Antigua: Tourists Dispute Taxi Fare, Scuffle with Cops, End Up in Jail

By Larry Habegger | Permalink | No Comments | September 9th, 2009 | Trackback

Tourists coming off cruise ships for short island visits can be vulnerable to scams from individuals who know they cannot afford to be delayed for fear of missing a ship’s departure. The recent case of a group from Brooklyn is a good example of how things can go wrong. They disputed a taxi fare and ended up in a brawl with police and then were arrested, while their ship sailed without them. Now they are facing a criminal trial despite claims that they did nothing wrong and that plainclothes police started the fight. The incident got to that point because the taxi driver who took them to a beach agreed to a $50 fare, but when it was time to return insisted that $50 was one way, round trip was $100. They refused to pay, he drove them to a police station, and chaos ensued. Whether the taxi driver was trying to rip them off is less important than the lesson: learn what the accepted fares are for such trips before leaving the ship, be absolutely certain what agreement you’ve made with your driver, and be prepared to pay the price if confronted with a ripoff. The cost of missing the boat could be higher.

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