How much to vomit in a taxi in Singapore ?
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On New Year's Eve, taxi driver Tan Pin Lin started his shift at 5 p.m. with 10 plastic bags, boxes of tissue paper and a prayer that no one would puke in his cab after a night of partying.
As he wrapped up his shift at 5 a.m. yesterday, he counted himself fortunate: Only one passenger had vomited.
He said in Mandarin: "I think I'm very lucky that the vomiting one was my last fare. If not, I would have had to take time out to clean the taxi, lose earnings and then try to find passengers who don't mind the smell."
Taxi drivers regularly have to deal with drunken passengers who refuse to compensate them for the cost of cleaning up after making a mess in the vehicles.
Although some embarrassed passengers do pay up, cabbies say others are too drunk to do so, or simply refuse to pay the 20 Singapore dollars (US$15.4) to get the taxi cleaned.
Besides being set back 20 Singapore dollars every time it happens, the cabbies also stand to lose the 30 to 50 Singapore dollars they would have earned had they been out driving instead of being stuck in a petrol station washing bay.
The cost of picking up a drunken passenger who pukes is thus at least 50 Singapore dollars.
The number of passengers who have had too much to drink doubles during the December to February festive season, a Straits Times poll of 50 cabbies found.
Eric Low, 41, who drives the 5 p.m. to 5 a.m. shift seven days a week, said he picks up perhaps three vomiting passengers in a normal month, and up to four a week during the Christmas and New Year period.
Cabbies say that as more nightspots open, the number of "hurling" passengers can only go up.
They say that when they have a passenger who has thrown up on board, the standard practice is to ask for a flat payment of 10 to 20 Singapore dollars - on top of the fare - depending on how bad the mess is.
Faisal Nordin, 47, said: "If they throw up mostly in a plastic bag and just some gets on the mat, I ask for 10 Singapore dollars and take an hour off to clean up my taxi at the nearest coffee shop.
"But sometimes, the whole seat is covered with vomit and it's so disgusting that even after two hours of cleaning, the smell is so strong no one will take my cab."
If this happens, especially early in a shift, cabbies stand to lose up to 300 Singapore dollars for the rest of the night.
They are not protected by any regulation that entitles them to compensation from their passengers.
Hong Chin Chye, 60, who has been a cabby for more than 20 years, said: "I ask nicely a few times, but if they say no, I can't do anything. The most I can do is to ask for their particulars and write a letter to them the next day."
The legal route is to file a claim against the passenger at the small claims court. If violence or assault is involved, cabbies can go to the police.
The Straits Times understands that the Land Transport Authority regulates taxis' operating standards but leaves such issues for cab companies to sort out.
ComfortDelGro, Singapore's biggest cab operator with a fleet of about 15,000 taxis, said it does not have a policy on compensation, but it does offer its cabbies free cleanups at its workshops.
However, the cabbies said they would rather head to the nearest petrol kiosk for a cleanup than to drive to a workshop.
ComfortDelGro's spokesman said there were 50 such cases reported last year.
Prime Taxi general manager Eric Ang said the company would write up to three letters to the passenger requesting compensation, but it cannot do much else unless the cabby decides to sue the passenger.
Of the 50 cabbies surveyed, 45 were in favour of a "vomit surcharge."
R. Saravanan, 40, said: 'These passengers put us in a difficult position. If we pick them up, we get a mess. If we don't, they take down our license plate numbers and report us for avoiding them.
"If there's a surcharge, they may be more careful and puke into a bag instead."
Marketing manager Claris Ang, 34, threw up in a cab on New Year's Eve after a night of drinking at Clarke Quay.
She apologized and paid the cabby 20 Singapore dollars to get his taxi cleaned.
She said yesterday: "I felt very bad seeing the taxi uncle's face fall after I threw up. The smell was so bad he nearly vomited himself, so the least I could do was to pay up, since he'd probably have trouble getting passengers after me." -
"ComfortDelGro, Singapore's biggest cab operator with a fleet of about 15,000 taxis, said it does not have a policy on compensation, but it does offer its cabbies free cleanups at its workshops"
knn like real only , hahahahahah
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Fine $50 for the front seat
Fine $50 for the rear seat
Fine $100 for both front and rear seat
Fine base on per head charges only .
