Top 6 foreign tourist taxi scam Vietnam & how to handle them

Foreign tourist taxi scam Vietnam may include fake Grab drivers, unlicensed taxis, rigged meters, and extra fees. Book Grab or Xanh SM to stay safe while traveling. 

During a trip to Vietnam, I once had a taxi driver cheat on the meter and drive around, trying to cut the fare many times over. This bad experience forced me to switch completely to using technology-based car booking applications to ensure safety and know the prices in advance.

06 Common taxi scam tricks on foreign customers in Vietnam

When I first travel to Vietnam, some foreign friends and I encountered many unpleasant situations related to airport taxis and fake technology vehicles. Below are 6 foreign tourist taxi scam Vietnam that I have experienced or that were shared by the travel community.

#1. Besieged right after leaving the airport

I still clearly remember the suffocating feeling when I stepped out of the airport’s arrivals terminal; dozens of men immediately surrounded me, constantly soliciting rides with cheap advertisements.

I saw many people wearing clothes like tech drivers to approach and attract customers, some even arbitrarily pulled my luggage to the private parking lot. At that time, I immediately held on to my luggage, firmly refused, then went into the secure area to book a car on the app myself, absolutely not continuing to talk to them.

#2. Charge many times higher prices (3-10 times more)

A friend in my travel group once became a victim of foreign tourist taxi scam Vietnam. Specifically, this blunder was cut off right when he first came to Hanoi. The distance from the airport to the hotel in the city center only has actual prices ranging from 150,000 VND to 350,000 VND (~6-14 USD).

However, the fraudulent taxi driver demanded that she pay up to 1,200,000 VND (~ 48 USD). When she wondered, the driver immediately locked the car door, showed an aggressive attitude, and forced her to hand over enough cash before opening the trunk to take out her luggage.

If you are in a situation where the car door is locked, stay calm and do not argue with the driver. You can pretend to call the tourist police or call the hotel and turn on the speakerphone to apply pressure, because many drivers will be afraid of trouble and quickly open the door for passengers to get off the bus.

#3. Impersonating Grab and tricking trip cancellations

This is a trick I almost fell into when a person pretending to be a tech driver approached me, asked for my phone, and quickly canceled the trip on the app to lure me into taking a private car at a high price. Since then, I have prioritized using public transportation, such as airport buses or the metro, to limit the risk of being scammed by a taxi.

The core advice is that travelers need to firmly hold on to their phones and absolutely not give them to strangers at the airport. You should just turn the screen away to compare information and ask them to show the driver’s side application. If the opponent is evasive or shows signs of being shady, immediately go away to avoid falling into the trap.

#4. Taxi meter fraud or detours

These foreign tourist taxi scam Vietnam are a situation my friend encountered during a trip last March.

My friend, in a rush and not having time to book a car through the app, jumped into a traditional taxi with an unknown brand and name on the side of the road. After just a few minutes of travel, the meter on the bus absurdly jumped continuously at a speed three to five times faster than normal.

Not stopping there, the driver also deliberately drove around unfamiliar streets to extend the distance, turning a short trip with an original price of only 120,000 VND (~5 USD) into a bill of up to 400,000 VND (~16 USD).

If you encounter this situation, I recommend that you immediately turn on the Google Maps application on your phone to track the location. At the same time, ask the driver to stop immediately in a crowded area or in front of a large store and not wait until the end of the journey.

#5. Create psychological pressure when riding

A Hochiminh taxi scam that I know was pressured by the driver. A friend of mine was once scammed by a driver who repeatedly pressured him to get on the bus quickly on the grounds that he was about to be fined by the traffic police, in order to confuse tourists and not have time to check vehicle information.

To handle it, my friend proactively stood still in place, made it clear that he was in no hurry to regain initiative, and used his phone to clearly take a photo of the license plate and the driver’s name tag placed on the dashboard in front of him. This public photo taking was an implicit warning that made the driver not dare to play rude tricks at the end of the trip.

#6. Pretend to be a Grab driver at the pick-up point

I also almost lost money unfairly at the technology vehicle pick-up lobby area when an unknown person proactively approached me, asked for the correct name of the hotel I wanted to go to, making me think it was the driver I had booked, and then led me to a private car that was completely different in both license plate and type on the app.

To avoid becoming a victim of foreign tourist taxi scam Vietnam, tourists should carefully check that the license plate and vehicle model match the information on the application before boarding. This is also one of the important notes on how to get a taxi in Vietnam for foreign visitors.

Areas most likely to encounter taxi scams in Vietnam

Hanoi taxi scam often appears in busy central areas such as the Old Quarter, Bui Vien West Street, or around Ben Thanh market, and arrival halls at international airports such as Noi Bai or Tan Son Nhat.

The airport is where groups of impersonators operate in a much more sophisticated and organized manner, deliberately preying on the fatigue and confusion of tourists who have just stepped off the plane to cut them off within the first 30 minutes of their arrival in Vietnam.

To avoid becoming a victim of a Vietnam taxi scam, you can note some of the following core tips:

• Use the car booking app: preferably Grab, Xanh SM, or Be to know the price in advance, or buy tickets at the official counter in the airport lobby.
• Refuse touts: definitely refuse those who solicit directly or arbitrarily drag your luggage to the parking lot.
• Check information: always carefully compare the license plate number on the app and absolutely do not give your phone to a stranger to hold.

Conclusion

Although foreign tourist taxi scam Vietnam can cause bad first impressions, tourists can completely proactively prevent them by using car booking applications. Just stay alert and carefully check the information before getting on the bus, and your journey to explore this beautiful country will always be safe and complete.