This video was uploaded a day ago, yet the comment shows "1 month ago", did you already schedule it so far ahead? Also big props for clearing up so many questions and scams in 1 video, I feel more and more prepared for anything that can happen
They should, but it doesn't happen. It's like that bullsh*t "tax" in restaurants where they add another 10% out of nowhere, and not just simple joints but even relatively fancy Pilsner Urquell partner restaurants. It's illegal, they do it anyway, nobody cares, because they don't have to care because in CZ they will at worst get some silly little fine and can carry on. The legal system when it comes to fraudulent activities is extremely lax in Czech Republic, which is a damn shame because it is such a beautiful country with great food, sights, beer, etc.
just sue em honestly, don't pay the fine and if the ticket inspector calls the police and they arrest you, even better. I mean the audacity of someone to fine anybody because their equipment is broken. Like wth..?
Well, if you would read the binding agreement that's accepted when you enter any public transportation, you would find that it's your responsibility to make that your ticket is correct and valid. I'm not defending anybody,it's not fair and it's shitty, but it's most definitely not illegal and you would lose badly in court.
My friend bought 2 tickets from one of those machines that didn’t print at all. The man in the kiosk was lovely and walked us through the process of getting a refund via a phone call, the money was back in my friend’s account within 3 days. The man also advised going to a manned kiosk instead of a machine.
This is a correct solution, they will help you in official DPP place or on their phone number, but never expect that ticket inspector will help you. Just buy another ticket somewhere else and then ask for refund for your badly printed ticket.
I‘d never expect to get an invalid ticket refunded by making a phone call. I‘d not even expect the call would be answered in English. At best, there will be a automatic reply, in whatever the local language is 😂
@@llejk Not all companies are american corporations, there are still companies that have real support where you speak with living person who can find someone who speaks English if it's needed. And I guess that on these help link, they should speak English, a lot of tourists are probably calling there and knowledge of English is pretty much basic education for people who work on such positions, if would be vice versa weird if they didn't speak it. 🙂
You can get a refund yes, there are many public transport info stations that will handle that for you, there is also a publically available phone number you can call if you're unsure where to go and how to get this sorted. The only issue being that they issue refunds only to your bank account and it may take up to a ~month. Just make sure you at least remember which machine you bought the ticket from, there's a small number you can write down on the touchscreens of the machines at the bottom right, that will do.
See the biggest issue is that there is an incentive for the inspector to give out fines rather than help you - they get a kickback from any fine paid. So of course they'll give out as many as they possibly can, given that they have little to no accountability - especially to tourists who are most likely not going to file any sort of complaint. And if they do, it'll most likely be denied anyway, due to DPP's (Prague's public transport company) shitty terms - apparently you're supposed to check if the ticket is printed correctly.
I had an issue with a ticket i bought from a machine in prague: the ticket was oversized and wouldnt fit in the stamping slot. I actually went to the local transportation office in Sokolska, where they told me, I kid you not, I should contact ''the company that maintains the ticket machines''. It was a 3 day ticket, which costs a considerable amount of money, my only way out of it was to buy a new one. Not cool.
Hey i am the person from the ticket story. I actually ended up not paying a fine and just had to buy another ticket. This happened at the cable car and luckily they checked downstairs still. So i just had a very angry agent accusing me of “trying to sneak in” and didn’t allow me in. Threatened me of a fine because even though i didn’t ride i was already past the ticket gate. But after arguing convinced me to only buy a new ticket which i did.
Both you still ended up paying for two tickets and only using one? Not having to pay the fine is nice, but if they make you buy a second ticket and you are out the money of the first ticket that is still messed up.
@@Man_In_Black_and_White Whether they would depends on the individual inspector, of course, but they can. The reason some might choose not to is because while the law is very clear in that they _can_ use force to detain you, it's very ambiguous as to _how much_ force. The law only says the force must be proportional to the damage you're trying to cause, i.e. the price of the fine, which isn't a whole lot, so they can't use a lot of force, but how much is too much will have to be decided in court on case by case basis... which is why the many inspectors won't bother. (Note that if you fight the inspector, you're suddenly crossing into self-defense territory and they can now use _a lot_ of force, so if you choose to go this route, make sure to not do anything that could be considered an attack or you're toast.)
If you're a local and you get fined for that, you can fight the fine in court and probably win - but no tourist is going to do that, so I definitely consider that a scam.
Until that happens to a lawyer who will successfully claim the costs of a flight between Tokyo and Prague, accommodation costs to attend the court case, as well as all legal expenses and financial losses due to spending time on this.
Plus I wouldn’t even know the ticket printed incorrectly if was the first ticket I buy. It’s strange though the inspector couldn’t scan the ticket, like the machine would do and see when it’s valid for (since the ticket still worked on the machine)
Just chargeback it once you are home. Your country will definitely not extradite you for a fee, and they can't ban you, because you are buying it with a card or cash.
Had a similiar problem in Belgrade once. I bought a ticket and I should validate it, but somehow I got it wrong. Ticket inspector came and he pointed out that I did something wrong. But this guy was so nice he did not only not fine me but showed me how to validate ticket correctly.
Because in Prague, they have extra money for amount of people they fine, so that's the difference compared to Vienna and other cities with this system. We all know it's wrong and we all know that DPP is leaded by corrupt mafians, but politicians have no balls to do something with that.
This is how it worked in Prague too, a decade ago or so. Then someone got the bright idea to 1) reward inspectors for each fine issued and 2) hire part-time amateurs instead of full-time professionals. Ticket inspectors used to help you; now it's fairly likely you'll just meet a guy who wants his bonus money and that's all they care about. In the past few years especially I've met some really nasty inspectors and reported them - every inspector _must_ show you his badge and let you record the employee number. Do that, and complain. They're not doing their job, and someone should set them straight or fire them. It's not even about the money. The actual fares only make up something like 16% of the actual "income" of the public transit system. It's paid for mostly by taxes - though, of course, the short-term tickets are more realistically priced than the long-term tickets, and the subway is by far the most expensive part of the system per passenger.
On my first tram ride in Brno I put my ticket into the validation machine and nothing happened, so I walked further down the tram and used the next machine. When I put the ticket in, it made the stamping noise noise, and when I looked at the ticket it seemed like something was stamped on there, but since it was my first time validation a Brno metro ticket, I wasn't sure. Sure enough at the next stop, Metro ticket checkers came onboard and the agent said my ticket wasn't validated. Luckily her associate saw that the machine was malfunctioning and took me to the 3rd machine which was functional, and validated my ticket. So at least 1 of the 3 machines worked, and they didn't give me a fine.
@@thundergod111 In Europe, metro mostly means underground railway system, like subway for americans. All bigger cities have public transit system. Metro can also mean metropolitan area, which means bigger aglomeration around big city. For Prague for example, these are smaller towns and cities that close to Prague that pretty much everyone works in Prague and these places mostly have direct trains and buses to Prague and these people often have month or year passes for their zones, so they don't care about some paper tickets.
That's another scam how to get more money from city budget - ticket machines that run on windows....these things are really unbeliavable in 2024 that it is still happening. Some people really belive that make public transportation for free would be actually cheaper, because it's donated anyway and you could remove all ticket inspectors and these cheating machines that cost a lot of money.
The question with the ticket is: What to do, if you are approached by ticket inspector, who demands to pay a fine despite this not being your fault? Ticket inspector says: "Pay now!", while customer support says: "Do not pay and dispute the fine". What are the tourists supposed to do? Call to some Czech-speaking hotline while having aggressive ticket inspector shouting on them? Call the police on the ticket inspectors?
At least here, you get the fine. Take a walk over to the customer support in the city centre and take it with them. If you are right, they remove the fine. You do not pay the ticket inspector. Happens all the time
PID app should be promoted, they can advertise it next to every station and even make it visible on the ticket machines. Buying tickets from the app is better in every possible way as long as you have a phone and internet :)
The ticket inspectors are sadly incentivized to have no remorse and no feelings as they get a bonus for every person they catch that doesn't have a ticket, every fine paid is a salary increase, that's why they are "assholes" sometimes. They would be spineless because it's in their interest sadly.
I would still not gonna pay even if he wants its the machine problem so he can call the police beacause I have the proof on my bank account that i paid and the ticket without the right printing
They don't get bonuses, stop spreading FUD. They are instructed to fine everyone without a valid ticket. Any issues with the fine or ticket has to be handled by people who can actually verify the customers claim.
@@SomethingUnique404 Oh you think I am spreading FUD? I work in the company lmao and I got to know a fair few ticket inspectors. They specifically talked about this and even said "it's the reason why you just give a fine to the lady with a stroller and you don't budge"
I still wouldn't pay the fine, not if it wasn't my fault like in this case and I had proof of purchase. Absolutely not, not my problem that the machine doesn't work properly.
