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Tuesday, March 19, 2013 | 2:01 a.m.
Another view?
View more of the Las Vegas Sun's opinion section:
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I’ve been coming to Las Vegas for many years. This last trip really brought the taxi industry into focus.
My wife and I were double charged twice during this trip. We quietly paid, as we are “Minnesota nice.” Rates should be posted so these drivers can’t continue these practices.
I just want to address this issue so other folks aren’t taken advantage of.
P.S. We may even tip better.
Double charged twice and you were too nice to ask why? A question about the fares if asked politely is not considered being rude. It may have saved you from being overcharged for the rides.
Carmine D
The solution is simple: refuse to pay the overcharge and demand the driver contact either the Taxicab Authority or Metro to resolve the situation. The driver will relent in a New York minute. Then, contact the TA with the cab number and time the violation occurred. Fill out official complaint forms and action will be taken and it will not be pleasant for the cabbie. He or she will be fined and could be barred from the industry, depending upon past citations. Writing letters to the editor will not change a thing; contacting the authorities and following through definitely will!
In reply to Mr. Al Neumann;
Excuse the negative and unhelpful replies above. Hopefully these two are not representative of how Vegans feel towards the mistreatment of tourists that visit our city.
However, I would check back to this discussion room after a twenty-four hour period and see what the rest of the responses are. Heck, you might even win the "morality jackpot". Someone with authority or influence in our city reading this could even offer to help you to correct these wrongs that are being brought against our most precious commodity; people.
But, this is Vegas. It is a gambling town. Be well prepared to lose, too. If you do, you're still in luck. There is plenty of other gaming destinations that I'm sure would treat you much better during your vacations that YOU pay for.
By the way, it is a good thing to be ""Minnesota nice."
"By the way, it is a good thing to be ""Minnesota nice."
BChap:
Being nice...giving away your money? Being nice...giving away your money. The answer is obvious.
Carmine D
And I might add BChap by doing so, being nice, the tourists here encourage the cabbies to continue to do it [overcharge].
If you're made of money, by all means overpay. Be my guest. If not, ask the obvious question. Why so much?
Carmine D
In reply to Carmine DiFazio;
What's wrong with addressing a problem afterwards? This gentleman, (Al Neumann) apparently wanted no confrontations on his vacation and obviously does everything he possibly can to avoid quarrels / conflicts in the presence of his wife. I think that makes him an admirable man and husband. Mr. Neumann has, or, as many may call it in the "Great Lakes" area, the "Minnesota Nice Syndrome".
I think we should go out of our way to help these type people. Apparently, you do not, Carmine. Do you think your new Pope would look upon you favorably?
Yes.... not only when I am right but even if and when I am wrong.
Carmine D
I wouldn't be too assured of that Carmine. Mr. Neumann certainly knows what it means, "To turn the other cheek".
Apparently, all you know Carmine is how to make life difficult on a tourist and or criticize a gentleman who actually practices "turning the cheek".
Good day to you Carmine. My valueless timeframe with you has well elapsed.
Long-hauling and fare doubling is theft -- there's no other word for it. Taxi cab companies who fail to take reasonable precautions to prevent forseeable theft (i.e. GPS monitoring, etc.) should be held responsible for it.
Start throwing the CEOs in jail for a month at a time, and this problem will disappear forever.
If you have proof of a cabbie overcharging you, or longhauling you, notify Senator Harry Reid. He is always looking for a good employee. He will hire that crooked cabbie and purify him/her in the crucible fires of Washington D.C.
Taxi overcharges of $10 are peanuts compared to ripoff $200 Cirque tickets or $20 cocktails. I could go on but you get the point.
Weird that some posters could criticize Carmine's comment. Really, knowing you're being unjustly overcharged and then paying because you're "nice"? Not just once but twice!
That makes no sense to me.
if a tourist does read this if you are going to stay at the strip and the taxi driver starts driving west instead of east on swenson you are being longhauled plain and simple
What is totally absurd to me is people who will argue right at the scene of a dispute over just a small sum of money. Handling the situation in the aftermath when cooler heads prevail and many times with mediators is both practical and smart.
Having worked in and around prions for three decades, I knew a lot of convicts with "back numbers" who were incarcerated for life just because of a minor spat that spiraled out of control.
So yes, "smart and nice" can easily go hand-in-hand. That describes the letter writer Mr. Neumann, who is most likely now, a former tourist of Las Vegas.
The part that's absurd to me is that Mr. Neumann is suggesting that "Rates should be posted so these drivers can't continue these practices."
Obviously part of his problem is that he doesn't pay any attention to his surroundings in the first place.
Rates are posted on the outside of both front doors and also inside of EVERY taxi in Nevada, it's already required by law. NRS 706.8835
http://www.leg.state.nv.us/NRS/NRS-706.h...
So if Mr. Neumann completely completely failed to notice the rates prominently posted both inside and on the outside of every taxi he has been in here in Las Vegas, how reliable is his assertion that he was overcharged?
"My valueless timeframe with you has well elapsed."
As well as your valueless posts.
Carmine D