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Following is a question by the Hon Margaret Ng and a reply by the Secretary for the Environment, Transport and Works, Dr Sarah Liao, in the Legislative Council meeting today (October 18) :
Question:
The Secretary for the Environment, Transport and Works said openly on June 3, 2003 that "fare bargaining" between taxi drivers and passengers might not necessarily constitute a breach of the law, and that while the bargaining of taxi fare by passengers was allowed, taxi drivers were prohibited from "soliciting" business by offering fare discounts, as this might lead to traffic chaos. I have received complaints that fare bargaining has since become a very common phenomenon. Some taxi drivers, commonly known as members of the "taxi discount gangs", would hint their willingness to offer fare concessions by distributing name cards or through taxi radio stations. An increasing number of taxi drivers, succumbing to competition pressure, have joined their ranks, and more and more passengers bargain with the taxi drivers on boarding the taxis, rendering the taximeters almost useless. Moreover, taxi drivers of the "discount gangs" will issue to passengers, upon request, receipts showing a fare higher than the actual fare for claiming reimbursement of taxi fares from organisations employing them. Such acts might constitute aiding the passengers concerned in defrauding. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council of the measures, including investigation, prosecution or legislative amendments, taken or to be taken to put an end to such a state of affairs?
Reply:
Madam President,
First of all, I would like to point out that the Government has made it very clear that no taxi driver shall in any manner, including offering fare discounts or concessions, attract passengers in order to induce them to make use of his vehicle. Soliciting is an offence under the law and offenders on conviction are liable to a maximum penalty of a fine of $10,000 and 6-month imprisonment.
In the same vein, we have spelled out to the public that taxi passengers are obliged by law to pay the legal fares recorded on the taximeters. In other words, any passenger who refuses to pay the fares as recorded commits an offence. Whatever excuse should not be used as a reason for breaking the law. Offenders are liable to a maximum penalty of a fine of $3,000 and 6-month imprisonment.
Enforcement action has been actively taken to curb taxi soliciting activities. A total of 93 persons were prosecuted by the Police for taxi soliciting between October 2005 and September 2006. Seventy-five of them were convicted and fined between $340 and $4,000, while the remaining cases are being processed. The Police will continue to take enforcement action against these illegal activities and welcome the trade and the public to report suspected cases.
In addition, to enhance the deterrent effect, the Transport Department (TD) publishes regularly the relevant enforcement figures through the Quarterly Newsletter on Taxi to keep the trade informed of the Government's latest operations against taxi soliciting activities.
The TD has also stepped up publicity on fare bargaining to remind taxi passengers of their responsibility to pay the legal fares recorded on the taximeters. Publicity comes in the form of promotional stickers displayed inside taxi compartments, distribution of leaflets, and posters put up at various districts and major taxi stands. The TD will continue their promotional efforts and is planning further promotional activities.
In response to the suggestion from some members of the urban taxi trade that the Government should amend the law to require taxi drivers to charge the exact fare recorded on the taximeters, the TD has recently sent out questionnaires to the urban taxi trade for consulting their views. The Government needs to handle this issue carefully. It is because all along there have been divergent views within the taxi trade on whether the law should be amended. The trade also wants to ascertain whether there is any consensus among their members on this issue before exploring this further. We have carried out similar study before but no majority support for legislative amendment to prohibit passengers from fare bargaining could be secured.
On the other hand, Regulation 37 of the Road Traffic (Public Service Vehicles) Regulations provides that no taxi driver shall refuse to issue a fare receipt on passenger's demand. The receipt must be printed by the receipt printing device installed in the respective taxi, showing information of the trip concerned, including the distance travelled, the duration of the hiring and the total amount of fares. Where the receipt printing device installed is not in proper working order, the driver can issue a receipt in manuscript in a format prescribed by law in lieu of a printed one. Taxi passengers are obliged by law to pay the legal fares recorded on the taximeters. If the fare a passenger pays is lower than the legal amount but he claims for reimbursement by producing a receipt showing the original fare, he may have committed criminal offences such as fraud.
Ends/Wednesday, October 18, 2006
Issued at HKT 14:40
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