Always love your videos. You do so much credit to Prague. May I ask that in future videos about your wonderful public transport system that you explain the fare for a seniors? I am a big fan of public transport. I grew up in the NYC area, quite accustomed to that being an important element in urban life. Cities are only possible due to public transportation. So, once I started visiting other US cities and even Europe as a young American soldier more than 70 years ago, riding every new city's system has been a high priority. I've done that in Beijing, Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, Mexico City, Santo Domingo, Key West, Berlin, Dresden, Munich, Amsterdam, Paris, Moscow, San Fran, Chicago, New Orleans, Budapest, London, etc and . . . of course . . . PRAGUE. It was a delightful surprise when I stepped into the office near The Clock and said I wanted to buy a multi-pay pass and wanted to know if there is a senior discount. The woman behind the counter asked me how old I am. I think that my status is obvious, but she asked so pleasantly and respectfully, I told her. "I turned 90 three months ago." She smiled and said, "You don't need a ticket. Seniors ride free. Just have an official document with you to confirm that." SENIORS RIDE FREE! Thank you Prague.
the bus ticket thing is absolutely a scam. if the machine didn't correctly print the ticket it was the city at fault and not the buyer. there's no way he should have got a ticket
One day I bought a ticket on PID Lítačka and activated it outside the metro. And directly at the entrance of the metro I was controlled and the guy saw that the one minute counter before real activation was still red and decided to give me a fine. I love Prague but It was the first time I took a fine with a valid ticket. And it's the first time also I saw a control at the entrance of the metro, for me it was in general at the exit after the travel. As*h***.
Yes, this is shitty idea and some people will argue "But its written there that there is a timer before its validated"... Those people are just assholes. The only effective thing in this case is delaying with a fake ticket search... Or calling the police, but that is not so effective, because unfortunately the law is and will be on the side of the ticket inspector.
@@overdamczIf it is written there as a warning then why purposely break the law? Sure he may be an asshole, but you knew the rules and decided to break them. Thats your problem. The delay is there so the system can actually process it and people cant cheat the system by having a screen recording or something. 1 minute is nothing to wait. You can also just activate it before entering
When I was in prague, one of my friend's girlfriend came for the weekend and as she was student in france and not in czechia she was fined for having incorrect ticket. It was only indicated "students" and not "czech students" to get the student price (it's cheaper to get a 1-month student ticket than a normal 1-week ticket) and we all had 3-months students ticket so she assumed that she could too. And instead of explaining why it was incorrect he just fined her. I had to ask a czech student that had to read the transportation fee rules (in czech only for this part lol) to get the information that you had to have a czech student card to get the reduction. But when you take a student ticket you can only do that in the ticket office and you have to give your student card to bind the ticket with. I showed my french one and got no problem with. But apparently it should not work. So even if it works to get the ticket sometimes you will be fined.
You can absolutely buy a student ticket if you are a French student - you just need to have valid international student card (ISIC) and you are ok. If you meet a shatty inspector wanting to profit of tourists, just not give him money and let him send it to "správní řízení" (aka mini-court case). There you will be asked official way and would have a better chance then against a dickhead.
Hey gents! Kat from Australia here! Officially coming back in March next year but travelling with my mum who has limited mobility. Can you do a mobility episode? Like best places to eat/drink/see which is accessible for a wheelchair ❤ thank you!
Just this Friday, I've encountered a scammer in his 50s or 60s, claiming to be a Turkish man, far from a touristy area, I was on my way home from work. First he asked from where I was from, then begged for money because he can't afford gas for his car, his wife (presumably) sat beside him in silence, and the funny thing is that I saw the guy buy a kebab from a kebab stand just a few meters away (no money for gas, but for kebab? please..). Although I never encountered such a scammer before I already knew it was one of the "classic" scams thanks to Honest Guide, Wolter's World etc., and of course didn't give the guy any money.
@@pragueexpat5106 You are a real hero and save the World. Hill Billies would be very impressed: They never seen any Turkish People and eating Kebab... what a Story. Think this is UN Worlds Heritage
Experienced something very familiar. On one of the trams, the ticket validator machine was not printing validation when you stuck the ticket in. Five high school students I was with were fined 40 euro… but the validator machine was broken. But since the inspectors kicked the kids off the tram, they couldn’t show them the broken machine. Very frustrating.
I would absolutely not pay any fines, the machine should be working correctly, if it doesn't, that is not the consumer's fault. I would wait for police to resolve this. What a disgrace.
Funny, I was there in May and the same ticket machine charged me but did not give me a ticket at all. I had to talk to that same lady to get a ticket. I see they still haven't activated windows 😅 I remembered to validate the ticket because of your videos otherwise, I would have just gone through without knowing I had to do it, like the 10 or so people in front of me.
You should send the video about the tram tickets to the city. No one should be fined for improper maintenance of city infrastructures. This needs to change.
@8:16 this kinda thing happens all the time here as well. Let's say you are a student and have temporarily misplaced your student ID. You will get a fine. However, if you go to the helpdesk in the city centre with your student ID they will revoke your fine and you don't have to pay. The ticket inspector does not solve any problem. They just hand out tickets.
To me it seemed like a scam from the moment you do all the right things (pay, validate, show invoice...) and some controllers look for any reason to fine you or get those 40 euros. Very surprising that “40 euros” they did know how to say it in our language (Spanish), but for the rest of the conversation they barely knew how to speak English or Czech. I refused to pay on the spot and they still insisted on approaching me to a cashier or whatever..... I am still waiting for the fine with surcharge to arrive. I know it won't happen... xD Actually the whole anecdote is enough to make a youtube video, but very nice Prague and your map was great. ❤
My uncle was a leery (lamp lighter) in my little village pre-war. There were only 400 people and I think only one street actually had lamps leading from the train station, across the bridge to the two hotels so he probably had 10 lamps to light.
It's not a scam, this Czech man says. Where I come from it would indeed be a scam, since the inspector would have immediately acknowledged the fact that the person had bought the ticket in good faith at an official machine. Mr. Honest Guide, I think you have been so used to scammers in your city that you can no longer see all the scams there; and there are a LOT of scams in Prague. A LOT!
And that's exactly how it was a decade ago or so. It's a great shame inspectors are staffed more and more with awful people with horrible incentives. You're doing customer service, dammit, you can't just hire some part-time amateur who gets bonuses for how many people he fines.
It's almost certain that the city didn't set the machine up to misprint tickets, but it's also almost certain they knew about the problematic ticket machine and did nothing about it to make money.
I hate the fact that czech public transport inspectors only go for tourists hoping they bought the wrong ticket. They totally skip not only homeless people but basically anyone who does not have paper time ticket or SMS. With ad-hoc tickets there is highest chance of sincere mistake and they go for that, because they can get the most fees in the shortest amount of time. Once someone says he/she doesnt have a ticket but neither an ID and they should wait for the police, the inspector plays a little act in front of other passengers and after about 10 seconds they let them go. Catching mistakes, letting notorious stowaways go.
Absolutely not. Plenty of locals get fines too. However, most locals using public transport have a long-term ticket (like Lítačka) or use SMS/app to buy their tickets. I've always had them check my SMS ticket. And sure, they skip homeless people. But yes, the average quality of the ticket inspector dropped like crazy over the last decade or so. It's extremely likely you'll meet a vulture nowadays. It's sick.
The ticket printer doesn't print correctly and it shows the "activate Windows" prompt on the screen... In a different country that would be a lawsuit, in Prague it's just Wednesday or something
2:18 Bonus Czech words: "gas" is "plyn" (or "plynový/á/é" for the adjective), and "electricity" is "elektřina" (or "elektrický/á/é" for the adjective "electric"). That's why the icons on the map for gas and electric lamp posts are P and E, respectively.
Just got home from Prague last Sunday. Saturday night did a boat cruise with that group you have in your video and got completely verbally assaulted by the boat captain. He started out by cussing another group and then told everybody to get the F out of his boat. It was a horrible end to what was a lovely trip. I was not fast enough moving out of his way, so he got within 6 inches of my face and just started yelling at me.
Ok but seriously, YOU GUYS NEEED to do something about those ticket machines! And I don't mean fix the machines, but actually think about a good solution, if you don't want to issue electronic or different kind of tickets and have to rely on the stamping thing every time, then just make a law that would completely exempt tourists AND LOCALS alike from paying the fine, once they just show proof of purchase.... Why didn't you mention, what do locals do when the machine doesn't print the ticket AND they don't notice in time, do they then just get fined just like tourists? What about people from other cities with more robust, functional ticketing systems (.... you have those, right?) Thanks for the video!
