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Grieving elderly woman suffering from Parkinson’s Disease misses her husband’s funeral after a taxi booked for her two days earlier never showed up because of a driver’s sneaky trick

  • Woman missed the chance to attend husband’s funeral after taxi failed to arrive
  • Kerrin Terry, 72, was ready to be picked up from her Sydney nursing home
  • The taxi driver, who said they were on the way, decided to flash the fare 
  • It left Ms Terry unable to attend her husband Brian’s funeral in person 
  • However, she was able to watch the service via live streaming 
  • Her daughter told A Current Affair: ‘I think it’s absolutely disgraceful’

An elderly woman has missed the opportunity to say goodbye to her beloved husband because of a taxi driver’s failure to pick her up on time. 

Kerrin Terry, 72, who is living with Parkinson’s Disease, was all dressed up and waiting for the taxi to pick her up from her Sydney nursing home and take her to the funeral of her husband Brian.

However, the taxi driver working for 13cabs made the decision to ‘flash the fare’.

President of the Australian Taxi Association Michael Jools told A Current Affair this is when ‘you accept a fare, you start to head in that direction and you realise it is not a good fare… so you turn the metre on, run it for a few seconds and then turn it off, it shows up in the network system that you have picked up the fare’. 

‘I didn’t get there…they took that chance away from me,’ Ms Terry told the program.

‘I had no idea that weren’t going to turn up.’ 

Ms Terry said she was left waiting and thinking, ‘where in the hell are they?’. 

After missing her husband's funeral, Ms Terry said: 'I didn't get there...they took that chance away from me' (pictured, with her husband Brian)

After missing her husband’s funeral, Ms Terry said: ‘I didn’t get there…they took that chance away from me’ (pictured, with her husband Brian)

Her daughter Sarah had arranged a taxi two days prior to the funeral and even confirmed twice with 13cabs the day before.

Jason, Sarah’s husband, said that she ‘received a call two minutes before the pick-up from the driver saying ‘I’m two minutes away so I’ll call on arrival.’ 

More than half an hour later, Sarah received a call from the nursing home stating that her mum was still there waiting to be picked up. 

The cab company told Sarah that the driver had closed the job. 

Faced with a difficult dilemma, other family members attempted to delay the ceremony for as long as they could but after almost an hour delay, they were forced to make the devastating call to begin the service without Ms Terry.   

Her daughter Sarah said her mum was able to watch the service online, however ‘she was quite distressed’.

During the wake, Sarah received a call from 13cabs.

Her husband Jason said: ‘She got called again to say that your ride is here to be picked up and it’s like, Brian is gone.’

The family wish they were told the truth from the beginning.

‘Just give us the answer, just tell us early on that it’s not going to happen…that it’s going to be hours away,’ Jason said.

‘We might have had time to organise something else.’ 

In a statement, the taxi company said: ’13cabs is deeply troubled to hear about Ms Terry’s experience and apologises unreservedly.’

In a statement, the taxi company said: '13cabs is deeply troubled to hear about Ms Terry's experience and apologises unreservedly'

In a statement, the taxi company said: ’13cabs is deeply troubled to hear about Ms Terry’s experience and apologises unreservedly’

‘We have investigated the booking made by Ms Terry and it appears that despite every effort being made, including 13cabs offering drivers a significant financial incentive to take the work… no vehicle could be found,’ it added.  

‘The driver who contacted Ms Terry has been contacted and will be asked to explain their actions.’ 

‘I don’t want this to happen again…I think it’s absolutely disgraceful,’ Ms Terry’s daughter Sarah said.  

Statement by a 13cabs      spokesperson

’13cabs is deeply troubled to hear about Ms Terry’s experience and apologises unreservedly.’

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‘We have investigated the booking made by Ms Terry and it appears that despite every effort being made, including 13cabs offering Drivers a significant financial incentive to take the work, no vehicle could be found. The Driver who contacted Ms Terry has been contacted and will be asked to explain their actions. Our company prides itself on providing a universal service that can be accessed by all. Unfortunately, as we have emerged from the pandemic there have been challenges getting all our Drivers back on the road as quickly as demand has returned. This has created some logistical challenges that at times have been hard to overcome. While we understand it will be of little consolation to Ms Terry, we are pleased to report that service levels are returning pre-COVID levels.’

’13cabs have also been in discussions with the State Government about the need to remove restrictive regulations which limit the number of Taxis that can operate on Sydney’s roads. These regulations have created a shortage of Taxis and need urgent reform is needed to ensure Sydney residents can get a taxi when they want one. We are pleased to say that the Government has been responsive to these concerns. Plans to overhaul NSW’s Taxi regulations which would directly result in more Taxis on the road have been announced.’

‘If people do experience difficulties we would strongly encourage them to contact us directly. This allows us to rectify the issue quickly and ensure it doesn’t occur again.’

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