Law breaking lying taxi drivers

I'm tired of the taxi drivers always ripping off the foreigner. They charge 1.5 to 2 times more than it would cost with meter. I saw an ad on TV that says if the taxi driver refuses to use his meter then call this number and report him so I decide to do this.

Tonight I was riding home after a long hard day of bike riding and I decided to take a taxi, but only if they use their meter. I hailed a cab and the guy said it would cost RM 40. I knew that with meter it would probably cost RM 20 so I said RM 30 and he said RM 35. I said that I only take taxi with meter so he said RM 30. I said no. As he drove away, I took a picture of his license plate with my digital camera and plan to report him later.

So then I bicycle to the mall knowing they have a line of taxis waiting to take people places. He only wanted RM 15 but I know that with meter it only cost RM 10 so he's increased the price by 1.5 times. I told him that I only take taxi that uses meter. He informed me that no taxi in Penang uses meter. He is obvious lying because I have taken many taxis that use the meter.

There was a line of 5 taxis and the 5 drivers were sitting and waiting so I asked if anyone will use their meter and take me? Nobody would, so I took pictures of their license plates. By the time I got to the forth taxi, they were yelling at me to go away.

So I rode up the road a bit and I knew a lot of taxis come to the mall so I waited there. I hailed a taxi and they pulled over but when I got close, they drove away so I hailed another taxi and the same thing happened. I will still in view of the taxi line so what I figure was happening was that they were calling this taxi and telling them not to pick me up.

So I rode further home and stopped on a major road with a lot of traffic and hailed another taxi. This time the guy wanted RM 12. I estimate that by meter it would only cost RM 8 so he was increasing his price 1.5 times.

This time I tried a different tactic. I agreed to the RM 12. We put my bike in the trunk and headed for home. He said that the chief of police of Teluk Kumbar (the city I live in) owned this taxi and he drives for him (probably another lie). Because of this, the police never stop him. I asked if he was Muslim and he said yes. Then I asked if it was OK for a Muslim to be breaking laws. Then he changed his story a bit and said that he never brakes the law. That's why he never gets stopped. A moment ago he was bragging about how he can break the law and never get stopped and now he claims to be a law abiding Muslim.

So then I asked if it was the law that he was supposed to use his meter. He says that he's been a taxi driver for 20 years and he's never used his meter. He claimed that no taxis in Penang use a meter (not true). He claims that taxis in the big city of Kuala Lumpur use meters (also not true).

Each time I confronted him, he evaded my question. I already knew the answer. I just wanted to call him a law-breaking lying Muslim taxi driver.

So I said, if it's OK for taxis in Penang to not use a meter then you won't mind if a I report you since you're not breaking any law ... right? I pulled out my camera and took a picture of his dashboard with all of his information … then his tone changed.

He got angry and said "How about I take you back to where I picked you up and drop you off?" I said that's fine. He said "I did you a favor and took your bicycle for you". I said that breaking the law does not seem like something a Muslim should be doing. It's wrong and a good religious Muslim should be obeying the laws. I asked if he was going to take me back and he said no.

We drove in silence for a long time.

I said that I appreciate him picking me up and taking my bike and that it is my custom to tip a taxi driver if he gives good service. I said that his taxi has great air conditioning and he let me sit in the front so I can be comfortable and buckle in (back seats in taxis never have seat belts). I said that I would give him RM 20 for the trip because of his great service but I would still report him for not using the meter.

Then he said that the trip is free. He says that he lives in that area anyway and he was just going home so it's on his way. It's probably another lie. These taxi drivers are expert liars. He dropped me off and I tried to pay him RM 20 but he said it was free and drove away. I'm still reporting him and the 6 other taxis that wouldn't use their meter.

The next day I took a short ride in a taxi. I accepted his price of RM 12 and snapped his info on the dashboard while driving but never mentioned anything about reporting him. This seems like the best approach. This means that I'll have to pay higher prices but there's no drama and no delays in getting where I'm going and I can still report them.

The taxis all have this sign on the window describing the meter fees and yet 90% of the taxis do not use the meter.

The claim that they cannot make a living if they use the meter and yet some taxis use the meter.

Obviously they can make a living on the meter but they are greedy and dishonest.

I told my Uncle Ron (here in Malaysia) about this and he said that it is close the 4 year election. At this time, the government does not enforce laws to make the people happy so they can get re-elected. After the election, they enforce the laws again. Now is the worst time to be reporting law breakers. I will also be calling about the movie/music pirates I see everywhere. I will post my results here.