There are SMS and mobile app tickets. I haven't used a paper ticket in a very long time :) The systems rarely had trouble when the tourist numbers were much lower; it just gets worse and worse with how many more people are using the machines (locals usually aren't). That said, you can absolutely dispute the fine. Yes, you are required to have a valid ticket to enter subway stations/vehicles, but the ticket machine taking your money and not giving you a printed ticket is not right. It's not that long ago when an inspector would just tell you "Oh, that ticket isn't printed right; it's supposed to have the fare printed on. Here, have a replacement." Record their employee number and report them for any kind of unprofessional behaviour. That's the only way to stop this. Someone decided to hire amateurs and give them bad incentives; they need to fix that.
Out of curiosity I looked at my old Prague public transport tickets I bought on my lasts visits ... on all tickets it's correctly printed, except for one. It's validated but nothing is printed over the orange arrow. Sadly, I can't remember at which station I bought it.
what a dysfunctional ticket system in finland the ticket machine prints out a ticket and you don't have to worry about stamping it we phased the old stamping machines decades ago
The ticket thing is absurd. It's their ticket, it's their machine. If the ticket is incorrectly printed, it is their problem, as long as you can prove you paid the appropriate fare. I would immediately call the police and refuse to pay any fine. If something like that happened in my country and the tourist called the police, the police would just laugh at the inspector.
Of course, you _can't_ prove you paid the appropriate fare, especially if you paid in cash. And yes, absolutely - don't let yourself get bullied. Let them call the police if they want - they _will_ laugh at the inspector and the inspector knows it. And take their employee number (they are required to show you a badge and let you record their number). There's a lot of scumbags among the inspectors nowadays, and they need to be rooted out and the system changed back again. Report, dispute. I got a parking fine in Switzerland recently. Absolutely horrible customer service on every level. It took months to finish the dispute - and yes, they absolutely expect you not to bother as a foreigner. The fine you get even tells you that if you don't comply, there will be a court case _in Switzerland_ , to bully you into compliance. We just have to let them know very clearly that this is not acceptable, and to stop bullying people.
I looked at the thumbnail: I thought "oh dear, are they trying to resell tickets from months ago where the ink has faded"? Westminster has lamplighters too, but the lamps are controlled by a timer and only lit manually if the timer is faulty. The sailors on Crusaders' Square I note are all African. I think they are contracted to a recruitment agency active around the Gulf of Guinea.
the ticket inspector situation is not a "scam" because they didn't set it up...BUT it's definitely corrupt behaviour because they get incentives based on how many people they "catch", so he/she didn't do it to be an a**hole, they did it because they knew they could get away with it due to them being tourists
Almost feel like the ticket one is the worst one here. Yeah scammers are everywhere and some people are jerks, but if the government is doing it than that's a whole other deal. Almost feels like the company purposely leaves the machines broken so that they can charge the tourist twice, that's disgusting. You should ask your viewers that bought tickets and than then got fined because of the faulty ticket to send in their story, it would be interesting to see the numbers.
In the little room on the bridge across from Narodni divadlo, there was a strudel 'gallery'. They weren't allowed to sell baked goods, but they were allowed to sell art.
I would disagree that the bad ticket situation isn't a scam. Public transportation is run by a state actor. The same state actor that also gives out fines. The city may not have deliberately set out to commit a crime, but that's exactly what this boils down to. The city should not even be ALLOWED to fine people if they can prove they did buy a valid ticket and the city simply failed to adequately maintain its ticket machines, otherwise they're perversely incentivized to enrich themselves three times off of every single ticket: The initial sale, the fine, and the victim being forced to buy an extra ticket.
How do you prove you bought a valid ticket, though, especially if you paid with cash? The value of the ticket wasn't printed on the ticket because there's no ink. Oops. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely agree this is a horrible behaviour and they should stop. It's clear the ticket was printed wrong, and that's no fault of yours. This obsession with catching the wrongdoers at all costs is ridiculous and stupid. Cheaters will always cheat. Treat customers fairly. As for "enriching themselves", the system is paid for from taxes. Valid tickets cover about 15% of expenditures (in some years, less than 5%). Fines? 0.6% or so. It just doesn't make any sense to treat your customers this way just because they made a mistake (or worse, the machine didn't work!). And it didn't use to be this way a decade ago or so. The idiot who thought it would make sense to hire amateurs and incentivize them for number of fines issued should pay for all this unnecessary pain and bad blood.
I was fined 1000czk because I bought the "wrong" ticket from the PID app. I was supposed to buy ticket for prague but instead I bought the suburban. the thing is, the prices are the same. So its not like im trying to cheat or anything. When I was asking him to show me how to buy the prague ticket, he helped me but ten he told me to not activate the ticket and to let him fine me. I did not want to get in trouble and was in a hurry so I give that poor man the money for his hard work.
"What do you think the ticket inspector does?" Well if I was the inspector, I would ask where the machine was so I could report back a faulty unit to- "He fines him." Oh... Sounds like someone's tired of the weather..
Faulty tickets are definitely a scam. The inspector of the ticket knew, yet won't do anything to remedy it, so they're double dipping and not fixing it on purpose. It should be as easy as a software update that takes 5 minutes. Something to look into whether this issue is fixed sooner than later. It seems malicious if it's still a problem a few weeks later.
Why do you think it's a software problem? There's no ink in the machine. The traffic is much higher than what the system was designed for, and for some reason they haven't been able to improve that to keep up with the increase in traffic (mostly tourists, since locals rarely use the ticket machines). Yes, the inspector shouldn't fine you for that. It's impossible to distinguish a cheater from someone who didn't notice the ticket isn't printed right, but it's stupid to err on the side of "EVERYONE'S A CHEATER AND I'M SUCH A HERO FOR CATCHING THEM, DURR DURRR".
The ticket issue looks like a tourist trap made on purpose. Even though you somehow manage to get the fine refund, not many people will go through that hassle to negotiate with someone who barely speaks airport English, who will require you to send mail here and there, and at the end of the day it will cost you more money and time that it is not even worth it to try.
It's not on purpose, this is just petty bureaucracy. That ticket controller was "just doing his job", no more, no less. Being petty bureaucrat and petty in general seems to be the main part of the job. Remember this is the city where Kavka lived.
@@richardaubrecht2822 Possible. But the locations of the broken machines mentioned in the video are suspicious. Why are those machines broken (not printed, out of ink) so often at tourist hotspots? Coincidence or 'friendly' convenience?
@@notetec1 How do you know they are not often broken outside tourist hotspots too? ;) Instead of tourist hotspots I'd say places with high traffic. And the people whose job is to check on those machines are lazy bums.
my primary income since I was young has been fixing broken things.. mostly computers.. I had a business fixing broken computers, making software, & selling computers.. I've since changed how the business operates but for a time my license plate on my car said Broken & people did not understand what it meant, they always asked, I got a lot of strange people asking what it meant.... I had to really make an effort to escape from these people
Greetings from Poland! To be honest, we prefer your other word for "broken", which is "poruhany". 😂 I enjoy watching your videos, you're doing a great job, brother.
I just love how Polish and Czech language are simmilar, yet so different. Rozbity in Polish means crashed, like a car or plane. Broken is popsuty. Its my little hobby to find these diferences.
Yes, that is what people should do, don't argue with ticket inspectors, it's pointless, just pay the fine and then complain. You have several DPP headquaters in Prague, when you are there for several days, you can definitely visit them.
@@Pidalin I went to the DPP HQ close to that church that looks like a toilet. I am not sure, but I think I did require to have a Czech bank account, which I luckily had at the time.
8:52 - The ticket machine that consistently prints faulty tickets... That smells like an intentional attempt by the transportation company to catch tourists off guard to fine them... I hate Czech Republic so much.
It doesn't consistently print faulty tickets, it just runs out of ink... and without ink, it cannot print. It's just that due to the ever increasing volume of tourists, the machines can't handle the load they weren't designed for (I hope they improve that). Locals rarely use them - they usually have a long-term ticket or buy with SMS/app. You can dispute this and get your money back, and you shouldn't be paying any fine. It's just that the inspectors are horrible nowadays, and have all the wrong incentives to treat the people with respect and politeness. Report them - they are required to show you their badge and record their employee number.
Over 10 years ago as a group 3 of our 20+ group got pulled for being lost and riding 1 stop on the tram out of bounds. Totally right to do a fine. Totally******* to fine 3 people lost and 1 stop out of their zone. We all also "scammed" to pay for "free" shots from a bar which took far too much work to find the price. And told to pay €5 each for the musician who was sent to us.
