How To Stay Safe When You're Taking A Taxi

I have been seeing different articles lately about kidnappings and killings involving taxis especially private ones. There has been a lot of news and news converge on various kidnappings that occur using taxis. Most of this done by the taxi driver.

Recently in my country the rate of kidnapping has dangerously increased and is becoming a cause for serious concerns. The one that is even more rampant is the one involving taxis drivers. Most of the crime is done on all this privately owned taxi businesses which I cannot mention here. The drivers are starting to become dangerous and people do not feel safe any more.

This is coming as a surprise to everyone because nobody excepted it. We all thought or should I say assumed that it was one of the safest ways of moving. It wasn't public. We had to pay extra for the comfort and ease. It was supposed to make us feel like it was our own car with our own driver but this is starting to not be the case.

A lot of us do not like to take public transport. The inconvenience is enough to make you think of saving up to buy your own car. There is no form of comfort at all. You get to meet crazy people in the bus who's sole mission is to irritate and frustrate you. You will be squeezed like a sandwich into the car with your whole body sticking out. The most annoying one is when you have to lap someone's child. The person won't tell you directly but will careful shift his/her child on to your lap.

So a lot of us have resorted to using private taxis owned by big businesses. Not only do they offer the necessary comfort but they provide no stress at all. That's why we were all worried when we started to hear this type of news and wondered what we were going to do. There has been reported cases of people being kidnapped in cars in the commercial capital of my country. One even happened recently where a lady was killed in a BRT. If not for her cleverness in making a video and taking pictures and also her friends sharing it to the police and the public we wouldn't have known what happened and be able to identify the driver. Unfortunately she left clues to her own death.

This was a really sad story as her parent could not comprehend the loss. They were devastated by the news and wondered how could it have happened in a sane society. This is why I have decided to write an article talking about how to stay safe in taxis so that situations like this won't happen again.

First of all you need to know the identify of the driver. This is the first thing you do when you enter the car. You need to make sure that it is the same with what is on the app. You need to take note of the face and any distinct facial markings. This is done so as to easily identify the person.

Also you need to take note of the Vehicles plate number or should I say registration number. The cars brand and color is also important so take note. I would have said that you should write down the VIN but that's doing too much. Who knows maybe it will be useful, you can never do too much when it comes to safety.

Again if you notice that the car locks are damaged I would advise that you do not enter. That is a new tactic use by this kidnappers. If you also notice a funny smell in the car do not enter especially if the driver is using a nose mask. He might be trying to render you unconscious. Lastly if the driver is behaving strangely or is acting off that is a red flag. Nothing gives off a warning sign more than the attitude and behavior of a driver.

In Conclusion

You can never be to safe when it comes to your safety. I will advise everyone to be more careful during this period and to always be vigilant.