TICKETING TRAVESTIES


EDINBURGH AIRPORT CABBIE ‘CHARGED £5,500’ FOR 10 MINUTES AFTER DROP-OFF SYSTEM GLITCH


A taxi driver has told how the Edinburgh Airport drop off system recently tried to charge him a £5,500 drop-off fee. The black cabbie, who also acts as Unite union rep, says that the problem has hit a number of drivers who have


found


themselves stung by a glitch in the system. They said that shortly after the new drop-off zone had opened, they approached the barrier only to find that the airport was requesting thousands from them. Somehow


the system had


calculated that the cab had been in the short stay drop off from June 1-19, despite the vehicle only being in the space for under ten minutes. Another driver captured a picture of their charge which was calculated at £2,386 for one day, 15 hours and 55 minutes - this was despite them exiting the space within the allotted ten-minute period. Those dropping off customers or family and friends in the short stay drop-off for less than ten minutes would normally incur a £5 fee in June and July 2023, but there appears to have been an issue with the system as prices were calculated incorrectly. The union rep says that on both occasions the above


incidents


were swiftly dealt with by staff at the airport after contactless card payments would not process the extortionate fee. But on another occasion a driver was charged £73 for a one hour 22- minute stay when they again left within the allotted ten-minute


PHTM SEPTEMBER 2023


window - their system showed that they picked up their customer at 5.45pm and dropped them at the airport at 6.04pm before leaving promptly. Another driver was also charged £30 incorrectly but both have been made to wait weeks to refunded.


be


“It happened to me back in June when I dropped off a customer and I was asked to pay £5,500 at the barrier as it had calculated my stay from June 1 until June 19,” said the union rep, who wished to remain anonymous. “This was despite me only being in there for a few minutes dropping folk off. I was then charged £302 again about a fortnight ago. “On both occasions I pressed the button at the barrier and someone let me out. They just said they had been having issues with it. “Another one of our drivers was charged over £2,000 but didn’t have to pay it again because the contactless knocked back with limits over £100. "Unfortunately though a couple of other drivers were stung as they


just tapped their cards and later saw the charges. “They have been trying to get that money back for weeks now. One of them was told that if they try to chase it they will get put back to the end of the queue for a refund. “It seems like they are just trying to make as much money as possible.” He added that while taxi drivers notice such wrong charges, members of the public may not or would not bother fighting the extra fees. Airport bosses say that the issue of incorrect drop off fees has been sorted. They added that refunds are always offered when fees are incorrect but these take time to process. A spokesman for Edinburgh Airport said: “We are aware of a technical issue which affected some drivers using the Pickup & Dropoff area. This was resolved by July 20 and no longer persists. “Those affected will be refunded and any queries raised at the exit barrier were resolved at the time. We apologise for any in- convenience.”


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