If you get a fine on a bus, tram, etc. in Prague, are they enforceable against tourists? If one fails to pay the fine and leaves the country, is there any way for the Polish authorities to collect the fine from foreign citizens? The reason I ask is that this was in the news very often 10-20 years ago where we had many trailer drivers from old Eastern Bloc countries who for various reasons received fines in Norway and who simply left the country and without paying the fine. It went so far that the Norwegian authorities started making arrests in the trailer until the fine was paid. I did a couple of quick searches to find out if the Norwegian authorities can collect fines from foreign tourists, and the answer, as far as I can see, is that it only applies to citizens of a few countries we have an agreement with (such as Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Iceland), but the Norwegian State Collection Agency ("Statens Innkrevingssentral") is supposedly very helpful to other countries when we Norwegians do not pay fines we receive abroad...
Earlier this year my ticket wouldn't validate when I put it in the machine on the bus - first time that's ever happened in Prague. Two other passengers seeing this tried it as well & it just wouldn't work. One told me if an inspector comes on board I'll be fined no matter if the ticket is defective or not so I ended up getting off at earlier stop rather than risk it. Later that night the same ticket worked on a machine at the Metro so I guess some of the machines just don't work right. Given that locals probably don't use them much, mostly tourists, hopefully that's not deliberate.
The good thing about being an American or British tourist is that if you did receive a fine, just tell them your details and you're good to go so that when you receive a fine through your mailbox will be pretty laughable since they have no jurisdiction grounds to make you pay in a none-EU country.
Don't do it, even when they have no rights in US or Britain, you can get to problems when you return to EU after years. Better pay fine and then go to DPP headquaters and complain, you will deal with them much easier than with ticket inspectors.
@@castorchua I am not inspector, I don't like them, I am just saying that you won't make any deal with them and you will end in handcuffs if you will be resisting or agressive, they are mostly there with city police and police doesn't care about your ticket, they will jump on you when you don't cooperate and argue forever. Just pay it and then visit DPP headquaters and deal with them, it will be much faster. And don't forget that Czech Republic = EU and schengen, when you just argue with them and end with fine and not paying, it can find you even in other EU country after years, these things are not fun, the same as not paying fines for speeding or bad parking. Even when you believe you are in right, the fastest and easiest way is just to pay it and complain later.
The machine prints an invalid ticket and you are charged a fine? Looks like an intentionaly set up tourist trap to me. I was on Bologna in the mid 2000s. The ticket machine for public transport took my 20 EURO bill and never gave change. So I went to the office and filed a complaint. I had to fill out a 13 page complaint manifesto (all in Italian) to try to get my money back. I refused and told them I will call the police. Sure do, they said, they will escort you out of the building. Some things are so obvious.
The guy who got fined should of appealed the decision with the local council You have what 14 days or so to pay it right and as a tourist he wont be there long any way
When I was in Prague a few years ago, my friends and I confinced one of the sellers to give use the boat ride for 13 euros and two free beers per person lol
That validation of tickets sounds like an scam to my Mexican ears. Here in CDXM I get my bus card , put money into it and I am ready to commute. Heck! I even went to Montreal last weekend and got OPUS card to use their metro and bus systems. Not a single time did I had to validate the card
Get a fitting needle printer, and print whatever ticket you like on the empty one you bought as a 30 minute ticket. And then watch how fast they'll run to fix the machine! 😄
Just to make things clear - in Bohemia "rozbitý" really means "broken" but in North Moravia (not sure about South) and Silesia "rozbitý" means "smashed up" or "shatered to pieces" - "broken" would be said as "pokažený"...
I was in Prague and bought the daily 24h ticket for public transport on the app. I was sure I bought it, because money was deducted from my account, but my mistake was that I didn't check the app if the ticket was actually there. Then inspector came, and it turned out there wasn't a ticket in the app (I don't know why). I got fined, even though I showed the inspector, that I paid for daily ticket (in the bank app). From then I avoid any apps for public transport tickets.
The inspector doesn't matter. You need to dispute with the HQ of the transportation company. If you can prove you paid for the ticket, they will refund the fine (or if you didn't pay it, just cancel it). Of course, that only helps you if it was actually paid - if it was e.g. just reserved and the money wasn't actually transferred to the company, it can be trickier.
Refuse to pay the fine, what they gonna do, call the police? LOL, worst case is they call security, but most places are too cheap to hire security so they will just end up threatening you, in which case you can walk away or threatened with the police and make up some bull. 99% of the times, its too much trouble for them over something like 20 - 60 euros to banter over. Just rip the fine in pieces and give it back, when you get fined over 150 euros, thats probably when you should be watching your back.
It doesn't matter what country you're from, it doesn't matter what your political or economic situation is in your country, but the ticket inspector (with rare exceptions) will be an as***le
Hey Janek. it's so fun to have a 72 hour ticket from the app. The ticket inspector dont expect that.The first time they showed the bade i was sure they were beggers. They get so mad when we show them the tickets in the app. Thank you so much,.
1:49 reminds me of something i was told back in school, that a single person would go around local towns and turn all the lamps on, and it often took so long that by the time he got to the finish, it was dawn so there was no point. never believed a single person did it, as thats just fucking nonsense, lots of people would be without light for the whole night. they employed many people
Gona give a trick to everyone : If you look like an undercover police officer who failed at 'hiding' itself in the population, scammers just run away from you 😎
Seems likely that the ticket problem is a typical problem with printers (no ink) that needs to be addressed by the machine creators or maintainers - a frustrating problem; but certainly a common occurrence in most places in the world.
Yes, we were find by an @as hole too, for wandering into a nation area trying to find a ticket machine. It was in the early days when ex secret police seemed to be given the job rolling unsuspecting tourists. Also had a hat check lady try charge me more than the price displayed. It's why I've never been back.
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This video was uploaded a day ago, yet the comment shows "1 month ago", did you already schedule it so far ahead? Also big props for clearing up so many questions and scams in 1 video, I feel more and more prepared for anything that can happen
If a company sells you a faulty ticket and then fines you because the ticket is faulty, they should be prosecuted for fraud.
They should, but it doesn't happen. It's like that bullsh*t "tax" in restaurants where they add another 10% out of nowhere, and not just simple joints but even relatively fancy Pilsner Urquell partner restaurants. It's illegal, they do it anyway, nobody cares, because they don't have to care because in CZ they will at worst get some silly little fine and can carry on. The legal system when it comes to fraudulent activities is extremely lax in Czech Republic, which is a damn shame because it is such a beautiful country with great food, sights, beer, etc.
It's a scam. This guy just isn't acknowledging it or doesn't know about it.
yeah. I wouldn't have paid a fine, I would have started an argument. I can be an asshole in return too
just sue em honestly, don't pay the fine and if the ticket inspector calls the police and they arrest you, even better.
I mean the audacity of someone to fine anybody because their equipment is broken. Like wth..?
Well, if you would read the binding agreement that's accepted when you enter any public transportation, you would find that it's your responsibility to make that your ticket is correct and valid. I'm not defending anybody,it's not fair and it's shitty, but it's most definitely not illegal and you would lose badly in court.
My friend bought 2 tickets from one of those machines that didn’t print at all.
The man in the kiosk was lovely and walked us through the process of getting a refund via a phone call, the money was back in my friend’s account within 3 days.
The man also advised going to a manned kiosk instead of a machine.
This is a correct solution, they will help you in official DPP place or on their phone number, but never expect that ticket inspector will help you. Just buy another ticket somewhere else and then ask for refund for your badly printed ticket.
Thats why i always use PID Litacka while in Prague. Super convenient app to Buy Tickets on the Phone and search for connections.
@@Pidalin The real solution is to visit a non-scam city. There's heaps all over Europe
I‘d never expect to get an invalid ticket refunded by making a phone call. I‘d not even expect the call would be answered in English. At best, there will be a automatic reply, in whatever the local language is 😂
@@llejk Not all companies are american corporations, there are still companies that have real support where you speak with living person who can find someone who speaks English if it's needed. And I guess that on these help link, they should speak English, a lot of tourists are probably calling there and knowledge of English is pretty much basic education for people who work on such positions, if would be vice versa weird if they didn't speak it. 🙂
That ticket printing problem is really concerning. I wonder if there's anything that could be done if someone gets handed a ticket like that.
You can get a refund yes, there are many public transport info stations that will handle that for you, there is also a publically available phone number you can call if you're unsure where to go and how to get this sorted. The only issue being that they issue refunds only to your bank account and it may take up to a ~month. Just make sure you at least remember which machine you bought the ticket from, there's a small number you can write down on the touchscreens of the machines at the bottom right, that will do.
See the biggest issue is that there is an incentive for the inspector to give out fines rather than help you - they get a kickback from any fine paid. So of course they'll give out as many as they possibly can, given that they have little to no accountability - especially to tourists who are most likely not going to file any sort of complaint. And if they do, it'll most likely be denied anyway, due to DPP's (Prague's public transport company) shitty terms - apparently you're supposed to check if the ticket is printed correctly.
