Don't worry those bastards trick everyone. They tricked me too.
It was a very clever con actually, he clearly had a lot of practice. I will share the details so people are aware of these sorts of cons.
I got into a taxi as it was raining and cold, i had set off without a coat as it was nice and warm but later on in the day the weather turned and my family and I were caught out in the rain.
1. He seated us all in the back seat. On the front seat he had a digital meter sat on the seat. Turns out this was a fake metre. I did not know this at the time. I later found out that most taxi's have their meters built into the rear view mirror in Istanbul.
2. He drove us back to the hotel and stopped in the middle of traffic, but not immediately outside the hotel. There are two reasons he did this. Firstly as the pile up of traffic behind him would create pressure for the exchange of cash to be quick, and secondly because he didn't want to draw attention to hotel staff who might look out for their guests.
3. He asked for an amount of money i considered unreasonable. I argued but he kept pointing to the meter, so reluctantly i paid him.
4. As I was paying him he did a trick where he swapped a larger note for a smaller one. He knew the tourists are unfamiliar with the notes and so there is scope for doubt. I told him i gave you a bigger note, but he showed me the note in his hand and it was of a smaller denomination. I assumed i had made a mistake. Little did i know they switch them when you're not looking. I found this out afterwards from the internet.
Tips for anyone using a taxi in Istanbul...
1. Use the buses or trams. It's much easier and you can pay using the istanbulkart. The quality of public transport is superb.
2. if you do choose you use a taxi, Use the Taksi app or Uber if possible.
3. If you are going from the hotel to somewhere, ask the hotel for an estimate on the price. Check the price of the journey before and have the right cash already counted out seperately.
4. Pay your fare slowly and at once. Count out the cash so there is no scope for doubt. They play these tricks if you are rooting around in your wallet looking for notes.