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Vomit outside of vehicle , dirtying the outside of vehicle
Fine half price $25 .
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Vomitting bags for sale !
standard charge Monday to Thursday $1
Friday / Saturday / $2
Public Holiday $3
Sunday : Free . Cos Uncle Poolman off day .
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Uncle Poolman me once picked an Ah Neh from Tekka to Sembawang shipyard ....
" Neh , you can ?"
"Yeh yeh yeh can ..." but blar.............. knnbccb .
Reached , i asked for $50 including taxi fare $28 .....i said i dun care , if dun pay , i call 999 .
Lan lan pay ..... but i myself wash like fuck knnbccb .
Go Semb Shipyard main entrance ATM draw money ......
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My friend laghi solid ...... he dun want money , he straight away bring pax to petrol kiosk , get them to wash .
Garang huh ?
They also lan lan wash ..... complaint lor .
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At Neh dun want pay , but i knnbccb used Police threaten to sent them home to TamilNaddu , they scared , Pay .
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Why the fuck must they even vomit in a plastic bag? How would you like if I took your car and vomitted even in a bag? No such things as germs ah?
You wanna vomit, why cannot ask to stop by the side and vomit to your hearts content, I'm even prepared to be compassionate and stop the meter, if all passengers could do that.
New Year's Eve, on the way back 2 Chinese passengers beg me to send his friend home, although I 99% sure will vomit. Eventually he did but a bit spilled on the seats. Even so, NY, I prepared to be nice. Passenger drunk and slurry all the way, but reach destination when give $100 bill for the fare, he suddenly very alert he give $100!
Haha, but I told him pay tax la, I agreed to fetch you when there were thousands at Clarke Quay. He gave $10 extra, which I think was fair. Just a bit on the seat, the rest on his shirt and in the bag. Still gotta to put disinfenctant and wipe, but just a bit, so I cool about it.
But I just hate it when people must vomit in the cab. I also got drink, I also got vomit before, but never in a cab. The only 1 time I needed to, i asked the driver to stop by the side and did it outside. Even then I still asked him to keep the $8 after giving him $20 for a $12 fare.
Be understanding, not just for others but the driver too. Your germs and everyone's will eventually make him sick. You never do in friend's or family car, do the same in a cab, that's all we ask.
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Another time, took 4 Ang Mo kids, this gal sit infront suddenly without warning, wind down window, stick her head out and womit while vehicle moving. I fuck them, stop to the side, ask them to help her, they act blur. After dropping 2 of them at Clarke Quay, her friend escort her home. Suddenly, she still do the same. I call 999.
Hear police suddenly, can become normal one. But I wanted to send her home, because I was gonna make a scene outside her house in District 9 some more. Reach there, I told her very simple, you either clean or 1) call your parents or b ) I call the police once more.
Wah the drunkenness all can disappear, she and her freidn, go get water and towels and clean the cab. I laugh and smoke cigarette. The normal one later beg me to send back to Clarke Quay, I said no way, call for cab. But eventually I think, got trip back to town, also good what, so I relented. Very good on return journey, say sorry and give tips.
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Originally posted by Poolman:
"ComfortDelGro, Singapore's biggest cab operator with a fleet of about 15,000 taxis, said it does not have a policy on compensation, but it does offer its cabbies free cleanups at its workshops"
knn like real only , hahahahahah
Knn... sure or not? 24hrs?? Rental got waive bo?
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My story is $70 plus meter.
Brothers here, please don't spolit market, charge pax $10 or $20. Min $50. This is to teach pax a lesson, taxi is not a toilet bowl.
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Ya neh very scare police. Every time neh make me tulan I will tax them. If buay song I call 999. Then they will LLST pay up. Maybe in their Tamilnaidu go mata chu very tua kee liao so they very scare mata. Lol
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Originally posted by riskman:
Knn... sure or not? 24hrs?? Rental got waive bo?
gd 1 bro~~~~ $50 plus meter my normal standard..........
but i rather not hav the chance to collect the $50 lor dam leceh hav to clean
up at kiosk pay $20 at least then later still got smell then gotta say sorry
to hirer.................