Get a refund with the DP official. The issue is probably just missing ink due to many people buying tickets.
Its just another way of scamming tourists but now its the city doing it, fines = kaching!!!
In any normal society you wouldn't get fined for their machines not working. Typical Prague lol
2:34 when you overhear and realize you've been lied to in short videos :D
*side eyes: oh no, try to look normal, pretend I didn't hear that
More like: "when you overhear while making a short lying to people"...
I had an issue with a ticket i bought from a machine in prague: the ticket was oversized and wouldnt fit in the stamping slot. I actually went to the local transportation office in Sokolska, where they told me, I kid you not, I should contact ''the company that maintains the ticket machines''. It was a 3 day ticket, which costs a considerable amount of money, my only way out of it was to buy a new one. Not cool.
You should definitely contact Honest Guide about that, if you have more information to share.
Awaiting more at podvudky at gmail ! The email address is also below this video, thanks!
I think you should've used scissors.
@MrFugiban - exactly my thoughts.
That scissors idea is a typical Czech way of thinking. Lol
Hey i am the person from the ticket story. I actually ended up not paying a fine and just had to buy another ticket. This happened at the cable car and luckily they checked downstairs still. So i just had a very angry agent accusing me of “trying to sneak in” and didn’t allow me in. Threatened me of a fine because even though i didn’t ride i was already past the ticket gate. But after arguing convinced me to only buy a new ticket which i did.
Both you still ended up paying for two tickets and only using one? Not having to pay the fine is nice, but if they make you buy a second ticket and you are out the money of the first ticket that is still messed up.
When you receive aggresiveness from agents smile and go away from them.
@@InfinitiveStarwouldn't they try to detain you then?
You still got scammed bruh
@@Man_In_Black_and_White Whether they would depends on the individual inspector, of course, but they can.
The reason some might choose not to is because while the law is very clear in that they _can_ use force to detain you, it's very ambiguous as to _how much_ force. The law only says the force must be proportional to the damage you're trying to cause, i.e. the price of the fine, which isn't a whole lot, so they can't use a lot of force, but how much is too much will have to be decided in court on case by case basis... which is why the many inspectors won't bother. (Note that if you fight the inspector, you're suddenly crossing into self-defense territory and they can now use _a lot_ of force, so if you choose to go this route, make sure to not do anything that could be considered an attack or you're toast.)
2:35 massive side eye
🤣I came to the comments to see if everyone else noticed it hehe
If you're a local and you get fined for that, you can fight the fine in court and probably win - but no tourist is going to do that, so I definitely consider that a scam.
Until that happens to a lawyer who will successfully claim the costs of a flight between Tokyo and Prague, accommodation costs to attend the court case, as well as all legal expenses and financial losses due to spending time on this.
You should fight it first, get the ticket refunded as soon as you notice it. The trouble is, a tourist won't notice that something is wrong.
Plus I wouldn’t even know the ticket printed incorrectly if was the first ticket I buy.
It’s strange though the inspector couldn’t scan the ticket, like the machine would do and see when it’s valid for (since the ticket still worked on the machine)
Just chargeback it once you are home. Your country will definitely not extradite you for a fee, and they can't ban you, because you are buying it with a card or cash.
@@caolkyle There's no scanning, these tickets are just paper. The validating machine will stamp anything you stick in it.
Had a similiar problem in Belgrade once. I bought a ticket and I should validate it, but somehow I got it wrong. Ticket inspector came and he pointed out that I did something wrong. But this guy was so nice he did not only not fine me but showed me how to validate ticket correctly.
Because in Prague, they have extra money for amount of people they fine, so that's the difference compared to Vienna and other cities with this system. We all know it's wrong and we all know that DPP is leaded by corrupt mafians, but politicians have no balls to do something with that.
A bus driver in Belgrade really helped me out once, those guys are wonderful!
This is how it worked in Prague too, a decade ago or so. Then someone got the bright idea to 1) reward inspectors for each fine issued and 2) hire part-time amateurs instead of full-time professionals. Ticket inspectors used to help you; now it's fairly likely you'll just meet a guy who wants his bonus money and that's all they care about. In the past few years especially I've met some really nasty inspectors and reported them - every inspector _must_ show you his badge and let you record the employee number. Do that, and complain. They're not doing their job, and someone should set them straight or fire them.
It's not even about the money. The actual fares only make up something like 16% of the actual "income" of the public transit system. It's paid for mostly by taxes - though, of course, the short-term tickets are more realistically priced than the long-term tickets, and the subway is by far the most expensive part of the system per passenger.
On my first tram ride in Brno I put my ticket into the validation machine and nothing happened, so I walked further down the tram and used the next machine. When I put the ticket in, it made the stamping noise noise, and when I looked at the ticket it seemed like something was stamped on there, but since it was my first time validation a Brno metro ticket, I wasn't sure. Sure enough at the next stop, Metro ticket checkers came onboard and the agent said my ticket wasn't validated. Luckily her associate saw that the machine was malfunctioning and took me to the 3rd machine which was functional, and validated my ticket. So at least 1 of the 3 machines worked, and they didn't give me a fine.
there is no metro in Brno. Just šalina
@@schink01 cestou ku fakultnej nemocnici máte metro :D
@@schink01 I think he means trams, in some countries, metro doesn't mean what we call metro here.
@@Pidalin Exactly. To me, metro just means public transit.
@@thundergod111 In Europe, metro mostly means underground railway system, like subway for americans. All bigger cities have public transit system. Metro can also mean metropolitan area, which means bigger aglomeration around big city. For Prague for example, these are smaller towns and cities that close to Prague that pretty much everyone works in Prague and these places mostly have direct trains and buses to Prague and these people often have month or year passes for their zones, so they don't care about some paper tickets.
9:39 Ticket machine doesn't have activated Windows lmao
I wonder if it BSODed after the CrowdStrike incident
@@BrazilMentionedHueHue No, it is better - they do not have a valid Windows license for the machine. Ironic, isn't it?
That's another scam how to get more money from city budget - ticket machines that run on windows....these things are really unbeliavable in 2024 that it is still happening.
Some people really belive that make public transportation for free would be actually cheaper, because it's donated anyway and you could remove all ticket inspectors and these cheating machines that cost a lot of money.
lol, nice. Is there a way to snitch them to MSFT to check all their licenses? :D
The question with the ticket is: What to do, if you are approached by ticket inspector, who demands to pay a fine despite this not being your fault? Ticket inspector says: "Pay now!", while customer support says: "Do not pay and dispute the fine". What are the tourists supposed to do? Call to some Czech-speaking hotline while having aggressive ticket inspector shouting on them? Call the police on the ticket inspectors?
At least here, you get the fine. Take a walk over to the customer support in the city centre and take it with them. If you are right, they remove the fine. You do not pay the ticket inspector. Happens all the time
PID app should be promoted, they can advertise it next to every station and even make it visible on the ticket machines.
Buying tickets from the app is better in every possible way as long as you have a phone and internet :)
2:35 side eye 🤣
🤣I came to the comments to see if everyone else noticed it hehe
The ticket inspectors are sadly incentivized to have no remorse and no feelings as they get a bonus for every person they catch that doesn't have a ticket, every fine paid is a salary increase, that's why they are "assholes" sometimes. They would be spineless because it's in their interest sadly.
I would still not gonna pay even if he wants its the machine problem so he can call the police beacause I have the proof on my bank account that i paid and the ticket without the right printing
They don't get bonuses, stop spreading FUD.
They are instructed to fine everyone without a valid ticket. Any issues with the fine or ticket has to be handled by people who can actually verify the customers claim.
@@SomethingUnique404 Oh you think I am spreading FUD? I work in the company lmao and I got to know a fair few ticket inspectors. They specifically talked about this and even said "it's the reason why you just give a fine to the lady with a stroller and you don't budge"
@@SomethingUnique404 You are one of the assholes, aren't you? ;)
I still wouldn't pay the fine, not if it wasn't my fault like in this case and I had proof of purchase. Absolutely not, not my problem that the machine doesn't work properly.
Always love your videos. You do so much credit to Prague. May I ask that in future videos about your wonderful public transport system that you explain the fare for a seniors? I am a big fan of public transport. I grew up in the NYC area, quite accustomed to that being an important element in urban life. Cities are only possible due to public transportation.
So, once I started visiting other US cities and even Europe as a young American soldier more than 70 years ago, riding every new city's system has been a high priority. I've done that in Beijing, Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, Mexico City, Santo Domingo, Key West, Berlin, Dresden, Munich, Amsterdam, Paris, Moscow, San Fran, Chicago, New Orleans, Budapest, London, etc and . . . of course . . . PRAGUE.
