Thai taxi driver banned from airport for overcharging visitor

The tourist took a taxi from Suvarnabhumi International Airport to the downtown area of Bangkok for a trip that would normally cost around 300 baht (US$8.8) based on the meter, The Strait Times reported.

However, the driver charged the visitor 1,200 to 1,500 baht ($35-$43).

Airport management said on Sunday that the unnamed taxi driver had been using a fake list of fares that used flat rates per destination while all taxi drivers picking up passengers at the airport are required to use meters to calculate fares.

Besides being banned from the airport for life, he may lose his license to operate a taxi.

Overpriced taxi services were the main issue of concern among foreign tourists traveling in Thailand, according to a survey conducted by the Tourism Council of Thailand, which polled 200 Western tourists during the final quarter of last year.