People often take cabs and taxis to get to their destination, and of course, you would need to pay for the drivers’ services. But did you know that after driving a mother to Great Ormond Street Hospital, London cabbies refuse to accept payment for the trip?
It is customary for London black cab drivers to refuse payment for trips to and from Great Ormond Street Hospital after a heartwarming story about a mother and her son.
A London Cabbie Driver’s Heartwarming Story
A London cabbie has won the nation’s hearts after a video of him refusing to accept payment from a mother driving her son to Great Ormond Street Hospital went viral. The anonymous black cab driver allowed My London to use the video required in taxis for insurance purposes, and it has gone viral on Twitter.
The taxi is parked outside the Bloomsbury Children’s Hospital, and as the woman approaches to pay the fare, the driver says
I don’t think you understand me – you don’t get to pay. Great Ormond Street, we don’t take payment.
Anonymous Cabbie Driver
The mom is visibly surprised and thankful, and she and her son thank the driver. She expresses her gratitude to the driver several times before exiting the cab, and the driver responds,
You take care, madam.
Anonymous Cabbie Driver
Many others said it renewed their faith in humanity, especially after a long and challenging pandemic. Karen, the Chair of United Cabbies Group, a taxi drivers’ organization in London. The act, she said, was part of a long tradition among London taxi drivers.
When you get a fare to Great Ormond Street we don’t charge our customers, A lot of parents do regular trips to the hospital, and we’ve maintained this no fare tradition for a long time. The reason he posted the video was because it was nice to see the smile on the ladies face after such a tough year.
Karen
(Source: My London)
Other Cab Driver Customs You Might Don’t Know
Karen has been a cab driver for 14 years and comes from a cab-driving family. She also shared another custom for new drivers.
The first job you get as a cabbie you give it to your customer for free, if they’re insistent on paying then we will make that into a donation to Great Ormond Street instead.
Karen
Her first trip was from Kennington Lane to Finsbury Pavement, and she recalls it like it was yesterday.
It was a guy that was going to work in the city and then I picked him up about three years later not far from where I dropped him off the first time. “He remembered how I was the one to give him that ride which was lovely.
Karen
She also mentioned how drivers would give free rides to NHS staff during the lockdown during the height of the pandemic.
We just want to give back to our city and its people because we love London.
Karen
(Source: My London)