It was a delightful surprise when I stepped into the office near The Clock and said I wanted to buy a multi-pay pass and wanted to know if there is a senior discount. The woman behind the counter asked me how old I am. I think that my status is obvious, but she asked so pleasantly and respectfully, I told her. "I turned 90 three months ago."
She smiled and said, "You don't need a ticket. Seniors ride free. Just have an official document with you to confirm that."
SENIORS RIDE FREE! Thank you Prague.
the bus ticket thing is absolutely a scam. if the machine didn't correctly print the ticket it was the city at fault and not the buyer. there's no way he should have got a ticket
One day I bought a ticket on PID Lítačka and activated it outside the metro. And directly at the entrance of the metro I was controlled and the guy saw that the one minute counter before real activation was still red and decided to give me a fine. I love Prague but It was the first time I took a fine with a valid ticket. And it's the first time also I saw a control at the entrance of the metro, for me it was in general at the exit after the travel. As*h***.
Yes, this is shitty idea and some people will argue "But its written there that there is a timer before its validated"... Those people are just assholes. The only effective thing in this case is delaying with a fake ticket search... Or calling the police, but that is not so effective, because unfortunately the law is and will be on the side of the ticket inspector.
@@overdamczIf it is written there as a warning then why purposely break the law? Sure he may be an asshole, but you knew the rules and decided to break them. Thats your problem.
The delay is there so the system can actually process it and people cant cheat the system by having a screen recording or something. 1 minute is nothing to wait. You can also just activate it before entering
@@galaxspace1 Honest people then paying for scammers who make screenshots. Great system. You can do better!
@@galaxspace1 I guess you're German
@@TrveIrrlicht No just asshole
Nowadays gaslighting means something completely different.
gatekeep gaslight girlboss
😂
No it doesn't. You're being hysterical.
@@outeast999 it s a lamp joke dude
@@J.Lassalle It's a gaslighting joke dude
Had a lovely time in the Czech Republic, thanks to your guides, visited Prague, Ceske Budejovice, Hluboka nad Vltavou and Cesky Krumlov
When I was in prague, one of my friend's girlfriend came for the weekend and as she was student in france and not in czechia she was fined for having incorrect ticket. It was only indicated "students" and not "czech students" to get the student price (it's cheaper to get a 1-month student ticket than a normal 1-week ticket) and we all had 3-months students ticket so she assumed that she could too. And instead of explaining why it was incorrect he just fined her. I had to ask a czech student that had to read the transportation fee rules (in czech only for this part lol) to get the information that you had to have a czech student card to get the reduction.
But when you take a student ticket you can only do that in the ticket office and you have to give your student card to bind the ticket with. I showed my french one and got no problem with. But apparently it should not work. So even if it works to get the ticket sometimes you will be fined.
You can absolutely buy a student ticket if you are a French student - you just need to have valid international student card (ISIC) and you are ok.
If you meet a shatty inspector wanting to profit of tourists, just not give him money and let him send it to "správní řízení" (aka mini-court case). There you will be asked official way and would have a better chance then against a dickhead.
@@siriusczech Not everywhere. ISIC is not valid in Prague. You need to have a verified Lítačka
@@dustojnikhummer I have had been buying monthly student passes on ISIC cards for 8 years in the past, you cannot convince me it is not valid
Hey gents! Kat from Australia here! Officially coming back in March next year but travelling with my mum who has limited mobility. Can you do a mobility episode? Like best places to eat/drink/see which is accessible for a wheelchair ❤ thank you!
Just this Friday, I've encountered a scammer in his 50s or 60s, claiming to be a Turkish man, far from a touristy area, I was on my way home from work.
First he asked from where I was from, then begged for money because he can't afford gas for his car, his wife (presumably) sat beside him in silence, and the funny thing is that I saw the guy buy a kebab from a kebab stand just a few meters away (no money for gas, but for kebab? please..).
Although I never encountered such a scammer before I already knew it was one of the "classic" scams thanks to Honest Guide, Wolter's World etc., and of course didn't give the guy any money.
You are a real expert. 😮😂
These people are mostly Slovak/Hungarian/Romanian gypsies, not Turks or Inds as they claim.
@@wernerleinberger9847 What's so funny Mr.Kraut?..
@@pragueexpat5106 You are a real hero and save the World. Hill Billies would be very impressed: They never seen any Turkish People and eating Kebab... what a Story. Think this is UN Worlds Heritage
@@wernerleinberger9847 Did you even read?, he bought kebab, turned around and saw me, then he told me his sob story about not having money for a gas..
Experienced something very familiar.
On one of the trams, the ticket validator machine was not printing validation when you stuck the ticket in. Five high school students I was with were fined 40 euro… but the validator machine was broken.
But since the inspectors kicked the kids off the tram, they couldn’t show them the broken machine. Very frustrating.
I would absolutely not pay any fines, the machine should be working correctly, if it doesn't, that is not the consumer's fault. I would wait for police to resolve this. What a disgrace.
Funny, I was there in May and the same ticket machine charged me but did not give me a ticket at all. I had to talk to that same lady to get a ticket. I see they still haven't activated windows 😅
I remembered to validate the ticket because of your videos otherwise, I would have just gone through without knowing I had to do it, like the 10 or so people in front of me.
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You should send the video about the tram tickets to the city. No one should be fined for improper maintenance of city infrastructures. This needs to change.
9:40 " activate windows. go to settings to activate windows "💀
@8:16 this kinda thing happens all the time here as well. Let's say you are a student and have temporarily misplaced your student ID. You will get a fine. However, if you go to the helpdesk in the city centre with your student ID they will revoke your fine and you don't have to pay. The ticket inspector does not solve any problem. They just hand out tickets.
To me it seemed like a scam from the moment you do all the right things (pay, validate, show invoice...) and some controllers look for any reason to fine you or get those 40 euros. Very surprising that “40 euros” they did know how to say it in our language (Spanish), but for the rest of the conversation they barely knew how to speak English or Czech. I refused to pay on the spot and they still insisted on approaching me to a cashier or whatever..... I am still waiting for the fine with surcharge to arrive. I know it won't happen... xD
Actually the whole anecdote is enough to make a youtube video, but very nice Prague and your map was great.
❤
My uncle was a leery (lamp lighter) in my little village pre-war. There were only 400 people and I think only one street actually had lamps leading from the train station, across the bridge to the two hotels so he probably had 10 lamps to light.
It's not a scam, this Czech man says. Where I come from it would indeed be a scam, since the inspector would have immediately acknowledged the fact that the person had bought the ticket in good faith at an official machine. Mr. Honest Guide, I think you have been so used to scammers in your city that you can no longer see all the scams there; and there are a LOT of scams in Prague. A LOT!
And that's exactly how it was a decade ago or so. It's a great shame inspectors are staffed more and more with awful people with horrible incentives. You're doing customer service, dammit, you can't just hire some part-time amateur who gets bonuses for how many people he fines.
Sue the city for selling broken merchandise. They are instigating a fraud. And they need holding to account for that.
It's almost certain that the city didn't set the machine up to misprint tickets, but it's also almost certain they knew about the problematic ticket machine and did nothing about it to make money.
I hate the fact that czech public transport inspectors only go for tourists hoping they bought the wrong ticket. They totally skip not only homeless people but basically anyone who does not have paper time ticket or SMS. With ad-hoc tickets there is highest chance of sincere mistake and they go for that, because they can get the most fees in the shortest amount of time. Once someone says he/she doesnt have a ticket but neither an ID and they should wait for the police, the inspector plays a little act in front of other passengers and after about 10 seconds they let them go. Catching mistakes, letting notorious stowaways go.
Absolutely not. Plenty of locals get fines too. However, most locals using public transport have a long-term ticket (like Lítačka) or use SMS/app to buy their tickets. I've always had them check my SMS ticket. And sure, they skip homeless people.
But yes, the average quality of the ticket inspector dropped like crazy over the last decade or so. It's extremely likely you'll meet a vulture nowadays. It's sick.
The ticket printer doesn't print correctly and it shows the "activate Windows" prompt on the screen... In a different country that would be a lawsuit, in Prague it's just Wednesday or something
Real scammers would have bought all the blank tickets by cheapest value and then starts printing them with longest validity whenever they need one.
2:18 Bonus Czech words: "gas" is "plyn" (or "plynový/á/é" for the adjective), and "electricity" is "elektřina" (or "elektrický/á/é" for the adjective "electric"). That's why the icons on the map for gas and electric lamp posts are P and E, respectively.
Teach me Czech please
Just got home from Prague last Sunday. Saturday night did a boat cruise with that group you have in your video and got completely verbally assaulted by the boat captain. He started out by cussing another group and then told everybody to get the F out of his boat. It was a horrible end to what was a lovely trip. I was not fast enough moving out of his way, so he got within 6 inches of my face and just started yelling at me.
