How to Legally Deal with Rude Passengers

Drunk Passengers

One of the best parts I love about being a taxi driver is the opportunity to meet new people.

Many people will have fascinating stories to tell and normally treat my vehicles with respect.

While most people are wonderful human beings, there are times when people aren’t so pleasant. While their behavior might irritate you to the verge of criminal activity, this article will present tips to help you keep your cool and deal with these difficult passengers.

The Hungry Passenger

One of the most common types of rude passenger are the people who want to eat in your vehicle.

They can leave a mess of food stuffs in the back seat and may even leave behind empty packaging.

The best way to deal with these passengers is to tell them when they enter the taxi that eating in the vehicle isn’t allowed. The key is asking this right away.

When they leave, make sure they take their rubbish with them.

The Angry Passenger

Another common type of difficult passenger is angry people. These people either enter the cab angry or they become angry at you while driving.

Typically they are upset because they’ve had a bad day and they are taking their frustration out on you.

When dealing with these people, remain calm – you’ve seen the videos online.

It doesn’t help the situation if you also get angry and by keeping you calm you might be able to cool them down a little. You should also remember not to take what they say as a personal insult.

You are still an excellent driver who has more satisfied customers than upset ones. If things get too out of control, you should pull over and let them out.

The Drunk Passenger

One of the toughest types of passengers taxi drivers must deal with, especially one who work late nights, is drunk passengers.

You should know that once you accept a drunk person into the cab and drive off, you have a duty of care. This means that you are responsible for making sure they arrive at their destination safely.

If there are sober friends around, make sure you confirm the address before driving off. You don’t want to bring a drunk to the wrong address, as this can endanger their safety.

While some drunks may sleep or talk during the journey, others look like they are going to puke.

You should keep vomit bags somewhere in the cab, if you sense they are going to vomit, give the bags to the passenger.

Hopefully, the bags should be enough to minimize the mess they’ll cause if they do throw up. For passengers like this it is often a good idea to walk them to the door.

This is the most commonly litigated scenario, so I’ve taken the extra precaution of installing cameras in those taxis that operate during after hours in case any lawsuit occurs.

This is perfectly legal in a court of law and is strong evidence on your behalf. Again, the key here is: remain calm and controlled.

Get Protected

This article has looked at some of most common types of difficult passengers faced by taxi drivers. While most passengers you transport will be courteous, well-behaved and respectful it’s important to remember that not everyone will be.

Hopefully, this article has provided some helpful tips to you deal with your next difficult passenger.

Until next time, drive safely…Tony

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *