are that it's incredible that touting exists after the taxi deregulation, and it's framed as a safety issue rather than a nuisance one. So MEL may be exposed if they seemingly allow it to continue. Part of their response must be to set up a hotline to report this and other dodgy behaviours, or if one exists, make it better known or easier to use. Like SYD did.

Illegal cabbie fined $32,000 over airport touting, driving unlicensed

 

[jastel]

At first he was registered then was fined for more offences while UNREGISTERED it says...

It is a step worse if he is still doing it while unregistered probably.
I wanna see if he pays the fine...

States control public transport so an offence in one state may not be considered one in another state whose rules/penalties differ.

 

[Q Class Plebeian]

I landed just before 1pm yesterday and just missed my bus.I waited outside T1for 30 minutes with 2 bags in tow and an expectation formed from prior experience of the words, taxi Sir.
But I have to report that I didn't hear them.spoken.

 

[AustraliaPoochie]

For Q Class Plebeian, the taxis outside MEL T1 got moved to that little alcove to the most left, where the Qantas Valet parking used to be.
Right outside T1 now, has been taken over by Uber.
They are doing a right roaring trade.
That is why our friends now hang around the wider alcove, near the 901 and the suburban buses leave from, under the multistorey carpar,
Outside T1, they know they wont make a good enough ROI, as everyone will be looking at the cheap Uber.
The QF Valet area at MEL T1 used to be chain linked fencing, now its long metal bars.

 

[Q Class Plebeian]

For Q Class Plebeian, the taxis outside MEL T1 got moved to that little alcove to the most left, where the Qantas Valet parking used to be.
Right outside T1 now, has been taken over by Uber.
They are doing a right roaring trade.
That is why our friends now hang around the wider alcove, near the 901 and the suburban buses leave from, under the multistorey carpar,
Outside T1, they know they wont make a good enough ROI, as everyone will be looking at the cheap Uber.
The QF Valet area at MEL T1 used to be chain linked fencing, now its long metal bars.

I know a few weeks ago coming back from a work trip I caught a taxi home.It was an uber fellow who showed me where to get a taxi. I was also at T4 a couple of weeks ago late night flight and walked to the T4 carpark, no one was around there either.

 

[AustraliaPoochie]

RE: above, noted.
Think tho, it was quite a crooked move to move taxis away from the front, and only have Uber out there.
Tho, some would like Uber to be out the front at T1.
Saw the line in Jul, lots of people do love the Uber service, they must be doing a roaring trade now the taxis have moved to that alcove.
Taxi at T4 MEL, also now out of the way under the multistorey, no wonder the taxi "fixers" feel they need to stand there, on that plaza.

 

[Q Class Plebeian]

I have been at Melbourne airport 4 times in the last 2 weeks, both work and family travels.
For the first 3 times , no sign of the touts. However ,the other day , landed 2130 hours, walking to the T4 car park bus as the north car was full due to school holidays.There he was ,the tout trying to convince a young woman to hire him. Good for her she ignored and walked right past.He was persistent though , a tall man with dark beard and a brown turban.

 

[Q Class Plebeian]

Back at Melbourne airport last week to pick up a family member arriving late at night at T4.Walking out of T4 not one but 4 touts sitting on a bench busy on their mobiles.Only one asked us, Taxi? We politely declined and walked off to the car park.

 

[anat0l]

A PSA but for Uber, not taxis:

Check your PIN is correctly entered and accepted as or before you leave the Uber rank at the airport.

If your driver hesitates or says the PIN is invalid, demand to get out - this is a scam.

Apparently a rider was told this and then was driven off the app, then got asked for an inflated amount. Driver locked the doors when she refused payment of the obvious scam amount. She called 000 and was then released.

I swear people who scam like this should be physically disabled.

 

[Flyfrequently]

A PSA but for Uber, not taxis:

Check your PIN is correctly entered and accepted as or before you leave the Uber rank at the airport.

If your driver hesitates or says the PIN is invalid, demand to get out - this is a scam.