Ok but seriously, YOU GUYS NEEED to do something about those ticket machines!
And I don't mean fix the machines, but actually think about a good solution, if you don't want to issue electronic or different kind of tickets and have to rely on the stamping thing every time, then just make a law that would completely exempt tourists AND LOCALS alike from paying the fine, once they just show proof of purchase....
Why didn't you mention, what do locals do when the machine doesn't print the ticket AND they don't notice in time, do they then just get fined just like tourists?
What about people from other cities with more robust, functional ticketing systems (.... you have those, right?)
Thanks for the video!
There are SMS and mobile app tickets. I haven't used a paper ticket in a very long time :)
The systems rarely had trouble when the tourist numbers were much lower; it just gets worse and worse with how many more people are using the machines (locals usually aren't).
That said, you can absolutely dispute the fine. Yes, you are required to have a valid ticket to enter subway stations/vehicles, but the ticket machine taking your money and not giving you a printed ticket is not right. It's not that long ago when an inspector would just tell you "Oh, that ticket isn't printed right; it's supposed to have the fare printed on. Here, have a replacement." Record their employee number and report them for any kind of unprofessional behaviour. That's the only way to stop this. Someone decided to hire amateurs and give them bad incentives; they need to fix that.
If the ticket inspector harasses you, tell them to call the police, make the inspector wait with you, and let the cops handle it.
Thank you for providing invaluable service for visitors to our beautiful city.👏👏👏♥️
Out of curiosity I looked at my old Prague public transport tickets I bought on my lasts visits ... on all tickets it's correctly printed, except for one. It's validated but nothing is printed over the orange arrow. Sadly, I can't remember at which station I bought it.
what a dysfunctional ticket system in finland the ticket machine prints out a ticket and you don't have to worry about stamping it we phased the old stamping machines decades ago
The ticket thing is absurd. It's their ticket, it's their machine. If the ticket is incorrectly printed, it is their problem, as long as you can prove you paid the appropriate fare. I would immediately call the police and refuse to pay any fine. If something like that happened in my country and the tourist called the police, the police would just laugh at the inspector.
Of course, you _can't_ prove you paid the appropriate fare, especially if you paid in cash. And yes, absolutely - don't let yourself get bullied. Let them call the police if they want - they _will_ laugh at the inspector and the inspector knows it. And take their employee number (they are required to show you a badge and let you record their number). There's a lot of scumbags among the inspectors nowadays, and they need to be rooted out and the system changed back again. Report, dispute.
I got a parking fine in Switzerland recently. Absolutely horrible customer service on every level. It took months to finish the dispute - and yes, they absolutely expect you not to bother as a foreigner. The fine you get even tells you that if you don't comply, there will be a court case _in Switzerland_ , to bully you into compliance. We just have to let them know very clearly that this is not acceptable, and to stop bullying people.
I looked at the thumbnail: I thought "oh dear, are they trying to resell tickets from months ago where the ink has faded"?
Westminster has lamplighters too, but the lamps are controlled by a timer and only lit manually if the timer is faulty.
The sailors on Crusaders' Square I note are all African. I think they are contracted to a recruitment agency active around the Gulf of Guinea.
Just glad our 3 tickets we bought last week when we visited was ok because we got checked by the ticket inspector.
the ticket inspector situation is not a "scam" because they didn't set it up...BUT it's definitely corrupt behaviour because they get incentives based on how many people they "catch", so he/she didn't do it to be an a**hole, they did it because they knew they could get away with it due to them being tourists
Almost feel like the ticket one is the worst one here. Yeah scammers are everywhere and some people are jerks, but if the government is doing it than that's a whole other deal. Almost feels like the company purposely leaves the machines broken so that they can charge the tourist twice, that's disgusting.
You should ask your viewers that bought tickets and than then got fined because of the faulty ticket to send in their story, it would be interesting to see the numbers.
In the little room on the bridge across from Narodni divadlo, there was a strudel 'gallery'. They weren't allowed to sell baked goods, but they were allowed to sell art.
I would disagree that the bad ticket situation isn't a scam. Public transportation is run by a state actor. The same state actor that also gives out fines. The city may not have deliberately set out to commit a crime, but that's exactly what this boils down to. The city should not even be ALLOWED to fine people if they can prove they did buy a valid ticket and the city simply failed to adequately maintain its ticket machines, otherwise they're perversely incentivized to enrich themselves three times off of every single ticket: The initial sale, the fine, and the victim being forced to buy an extra ticket.
How do you prove you bought a valid ticket, though, especially if you paid with cash? The value of the ticket wasn't printed on the ticket because there's no ink. Oops.
Don't get me wrong, I absolutely agree this is a horrible behaviour and they should stop. It's clear the ticket was printed wrong, and that's no fault of yours. This obsession with catching the wrongdoers at all costs is ridiculous and stupid. Cheaters will always cheat. Treat customers fairly.
As for "enriching themselves", the system is paid for from taxes. Valid tickets cover about 15% of expenditures (in some years, less than 5%). Fines? 0.6% or so. It just doesn't make any sense to treat your customers this way just because they made a mistake (or worse, the machine didn't work!). And it didn't use to be this way a decade ago or so. The idiot who thought it would make sense to hire amateurs and incentivize them for number of fines issued should pay for all this unnecessary pain and bad blood.
I was fined 1000czk because I bought the "wrong" ticket from the PID app. I was supposed to buy ticket for prague but instead I bought the suburban. the thing is, the prices are the same. So its not like im trying to cheat or anything. When I was asking him to show me how to buy the prague ticket, he helped me but ten he told me to not activate the ticket and to let him fine me. I did not want to get in trouble and was in a hurry so I give that poor man the money for his hard work.
"What do you think the ticket inspector does?"
Well if I was the inspector, I would ask where the machine was so I could report back a faulty unit to-
"He fines him."
Oh... Sounds like someone's tired of the weather..
I stayed in Prague for a month last year. I used the mobile app to buy tickets, the best decision ever.
Faulty tickets are definitely a scam. The inspector of the ticket knew, yet won't do anything to remedy it, so they're double dipping and not fixing it on purpose. It should be as easy as a software update that takes 5 minutes. Something to look into whether this issue is fixed sooner than later. It seems malicious if it's still a problem a few weeks later.
Why do you think it's a software problem? There's no ink in the machine. The traffic is much higher than what the system was designed for, and for some reason they haven't been able to improve that to keep up with the increase in traffic (mostly tourists, since locals rarely use the ticket machines).
Yes, the inspector shouldn't fine you for that. It's impossible to distinguish a cheater from someone who didn't notice the ticket isn't printed right, but it's stupid to err on the side of "EVERYONE'S A CHEATER AND I'M SUCH A HERO FOR CATCHING THEM, DURR DURRR".
The ticket issue looks like a tourist trap made on purpose. Even though you somehow manage to get the fine refund, not many people will go through that hassle to negotiate with someone who barely speaks airport English, who will require you to send mail here and there, and at the end of the day it will cost you more money and time that it is not even worth it to try.
Agree. The staff that should service the machines does not - and the ticket inspectors get the bonus. Win-win for city staff.
I never had a problem in 15 years visiting and now living in Prague. I just travel with a valid ticket...
It's not on purpose, this is just petty bureaucracy. That ticket controller was "just doing his job", no more, no less. Being petty bureaucrat and petty in general seems to be the main part of the job. Remember this is the city where Kavka lived.
@@richardaubrecht2822 Possible. But the locations of the broken machines mentioned in the video are suspicious. Why are those machines broken (not printed, out of ink) so often at tourist hotspots? Coincidence or 'friendly' convenience?
@@notetec1 How do you know they are not often broken outside tourist hotspots too? ;) Instead of tourist hotspots I'd say places with high traffic. And the people whose job is to check on those machines are lazy bums.
So what should you do if you have paid for an incorrectly printed ticket? Can you get your money back?
my primary income since I was young has been fixing broken things.. mostly computers.. I had a business fixing broken computers, making software, & selling computers.. I've since changed how the business operates but for a time my license plate on my car said Broken & people did not understand what it meant, they always asked, I got a lot of strange people asking what it meant.... I had to really make an effort to escape from these people
Greetings from Poland! To be honest, we prefer your other word for "broken", which is "poruhany". 😂
I enjoy watching your videos, you're doing a great job, brother.
I just love how Polish and Czech language are simmilar, yet so different. Rozbity in Polish means crashed, like a car or plane. Broken is popsuty. Its my little hobby to find these diferences.
