VietNamNet Bridge - Carrying a British and an American tourist for about a kilometer, a taxi driver who did not have a driver’s license and used a fake taxi logo charged the passengers for VND245,000 ($12), 20 times higher than the normal charge.

It is difficult for passengers to define fake cabs.

The mobile inspection team of the Hanoi Department of Transportation has seized the vehicle and imposed VND10 million ($500) fine on cab driver Hoang Trieu Quy, 43, for highly charging foreign tourists.

On March 19, Quy – who did not have a driver’s license and used a fake logo of a taxi firm in Hanoi – carried three British and American passengers from Hang Dao street to Hang Ma road in the Old Quarter.

The distance is about one kilometer but the driver charged foreign passengers VND245,000, nearly 20 times over the normal rates.

The tourists took photos of the cab and the driver and asked the receptionist of their hotel to send to the hotline of the Hanoi Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

Summoned by the authorities, Quy confessed that he faked the logo of a taxi brand to seek passengers in the Old Quarter.

This driver is defined to commit four faults: offering taxi services without legal logo, using a sub-standard meter, not having a driver's license, and the vehicle not being registered.

About a month earlier, a female cab driver in Hanoi was fined VND11 million ($500) for charging two British tourists VND1million ($50) for a distance of 3km.

P. Linh