Apparently a rider was told this and then was driven off the app, then got asked for an inflated amount. Driver locked the doors when she refused payment of the obvious scam amount. She called 000 and was then released.

I swear people who scam like this should be physically disabled.

Agree @anat0l
On the news last night, driver is being investigated by Uber.
Police not taking it any further

 

[nancypants]

A PSA but for Uber, not taxis:

Check your PIN is correctly entered and accepted as or before you leave the Uber rank at the airport.

If your driver hesitates or says the PIN is invalid, demand to get out - this is a scam.

Apparently a rider was told this and then was driven off the app, then got asked for an inflated amount. Driver locked the doors when she refused payment of the obvious scam amount. She called 000 and was then released.

I swear people who scam like this should be physically disabled.

This has been going on for a while but seems to flare up and down

 

[serfty]

This has been going on for a while but seems to flare up and down

Yesterday's specific news originated on the 3AW radio "Rumor File".

The 'very disturbing' story to come out of the Rumour File

THE RUMOUR FILE A Melbourne woman has called triple-zero from the back seat of an Uber, after she suspected she was scammed by a driver at the airport. “It’s a very disturbing case,” 3AW Breakfast host Ross Stevenson said. Press PLAY to hear the call to the Rumour File (and also more from the...

www.3aw.com.au

 

[SeaWolf]

Check your PIN is correctly entered and accepted as or before you leave the Uber rank at the airport.
If your driver hesitates or says the PIN is invalid, demand to get out - this is a scam.

I feel like if the Uber marshals were a little more pro-active in checking what's going on, this could be avoided, or at least reduced.

I'd note that Didi still uses the system of allocating you a driver and providing the license plate, this does mean you might have to wait a little bit for the ride to arrive though rather than hopping in the next available car, but it does thwart this particular scam. Also, when I was at Melbourne a few weeks ago I used the Uber pickup inside the T4 carpark and that used the traditional system of allocating me a driver and providing the license plate.

 

[Happy Dude]

I haven't used Uber at MEL for ages, preferring DiDi. So how does it work with the marshals and the Uber booking system? Does the Uber code work for any car rather than a specific one, and the marshals keep the pax flowing to the next available Uber? That sounds a lot like a taxi system....

I'm appalled that the police are not charging that driver - sends a message that holding someone against their will is kinda ok in some circumstances. What a world.

 

[elanshin]

I haven't used Uber at MEL for ages, preferring DiDi. So how does it work with the marshals and the Uber booking system? Does the Uber code work for any car rather than a specific one, and the marshals keep the pax flowing to the next available Uber? That sounds a lot like a taxi system....

I'm appalled that the police are not charging that driver - sends a message that holding someone against their will is kinda ok in some circumstances. What a world.

Theres 2 types, regular uber with an assigned car/driver and number plate.
Then theres the Uber Pin. You hop in the uber pin line and hope basically in the next available uber, give the pin to the driver and then the trip details will apepar for them.


In this specific case, it seemed they were an uber driver, but just claimed the pin didn't work as they drove onto the freeway - at which point it's quite hard to demand to be let out.

 

[Quickstatus]

The problem with being let out before the destination is that the Uber driver will let the "meter" run. Meaning they don't let the app know the ride has been terminated.

The other problem here is that there is often no evidence - which is why Uber won't immediately ban the driver. Passengers have been known to make up stories which have got drivers banned.

 

[elanshin]

The problem with being let out before the destination is that the Uber driver will let the "meter" run. Meaning they don't let the app know the ride has been terminated.

The other problem here is that there is often no evidence - which is why Uber won't immediately ban the driver. Passengers have been known to make up stories which have got drivers banned.

Oh Uber knows exactly where you are - they have your GPS data. It's how they can see you haven't moved when an uber driver claims to have picked you up.

 

[Quickstatus]

Oh Uber knows exactly where you are - they have your GPS data

Not when you got the ride for someone who does not have an uber account. There are loopholes.