Christmas partygoers are facing chaos when they return home from the festive celebrations, as many taxi drivers refuse to accept the industry’s own Cabcharge payments.
Taxi drivers have blacklisted the traditional form of local corporate travel because of the extra costs that eat into their profits.
Passengers are now turned away if they try to pay with Cabcharge, and even returned to their pick-up point if they pull out their Cabcharge card mid-trip.
One regular taxi user, who wished to remain anonymous, told Daily Mail Australia that Melbourne taxi drivers were now treating Cabcharge customers like “poison”.
‘They don’t want it. In fact, they are openly hostile to it,” he said.
The taxi user claimed that this week a driver turned his car around as he approached the Westgate Highway and took him back to the city when he was told Cabcharge was paying the fare.
“At first he claimed his machine was broken, but it accepted credit cards,” the passenger said.
“When I pressed him about it, he confessed that Cabcharge’s share of the profits made the trip not worth it.”
Melbourne taxi drivers have been criticized for refusing to accept Cabcharge
Returned to a city taxi rank, the customer was turned away three more times by drivers until one finally accepted the more than $100 fare.
Another regular taxi user, George, told Daily Mail Australia that drivers are rejecting the new credit card-style Cabcharge because they couldn’t manipulate the amounts like they could on the old paper vouchers.
“In the old Cabcharges they would just grab a pen and enter new totals into the file and their unsuspecting employer would just take over,” the corporate bigwig said.
“They are a bunch of criminals.”
Cabcharge claims that taxis that have a sticker that says “We Proudly Accept Cabcharge” should accept Cabcharge.
“Yeah, well, they don’t,” the taxi user slammed.
Cabcharge states that users must ask the driver if they plan to accept the card before entering.
Cabcharge comes in card and digital format.
Taxi drivers with stickers stating they accept Cabcharge should accept Cabcharge, the company says.
‘If you don’t see the sticker, simply ask the driver before getting into the taxi. If the driver doesn’t accept Cabcharge, you can move on to the next taxi in the queue,’ he says.
The Cabcharge name in the taxi industry has long been despised.
In 2010, Cabcharge admitted that it had taken advantage of its market position to reject its competitors’ requests in 2005 and 2008 to process Cabcharge cards in its electronic payment systems.
Cabcharge also admitted to applying “predatory pricing” by installing its rate meters for free or below cost, further squeezing its rivals.
Just a few months ago, Perth radio breakfast host Steve Mills criticized taxi drivers for refusing to pay fares to Cabcharge users at the airport.
“If that’s the kind of greeting people get when they visit our state, it’s not acceptable, it’s not good enough,” he said on air.
“You can understand why many go overboard and turn to a ride-sharing service.”
Frustrated Australians are embracing ride-sharing companies like Uber this holiday season.
Horse and cart could be an easier way home for many Melburnians this Christmas
Dishonest drivers tell customers their Cabcharge machine is broken
In May, Cabcharge announced it was cracking down on unreliable taxi drivers who turned off their meters and raised fares.
It came via a payment device on board the vehicle connected directly to the taximeter.
The move has won the approval of the country’s largest taxi networks, including 13cabs, Black & White Cabs, Silver Service, Swan Taxis and SilverTop Taxis.
But dishonest drivers hell-bent on avoiding the Cabcharge rate cut have apparently found a very basic way around the dedicated device.
“They just say it’s broken,” said one customer.
‘Do not use taxis. As shitty as Uber is, at least the entire fare process is open and transparent, and if there are any discrepancies it’s easy to get a refund,” another wrote in an online forum.
“I can’t believe that in 2024 taxis will still depend on you paying for the trip at the end.”