Reporting a taxi driver
Last night, I was propositioned by my cab driver, and failed to get the information necessary to report it.
Now, I take a lot of cabs. I sold my car in 2005, and resolved at that point not to let carlessness curtail my activities too much. I didn’t used to take cabs home as often, but a few months ago I got followed home by a shouting dude in a truck, and ever since then I have taken a cab if it’s after 11 or so. It would not be too difficult to pick me up and stuff me in a trunk, and so far cabs have felt less risky than the alternative.
Mostly, I love taxis in this town. The drivers are frequently nice and interested, and some of them even wait to make sure I make it in the door alright. Some have tried to convert me, but until last night, none of them have ever tried to sleep with me. I left a bar in Capitol Hill around 11:15, and a friend hailed me a cab. When I got in the driver asked if that was my boyfriend, and if it was, why wasn’t he coming with me? This is the sort of interest that is largely normal for cabbies making conversation, so I told him that that boy was gay, not my boyfriend. And how was his night going? Is it much busier when it gets colder? We rode in silence until my apartment in Eastlake, when again the cab driver asked if my boyfriend was home. This happens sometimes with the cab drivers that are making sure I don’t get murdered before my front door, so I told him no, no boyfriend, but that it was fine because I lived right there.
And then things got creepy. He asked if he could park in the lot under my building. I said no, that was for tenants only. He asked if he could park on the street, because he would only be coming in for 30 minutes. Coming in where? I asked. To my house, he answered, because there was no boyfriend. I declined, and he asked for 15 minutes. I said no. 1 minute? Still no. Creeped out, I fled the cab and locked all of my front door’s locks.
When I got home I mentioned the incident to my friends, and everyone who was still awake answered immediately–that was inappropriate, report it.
So I tried, and it didn’t work, but what you need to know if your cab driver ever assumes you want to sleep with him is: his driver number itself, or if you’re too busy running away, the number on the side of the cab. It is three digits, and each taxi has its own. The only way they can track a cab is if you call it to your place, so if it is one that you hail on the street, that three-digit number is essential. The man at Yellow Cab was sympathetic, and a little skeeved out himself, but it seemed like there was little he could do without actual evidence. Had I kept my head and considered the situation I might have realized that identification was going to be necessary, but I didn’t, and that gross cab driver is still out there trying to sleep with people.
And that’s my little PSA for today: if a taxi driver tries to harass you, get the three-digit number on the side of his car and report it.
I think yellow cab dispatcher is protecting the driver. All cabs have log sheets by law. I think if the cab company did a little research they could most likely find out the driver’s identity. I think if your really concerned you should file a police report. That is if you think there is a basis that an actual “crime” has taken place.
Another avenue of complaint is the City of Seattle’s Taxicab Passenger Complaint Hotline at 206.296.8294 (it spells out 206.296.TAXI).
You can file a written complaint by mailing a letter to:
Consumer Affairs Unit
805 South Dearborn St
Seattle, WA 98104
or you can email: seattle.consumer-affairs@seattle.gov
That is really a hassle…sorry that happened to you.
I *try* to make a habit of getting that three-digit number whenever i get into the cab regardless because it also helps when you forget a camera/purse/cat in the backseat.
ewwww. that is CREEEEPY. i’d try as hard as possible to get this guy in trouble. make a big stink with the cab company… in the name of all of us single girls who ride cabs by ourselves.
Okay, not to sound calous (or to spell it correctly)…but did he make any attempts to leave the car and follow you? Did he make any physical moves towards you?
When you said no did you elaborate? Or was it just “no” and perhaps he doesn’t take hints well? Or was just jokingly flirting. I mean before we get up in arms, I fail to see what he has done that was illegal… I understand that you felt unsafe, and I’m not critisizing that feeling, I am just wondering if you maybe didn’t jump to conclusions that this man would actually make a physical move toward you, when to him he was flirting?
Often, especially when living as a white girl in ecuador, I would get this from cab drivers because it was not acceptable to them to have a girl home alone. But a sweet smile and strong refusal with an explination that I did not want them there always got rid of them.
If he had made any physical moves toward me, I would have called the police, not the taxi company. I had just (stupidly) told someone who was not taking no for an answer and who knows where I live now that there wasn’t anyone waiting for me. It might be over reacting a little, but I’d rather look a little dumb than be in jeopardy.
He was not flirting, and I was clearly saying that no, it was inappropriate that he was even asking. What he did wasn’t illegal, but it still made me feel unsafe, and that should be reported.
Something similar happened to me Friday night. I was really blotto after an office party and a girlfirend and I shared a cab up to capitol hill, where we dropped her off and then I went to Ballard. Mere seconds after dropping my friend off the cab driver asked if I was single, and then wanted to like shake my hand. It was a little weird, but at the time I didn’t think much of it. He asked me if I wanted to go out to dinner or something sometime. I was like, “uh, sure”. Ok, I didn’t really mean it, but I was super drunk. The creepy thing was when he dropped me off he was asking who I lived with, and then he got out of the cab, came over to my door and tried to kiss me. I was trying to get away and he pushed the front of his body up against my back, and said, “I bet you like that don’t you?” No, I don’t. Then as i’m walking away he put his hand down my coat and totally crabbed my breast. I was so creeped out. I really just wanted to get away, and more so I lacked the real mental capacity to deal with it. The next morning I called the cops. Even though I have this guy’s phone number they say their isn’t anything they can do unless I have the cab company. it was a dark blue cab. We’re waiting for the vouchers to come back.
The issue here is that this guy was totally taking advantage of me being drunk. I consider myself a strong willed person, and I was really really disturbed by it. He knows where I live.
Zee, thanks for posting the complaint line. I was trying to find one this weekend.
Of course, if you had successfully reported him, you might be in a more dangerous spot. The driver knows you live alone, where you live, and where you hang out socially.
Josh!!! Seriously, do you believe that?
Yes, if the perp is Ted Bundy, maybe he will be that relentless and vindictive, but most guys who do something like this will pick the most vulnerable person they see.
And calling the police, the cab company or whomever is showing that you are LESS vulnerable. Statistically, it will make them go away, if they’re not caught, to target something weaker.
No more irrational fearmongering!!!