Hong Kong Taxi Thieves

I made this video for a friend who had $50,000 worth of camera equipment stolen by a Hong Kong cab driver.


The police say it's his word against the cab drivers, despite having his number plates from security footage.


Left on the back seat, brand new and never to be returned.


Reward for anyone who can point us in the direction of retrieving this gear.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XxObalpWjVg

That sucks.. HK police have this notorious attitude of not giving 2 sh*ts about petty theft.


But after looking at the video, it doesnt really help prove your case at all. I mean you took other taxi's with their license plates and put it in the video. It also alludes that all Hong kong Taxi drivers are thieves. that video had virtually nothing to do with your loss with the exception of the license plate.


Wish you LUCK!! I know how it is (Left my wallet in a cab only to see it drive away as I called the cab operator with the plate number and the cab driver just denied having seen me as a fare)

How do you know the driver took the camera? he may not have known it was there and the next passenger took it?

[UPDATE] Please note that fee quotes stated in historic postings may be out-of-date.


IF you feel strongly that you can PROVE, on the balance of probabilities (i.e. NOT as in CRIMINAL matters “beyond a reasonable doubt”) that the taxi driver took the video equipment…THEN your best remedy is to sue in Small Claims Court for “conversion”….you can claim UP TO and including HK$50,000 so it is made for this type of matter. There are NO LAWYERS allowed, costs of starting the action are low and it should be an excellent forum to show the sense of your claim……a Police enquiry will be long, time consumptive, troublesome and typically disappointing…


Weir & Associates

Solicitors & Notaries

16th Floor Tak Shing House

Theatre Lane

20 Des Voeux Road Central

Hong Kong

Tel : 2526-1767

Fax : 2868-3568

email : WeirLaw@weirandassociates.com

www.weirandassociates.com/weirlaw

[UPDATE] Please note that fee quotes stated in historic postings may be out-of-date.


Hyperlink for the Small Claims Tribunal website is as follows:-


http://www.judiciary.gov.hk/en/crt_services/pphlt/html/sc.htm


Weir & Associates

Solicitors & Notaries

16th Floor Tak Shing House

Theatre Lane

20 Des Voeux Road Central

Hong Kong

Tel : 2526-1767

Fax : 2868-3568

email : WeirLaw@weirandassociates.com

www.weirandassociates.com/weirlaw

I left my phone in a cab once in Sydney, gone. I was 18 and drunk, what's your excuse?

Your video doesn't show anything at all, no wonder the police don't care.


I am presuming that you had the camera with you in the back and it wasn't a situation where it was in the trunk and the driver refused to open it and drove off.


1. YOU left it in the taxi

2. It is NOT the driver's responsibility to check the back seat thoroughly in case some idiot left something there. His job is to drive. You didn't notice that your own belongings were in the taxi, why would the driver?

3. It is just as likely that the next passenger took your camera as the driver. Do you have pictures of the next passenger...? What if they didn't see it or take it, it could have been the one after that or the one after that...

4. You don't have any proof of anything, unless you have a video of the DRIVER picking up your camera you have *nothing*, and even then it doesn't prove much.


The best thing you can do is move on and don't do it again. I'll make it clear for you, it hurts, but this is YOUR OWN fault. You would be *extremely* lucky to have this returned to you in *any* country in the world.


The only possible thing I can see that is wrong here is if the company is refusing to help you get a message to the taxi driver, that that's about all you can expect them to do. They aren't going to give out his personal information like a phone number without a police order, and the police aren't going to order that without probable cause, which you don't have.


Moral of the story: look after your stuff.