Tourists charged almost £500 for five-minute taxi journey in New Zealand

It works out at almost £1 per metre travelled

The cable car is a star attraction in New Zealand's capital Wellington (iStock)

Unwitting tourists in New Zealand were charged almost £500 for a five-minute taxi ride.

Scottish holidaymakers John Barrett and his wife arrived into capital Wellington, on New Zealand’s North Island, and caught a cab outside the train station.

Their hotel was just 500 metres away, and the journey took five minutes – but Barrett was charged NZ$930 (£485), according to Stuff.

That works out at almost £1 per metre travelled.

According to Barrett, the white cab had a “Wellington” sign on the roof and the driver had ID.

The Scottish tourist said that the meter reading was under $10, but that the driver’s hand obscured the card reader when he paid by MasterCard – and he didn’t get a receipt.

When he checked his statement later, Barrett found a NZ$930 charge from “Taxi Wellington”. A quick internet search by The Independent failed to find any company of that name.

New Zealand’s taxi market is unregulated, and it’s understood that the driver was an independent one, and Barrett was unable to find out who was driving the taxi.

He has filled out an online complaints form from Wellington City Council.

It follows the case of two Thai tourists who were charged 247 euros for a journey from Charles de Gaulle Airport into Paris, nearly five times what the fare should be.

The driver was eventually identified and sentenced to eight months in prison.