Imagine buying a ticket and you still get fined. Some things never change. :)
Prague is a beautiful city. Pity it's always constantly plagued by new scams
🤣 i see they learned the not working ticket machine scam from BKK in Hungary
I also got incorrectly fined one time, i went to HQ and showed evidence, 3 weeks later i got my money returned
Yes, that is what people should do, don't argue with ticket inspectors, it's pointless, just pay the fine and then complain. You have several DPP headquaters in Prague, when you are there for several days, you can definitely visit them.
@@Pidalin I went to the DPP HQ close to that church that looks like a toilet. I am not sure, but I think I did require to have a Czech bank account, which I luckily had at the time.
@@skafabafa That sounds weird, how many years it is when it happened? BTW, what chuch in Prague looks like a toilet? I have no idea what you mean. 🙂
With the ticket machines, how would a person rectify that? Will a station agent print a proper replacement for you?
8:52 - The ticket machine that consistently prints faulty tickets... That smells like an intentional attempt by the transportation company to catch tourists off guard to fine them... I hate Czech Republic so much.
It doesn't consistently print faulty tickets, it just runs out of ink... and without ink, it cannot print. It's just that due to the ever increasing volume of tourists, the machines can't handle the load they weren't designed for (I hope they improve that). Locals rarely use them - they usually have a long-term ticket or buy with SMS/app.
You can dispute this and get your money back, and you shouldn't be paying any fine. It's just that the inspectors are horrible nowadays, and have all the wrong incentives to treat the people with respect and politeness. Report them - they are required to show you their badge and record their employee number.
Over 10 years ago as a group 3 of our 20+ group got pulled for being lost and riding 1 stop on the tram out of bounds. Totally right to do a fine. Totally******* to fine 3 people lost and 1 stop out of their zone.
We all also "scammed" to pay for "free" shots from a bar which took far too much work to find the price. And told to pay €5 each for the musician who was sent to us.
I got tickets directly from an actual human being and was still fined. It's not just the machines, dude.
If you get a fine on a bus, tram, etc. in Prague, are they enforceable against tourists? If one fails to pay the fine and leaves the country, is there any way for the Polish authorities to collect the fine from foreign citizens? The reason I ask is that this was in the news very often 10-20 years ago where we had many trailer drivers from old Eastern Bloc countries who for various reasons received fines in Norway and who simply left the country and without paying the fine. It went so far that the Norwegian authorities started making arrests in the trailer until the fine was paid.
I did a couple of quick searches to find out if the Norwegian authorities can collect fines from foreign tourists, and the answer, as far as I can see, is that it only applies to citizens of a few countries we have an agreement with (such as Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Iceland), but the Norwegian State Collection Agency ("Statens Innkrevingssentral") is supposedly very helpful to other countries when we Norwegians do not pay fines we receive abroad...
In complicated ways, I hear Liechtenstein is to blame.
Earlier this year my ticket wouldn't validate when I put it in the machine on the bus - first time that's ever happened in Prague. Two other passengers seeing this tried it as well & it just wouldn't work. One told me if an inspector comes on board I'll be fined no matter if the ticket is defective or not so I ended up getting off at earlier stop rather than risk it. Later that night the same ticket worked on a machine at the Metro so I guess some of the machines just don't work right. Given that locals probably don't use them much, mostly tourists, hopefully that's not deliberate.
The good thing about being an American or British tourist is that if you did receive a fine, just tell them your details and you're good to go so that when you receive a fine through your mailbox will be pretty laughable since they have no jurisdiction grounds to make you pay in a none-EU country.
Lol they won't let you go if you don't pay on the spot. Trust me.
Don't do it, even when they have no rights in US or Britain, you can get to problems when you return to EU after years. Better pay fine and then go to DPP headquaters and complain, you will deal with them much easier than with ticket inspectors.
@@Pidalin You're an inspector I assume because that's total bullshit
@@castorchua I am not inspector, I don't like them, I am just saying that you won't make any deal with them and you will end in handcuffs if you will be resisting or agressive, they are mostly there with city police and police doesn't care about your ticket, they will jump on you when you don't cooperate and argue forever. Just pay it and then visit DPP headquaters and deal with them, it will be much faster. And don't forget that Czech Republic = EU and schengen, when you just argue with them and end with fine and not paying, it can find you even in other EU country after years, these things are not fun, the same as not paying fines for speeding or bad parking. Even when you believe you are in right, the fastest and easiest way is just to pay it and complain later.
@@glapimu4260 ticket controller cannot retain you, only police can
The machine prints an invalid ticket and you are charged a fine? Looks like an intentionaly set up tourist trap to me.
I was on Bologna in the mid 2000s. The ticket machine for public transport took my 20 EURO bill and never gave change. So I went to the office and filed a complaint. I had to fill out a 13 page complaint manifesto (all in Italian) to try to get my money back. I refused and told them I will call the police. Sure do, they said, they will escort you out of the building.
Some things are so obvious.
The guy who got fined should of appealed the decision with the local council
You have what 14 days or so to pay it right and as a tourist he wont be there long any way
Seems like it is better to buy a day pass at a public transport station in a well-maintained area than at a tourist hotspot nowadays.
Have you been to Brutal Assault? It's a metal festival in Jaromer, in a 18th century star fortress. Its in the beginning of August.
When I was in Prague a few years ago, my friends and I confinced one of the sellers to give use the boat ride for 13 euros and two free beers per person lol
Fining people because your company sold a faulty ticket is most definitely corrupt and a scam.
All street lamps all around Europe and UK were lit this way before electricity
Very good video, as always ❤
That validation of tickets sounds like an scam to my Mexican ears. Here in CDXM I get my bus card , put money into it and I am ready to commute. Heck! I even went to Montreal last weekend and got OPUS card to use their metro and bus systems. Not a single time did I had to validate the card
Get a fitting needle printer, and print whatever ticket you like on the empty one you bought as a 30 minute ticket. And then watch how fast they'll run to fix the machine! 😄
Easy answer is to sue the ticket company under the consumer rights act for goods and services.
Person that asked this idiotic question about lamp posts, was 100% from the USA...
Just to make things clear - in Bohemia "rozbitý" really means "broken" but in North Moravia (not sure about South) and Silesia "rozbitý" means "smashed up" or "shatered to pieces" - "broken" would be said as "pokažený"...
Ok and what? Video is from Prague and nobody cares about how you speak in Asia. 😀
Those scamming tourists stand out.
I was in Prague and bought the daily 24h ticket for public transport on the app. I was sure I bought it, because money was deducted from my account, but my mistake was that I didn't check the app if the ticket was actually there. Then inspector came, and it turned out there wasn't a ticket in the app (I don't know why). I got fined, even though I showed the inspector, that I paid for daily ticket (in the bank app). From then I avoid any apps for public transport tickets.
The inspector doesn't matter. You need to dispute with the HQ of the transportation company. If you can prove you paid for the ticket, they will refund the fine (or if you didn't pay it, just cancel it). Of course, that only helps you if it was actually paid - if it was e.g. just reserved and the money wasn't actually transferred to the company, it can be trickier.
Why so many scams ? These scumbags should be arrested
Refuse to pay the fine, what they gonna do, call the police? LOL, worst case is they call security, but most places are too cheap to hire security so they will just end up threatening you, in which case you can walk away or threatened with the police and make up some bull.
99% of the times, its too much trouble for them over something like 20 - 60 euros to banter over. Just rip the fine in pieces and give it back, when you get fined over 150 euros, thats probably when you should be watching your back.
It doesn't matter what country you're from, it doesn't matter what your political or economic situation is in your country, but the ticket inspector (with rare exceptions) will be an as***le
There is similiar tradition with other cities in europe that have those old gas lamp posts.
Hey Janek. it's so fun to have a 72 hour ticket from the app. The ticket inspector dont expect that.The first time they showed the bade i was sure they were beggers.
They get so mad when we show them the tickets in the app. Thank you so much,.
1:49 reminds me of something i was told back in school, that a single person would go around local towns and turn all the lamps on, and it often took so long that by the time he got to the finish, it was dawn so there was no point. never believed a single person did it, as thats just fucking nonsense, lots of people would be without light for the whole night. they employed many people
Gona give a trick to everyone : If you look like an undercover police officer who failed at 'hiding' itself in the population, scammers just run away from you 😎
Funny to shake your hand in that little alley with the pizzeria
Seems likely that the ticket problem is a typical problem with printers (no ink) that needs to be addressed by the machine creators or maintainers - a frustrating problem; but certainly a common occurrence in most places in the world.
As a tourist, always go to a manned counter, at a station, to be sure. Simple as that.
Or just use the app.
Yes, we were find by an @as hole too, for wandering into a nation area trying to find a ticket machine. It was in the early days when ex secret police seemed to be given the job rolling unsuspecting tourists. Also had a hat check lady try charge me more than the price displayed. It's why I've never been back.
Claim for all expenses related to the refund, including the time that you spend on that...