[VXHLrsO1]

Kind-hearted cabbie
By The Nation

A taxi driver returned gold necklaces and a wad of Bt1,000 notes to a 62-year-old woman at the FM91 police traffic radio station yesterday morning.

Cabbie Suchart Thiansomprasong, 42, handed a bag with Bt16,500 in cash and two gold necklaces to Thanom Ditcharoen, who left the items in his taxi on Sunday evening.

Thanom said that after a family trip in a blue taxi from Bangkok to their hometown, Saraburi, she realised the bag was lost but had no information on the taxi. She reported the loss to police the next day but later learned that the cabbie had already contacted FM91. "It's great to find out there are still good-hearted people around," said Thanom. "Society would be a happy and harmonious place if everyone behaved like this." Thanom handed Suchart a reward of Bt5,000.

Suchart said he found the bag as he was putting his shopping into the trunk on Tuesday afternoon, so he called the 1644 traffic hotline. "I wanted to return the valuables to their rightful owner," said Suchart. "I understand that anyone would want to get his or her lost items back." He urged passengers to snap their taxi license numbers with a phone so they could contact the driver if anything got left behind.

[Nothatspecial]

They were talking about this on 91FM yesterday.... Well done cabby!

Last Monday at our boy's school, an enlarged copy of a letter went up on the notice board. It was written to the Dean of the school by the manager of the BTS Skytrain. A student from our school was on the Skytrain on his way home, when he found a 2 baht weight gold chain on the floor of the train. He immediately handed the necklace in to the office at Silom Station, and the owner has now had her chain returned to her. The BTS manager commended the young man for his honesty and also complimented the school for the values being taught there.

I listen to 91FM most mornings when taking the boys to school and on the way home again. The amount of property that is left in taxis is amazing, Mobile phones, wallets, shopping bags. files of documents, one guy even left his golf clubs in the trunk of the cab!

[VXHLrsO1]

I remember one Japanese businessman managed to leave a bag with 1 mill Baht in a taxi in Pattaya-and got it back!

Posted the story as credit was due-we read so many stories about dodgy taxi drivers on this forum

[PVaQlNaP]

I know for a fact I read something similar a few years back.

Some old lady had lost part of her senses and was going around in a taxi for hours with several hundred thousands baht in her bags.

When it became obvious she was a bit confused the taxidriver looked in her bag to see if he could find an address, saw all the money, and drover her to the police who managed to call her son.


A personal note I once took a taxi from Seacon Square to Central World, about ten minutes ride, when the aircon stopped working. He pulled over and didn't want any cash for the 5 mins we drove.

Ok it doesn't quite compare to these stories but I really tried to pay him

[LOVEBoy]

I find 99.9% of taxi drivers are pretty decent. I have known other people who have problems with them but these are people who have a bit of an attitude themselves, so I don't know where the problem really lies.

[Turbo-ip]

I think it's always big news when stories like these involving taxi drivers pop up in the news. I know it would make internet news here in the states, there's just something about honest taxi drivers that seem to strike a chord with all of us.

It was also nice she gave him a reward, unfortunately not many people do that nowadays.

[bobibnoxx]

There are honest men among cabbies as much as there are dishonest frauds among politicians.

The other day, I left my mobile phone in a cab. Then I rang up. He answered and ask for my address and delivered it at my residence. Naturally, I volunteered to reward him.

[dafodilkemmy]

I find 99.9% of taxi drivers are pretty decent. I've had good and bad experiences.
Most Thais will have little trouble with drivers.
Most expats can also deal with them fairly well.
It's tourists that are more likely to be "taken for a ride".

It think that drivers believe that scamming "rich tourists" is just good business sense.

[BloofPailafum]

Well done, you make your country proud

[Emunsesoxmete]

> I find 99.9% of taxi drivers are pretty decent. I have known other people who have problems with them but these are people who have a bit of an attitude themselves, so I don't know where the problem really lies.

I beg to differ. though I have to admit that I DID have a bit of an attitude problem when I found out I was being taken on a sightseeing tour. I DID yell then and refused to pay up. which, by the way, happened 3 out of the last 4 times. even though I spoke Thai to the driver or had a note in Thai and I don't look rich. yes, the fuel prices were high at that time, but still. next time I have to go to Bangkok, I will take a bus. I did a lot of googling on them recently when my sister was in Thailand and she was too scared to take a taxi by herself.

[InsManKV]

The only time I ever had a problem with a BKK taxi driver was when my wife and I arrived at midnight on a bus which dropped us off in Silom. We flagged down a cab to take us to our hotel but the driver got lost, going the wrong way up one-way streets against the flow of traffic! When he eventually found our hotel he roared off with a squeal of tyres before we were fully unloaded, stealing my wife's wallet with 5,000 bt and Visa card etc. Luckily he did not take our passports.

[Emunsesoxmete]

I would never ever take a taxi at night if even slightly drunk.
the mentioned rides involved going to or getting away from bus stations.

[LOVEBoy]

> I find 99.9% of taxi drivers are pretty decent. I have known other people who have problems with them but these are people who have a bit of an attitude themselves, so I don't know where the problem really lies.

I beg to differ. though I have to admit that I DID have a bit of an attitude problem when I found out I was being taken on a sightseeing tour. I DID yell then and refused to pay up. which, by the way, happened 3 out of the last 4 times. even though I spoke Thai to the driver or had a note in Thai and I don't look rich. yes, the fuel prices were high at that time, but still. next time I have to go to Bangkok, I will take a bus. I did a lot of googling on them recently when my sister was in Thailand and she was too scared to take a taxi by herself.

One problem in Bkk is late at night if you're going home and you get all those taxis lined up in the street who won't take you anywhere on the meter and demand 100 baht. Some say it's because they have to make a pay-off to wait there -- probably true. They also expect that you've had a bit to drink and are therefore easier to rip off.

When this happens I just walk down the road a bit and flag down a cab. They'll always use the meter when they're flagged down.

[dr-eavealer]

Thai taxi drivers on the whole are normally ok. I've never had problems with them. And most of them will always try to chat with you. well you know, they get rather bored from driving all day long.

[nAKMzyBN]

I've never had any problems with taxi drivers in Thailand. It may have been because a lot of them seem to be from Issan and my wife at the time was also from that area. But then again I have taken a few cabs in Thailand by myself over the years and had no problem then either. It may have been because of my rudimentary Thai instructions that endeared me to them.
hmmm Maybe not