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The worse is having to kao tai to day driver.
i got farked damn hard by my 2nd last hirer. haha , after the incident , he come to my block and purposely open all 4 doors and the boot while waiting for me as if to say that im the culprit :(
sigh he think i wan one meh ?
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Originally posted by Bo Call Liao:
The worse is having to kao tai to day driver.
i got farked damn hard by my 2nd last hirer. haha , after the incident , he come to my block and purposely open all 4 doors and the boot while waiting for me as if to say that im the culprit :(
sigh he think i wan one meh ?
yah lor tats y i always 50+ meter to tekan those pax....... knn u vomit
tink pay $20 suay liao ah?? i rather dun earn these kind of $$...........
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I also got charge 50 before, but sometimes must also give and take, 1 or 2 drops like that day, how to charge 50?
But some pax also so drunk you call police, also police do what? Where got law for Police to ask pax to pay for cleaning? Pay the fare got, cleaning is between driver and pax, police can only suggest and they usually do, but nowadays not like my time, all mata gina, follow book, book never say must pay, they dont advise. Police are useless in these kind of case, take their time to come and then waste some more time. We only can hung call police and hope they pay.
Anyway I read Pool's post, where Comfort say got free cleaning. Lancau where got? Comfort kiosk got cleaning service? OMO cleaning got, Comfort talk cock sing song for the press as usual.
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yes it is true,cdg did have a high pressure cleaning svc at sin ming.
but must make appt b4 going
this was told to us during the hirer's training
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SO, anyway if really kanna such vomitting, where do you guys have to clean?
Any places/kiosk that have such facilities to do thorough cleaning? Also how to remove the smell? Spraying Air Freshers?
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Originally posted by Leevenus07:
SO, anyway if really kanna such vomitting, where do you guys have to clean?
Any places/kiosk that have such facilities to do thorough cleaning? Also how to remove the smell? Spraying Air Freshers?
Bukit Merah SPC got do i heard for me i always go to the SPC
beside Thomson Medical~~~
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Many moons ago my pax asked me how much pax need to pay if they vomit in my taxi.
I told them some company (I think that time was SMRT) have standard charge but mostly others just follow "market rate"
He replied "Wah, so cheap ah? In England you can get thrown to jail or at least detention for vomitting inside the cab"
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Originally posted by WizQ:
Many moons ago my pax asked me how much pax need to pay if they vomit in my taxi.
I told them some company (I think that time was SMRT) have standard charge but mostly others just follow "market rate"
He replied "Wah, so cheap ah? In England you can get thrown to jail or at least detention for vomitting inside the cab"
wah knn so strict ah....... we should implement tat.......... tats y i say
N*A n L*A n S*F jiak liao bi 1.............
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$100 for that!!! lost of times
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Hello, some UK pax told me some union protected places impose $250. I personally think anything below $100 is unjustified (depending on type of cab) , considering lost of income plus rental running. If vomit in merc cab $100 also not fair compensation. As long as no compensation in place I guess the routine of avoid very drunk pax continues. It's only right. Crown have insulated mats. Many others have carpet. Proper cleaning requires more money and time. $20-$30 is really ridiculus. Unless we are considered workers of a 3rd world country. Having proper compensation in place with make pax more careful and not take the cab as a toilet bowl.
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True, I believe if you want to party, be responsible. However, I would like to add that if authority is to implement the rule of compensation, it should be equal across the board, if not pax may choose my crown to vomit
.The compensation should be at the extreme, $150 is good. If you said $20 to $50, some rich pax may choose taxi to vomit, as long as they paid, they are not wrong, end up we lan lan have to clean it up and cannot scold them, because they paid and followed the laws, we hv to be careful in this areas.
Laws works both way, you can get compensated by laws, pax can go around and said, now inside taxi, can vomit, just paid $50 can already,...hurray