Originally Posted by ned
We spent two weeks in Argentina in October and are planning another trip next November. Needless to say we loved it. One comment on the counterfeit bills is this is not just a tourist scam. While shopping in San Telmo a clerk carefully examined our bills. We asked what she looked for and she showed us. She also showed us several counterfeit bills that had been passed at the store. It seems that the owner is elderly and has poor eye sight. This is apparently understood and makes him particularly susceptible to the scam. Although we did not experience the taxi scam described in this thread we did experience another one. One evening returning from dinner at La Estancia to the Hilton I noticed the meter seemed to be racing . When we arrived the bill seemed to be out of line with previous taxi fares. Well it was late, diner was good, the wine was better, life was good, and what is the big deal about a $9 cab fare? Next time the same ride was maybe $3. If this is as bad as it gets, no problem.
Everywhere in the world -- from DC/NYC to Buenos Aires to London to Stockholm to Delhi to places far off the beaten path, I note the cab-related info (incl. license plate number, driver info generally displayed on inside of cab, etc.) and try to call it in/message it in to be kept for a quarter. This helps in case something is left in the cab or if there is some other kind of issue. Overkill? Perhaps, but it's a habit that has delivered good results where otherwise an unfortunate incident may have either manifested or been unresolvable.
That said, I've observed cabbies in DC and Lisbon most routinely and excessively (vis-a-vis standard fare) rip off customers and do so unapologetically on an industry-wide basis than in Buenos Aires. There are bad apple cabbies and truly unscrupulous "posers" in Buenos Aires too, but if armed with a cell phone, using a radio taxi and you make it apparent to the driver that you are communicating the details of your taxi, then the likelihood of being fleeced decreases.