A female taxi driver who charged USD50 for a short trip in Hanoi was forced to apologise and return the money to two foreign tourists.

 Illustrative photo

The driver, Nguyen Thi Nhung, was driving an independent cab with a fake Ha Anh Taxi logo. She took two British tourists from Ngoc Son Temple to the Ho Chi Minh Museum (3 kilometres) on February 15.

The passengers noticed that the metre was not correct, and after some argument they ended up paying USD50. However, they were able to get a photo of the license plate and went to the customer service board of the Hanoi Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

Authorities were able to track Nhung down. At the customer service office on February 19 she cried, apologised and returned their money, explaining that she did not intend to overcharge and that it was only a misunderstanding.

She claimed that she signed a payment slip for USD5, but the tourists paid her USD50, and that upon realising the mistake she drove around to look for them, but to no avail.

Bui Ngoc Tan, an official from the Hanoi Department of Transport’s inspection board, said the taxi company is operating illegally. Nhung has been fined VND14 million (USD666.6) and had her driver's license revoked for 60 days.

The two British tourists thanked local authorities and said that they would still come to Vietnam in the future.

The Transport Department’s inspection board has set up a round-clock hotline for dealing with violations at 04.37710851 and 04.38525252.