Passenger Complains, "Please Understand... I Lost Hundreds of Millions"
Fines and Penalty Points Imposed for Using Phone While Driving
A story has emerged about a passenger who protested against a taxi driver distracted by stocks and was left anxious due to retaliatory driving.
According to JTBC's 'Case Officer' on the 29th, the informant who took a taxi to go to the hospital on the 27th of last month experienced an absurd incident.
The video taken by the informant shows the taxi driver looking at a mobile phone while driving.
The informant claimed, "From the moment I got in, he kept looking at his phone checking stock situations," and "He was calling someone to buy and sell stocks."
In fact, the taxi driver in the video was heard talking to someone, saying, "Manager, sell at market price," and "You have the 350,000 won stock of OOOO (stock name), right?" At the same time, he checked the stock screen and placed orders while driving.
The taxi driver focused on stocks not only while waiting at signals but also while driving. Even when the light changed, he did not start moving because he was looking at his phone, causing the car behind to repeatedly honk.
As the taxi driver repeatedly missed signals due to being distracted by his phone, the informant, worried about being late for the hospital appointment, protested to the driver.
However, the taxi driver replied, "Please understand," and said, "I lost hundreds of millions. I shouldn't be doing this, but I can't let go," continuing to trade stocks while driving.
Eventually, when the informant lost patience and got angry, the driver became defensive and drove aggressively, repeatedly accelerating and braking suddenly.
The driver even told the informant to get off before reaching the destination, saying, "You should get off around here."
The informant complained to the taxi platform, and the platform responded that they had warned the driver and would proceed with a refund. However, it was reported that the informant has not yet received an apology from the driver.
Meanwhile, the leading cause of highway accidents is reported to be distracted driving (30.4%). According to the Road Traffic Act, watching videos while driving results in a fine of 60,000 won and 15 penalty points for passenger cars. Using a mobile phone while driving receives the same penalty. If you witness a driver watching videos or using a phone, you can record it with a black box and report it to the Smart National Reporting system.
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