Most taxi rides in Korea are uneventful. When something does go wrong, however, foreign travelers often lose valuable time trying to figure out who is actually responsible.
You may think the fare is too high. A driver may ask you to cancel the ride after accepting it. You may leave your phone in the back seat. Or the situation may become serious enough that you no longer need a taxi complaint service—you need the police.
The correct response depends on the problem.
Overcharging, refused rides, lost property, app disputes, and immediate safety threats do not all go to the same place.
This guide shows you what evidence to save, which service to contact, and what to do before the taxi disappears into traffic.
Last checked: October 21, 2026. Taxi fares, surcharge rules, complaint systems, app menus, and local-government procedures can differ by city and can change. Seoul-specific procedures are clearly identified below; travelers elsewhere in Korea should use the relevant local authority or 1330 for routing assistance.
Illustration note — October 21, 2026: The receipt and vehicle details are examples, not an official form or a fare quote; actual fares depend on the city, taxi type, time and route. The image prints LOST112; the current police entry verified for this guide is Police Civil Service 24. For the current national police lost-property service, use Police Civil Service 24, as explained below. Kakao T’s 14-day driver-call window and 7-day vehicle-number display are different limits; check the ride details promptly.
Image scope and contact hours: The sample ₩4,800 base fare matches Seoul’s standard medium-size daytime taxi fare for the first 1.6 km (effective February 1, 2023, 04:00), not every Korean taxi. The image’s 1372 weekday 09:00–18:00 hours exclude the 12:00–13:00 lunch break; see Korea Consumer Agency counseling guidance. These details were rechecked October 21, 2026. Emergency interpretation availability varies by language and connection; do not delay calling 112 or 119 in an emergency.
Quick answer: what should you do when a taxi problem happens?
If possible, save these details before you do anything else:
- Full license plate number
- Taxi company name
- Driver information shown in the app
- Pickup location
- Destination
- Date and time
- Receipt
- Fare shown on the meter or app
- Screenshots of the ride
Then choose the correct path:
Possible overcharge or bad taxi service → local taxi complaint service / 1330
Seoul taxi complaint → 120 Dasan Call Center or Seoul multilingual QR complaint system
Kakao T booking problem → Kakao T customer support
Lost item → contact the driver/app/taxi company first, then Police Civil Service 24 if needed
Threat, assault, theft, or immediate danger → 112
Serious injury after a traffic accident → 119
First: a high taxi fare is not automatically an overcharge
Before filing a complaint, check whether there is a legitimate reason the total is higher than you expected.
Depending on the city, time, taxi type, and route, the fare may include:
- Metered distance and time
- Late-night surcharge
- Travel outside the taxi's normal city area
- Highway or bridge tolls
- Special rules for certain taxi services
For example, Seoul's official taxi information explains that legitimate surcharges can apply for late-night rides, travel outside Seoul, and certain international taxi services.
So if a ₩25,000 ride becomes ₩29,000, do not assume the additional amount is automatically fraud.
Ask:
“Can you explain the fare and any surcharge?”
Then check the receipt.
Always ask for a receipt if the fare seems strange
One of the most useful Korean taxi phrases is:
영수증 주세요.
Please give me a receipt.
A taxi receipt can help identify:
- Fare
- Payment information
- Taxi or vehicle details
- Ride time
- Possible surcharge information
In 2026, Seoul strengthened its taxi receipt system for foreign passengers after unfair-fare complaints became the most common issue reported through its multilingual taxi complaint system.
Seoul announced that receipts would more clearly display information in English, including the final fare, boarding and alighting times, and whether certain surcharges were applied.
This makes the receipt useful both for understanding the charge and for filing a complaint later.
Official source: Seoul Metropolitan Government announcement, January 28, 2026, checked October 21, 2026. This describes the city’s announced receipt improvements, not a guarantee that every receipt has identical formatting.
Overcharged in Seoul? Use 120 or the QR complaint system
If the ride happened in Seoul, the Seoul Metropolitan Government provides a dedicated taxi complaint route.
You can contact:
120 Dasan Call Center
From a phone in Seoul:
120
or:
02-120
Seoul specifically advises passengers to remember the entire taxi license plate number when reporting taxi inconvenience.
Foreign-language support through 120
The current foreign-language service operates from:
09:00–18:00 KST
Call 02-120, press 9 for foreign-language support, and choose the language following the current prompts:
- English
- Chinese
- Japanese
- Vietnamese
- Mongolian
Seoul also accepts taxi-related reports through:
taxi120@seoul.go.kr
Official source: Seoul Metropolitan Government — Taxi Service Guide.
Seoul also has a multilingual Taxi QR Complaint System
For foreign visitors, this can be easier than explaining the entire problem over the phone.
Seoul's QR complaint service allows passengers to report issues such as:
- Unfair fares
- Meter not used
- Passenger refusal
- Other taxi service problems
The system supports multiple languages.
If you are staying in Seoul and plan to use taxis frequently, saving the official Seoul taxi complaint page before your trip can be useful.
Official source: Seoul Taxi QR Complaint System
Outside Seoul: use the local authority or start with 1330
Taxi regulation and complaint handling can differ by city or province.
A Seoul taxi complaint should not automatically be sent to Busan, Jeju, or another city's call center.
If you are a foreign visitor and do not know which local authority handles the taxi:
1330 Korea Travel Helpline & Complaint Center is a practical place to start.
1330 provides:
- Tourist information
- Interpretation support
- Tourism complaints
- Guidance toward the appropriate agency
From within Korea:
1330
From overseas:
+82-2-1330
Online chat is also available.
1330 telephone and text-chat service operates daily, 07:00–24:00 KST. On KTO Data Lab’s data-description page, open 관광 VOC 데이터 (Tourism VOC data) for the operating-information table. Hours rechecked October 22, 2026; the table does not state an effective date for the hours. For immediate danger or serious injury, call 112 or 119 without waiting for 1330.
Official source: Korea Tourism Organization — 1330 Travel Helpline & Complaint Center
What evidence should you save for an overcharge complaint?
Try to collect:
- Receipt
- License plate
- Vehicle photo, if safely possible
- Ride-hailing app screenshot
- Estimated fare shown before the ride
- Actual fare
- Pickup and drop-off points
- Approximate route
- Payment record
If a toll was added, note that separately.
A clear complaint might say:
“I traveled from Seoul Station to my hotel at 22:10. The meter showed ₩18,500, but I was charged ₩35,000. I have the receipt, card record, and vehicle plate number.”
That is far easier to investigate than:
“The taxi was too expensive.”
Do not confuse an app estimate with a guaranteed final meter fare
Ride-hailing apps often show an estimated fare before the trip.
The final amount can differ because of:
- Actual travel time
- Traffic
- Route
- Tolls
- Applicable surcharges
A final fare being higher than the original estimate is therefore not automatically an overcharge.
Look for a difference that cannot be explained by legitimate fare components.
What if a driver refuses your ride?
Taxi refusal can take several forms.
A street taxi may refuse to take you after hearing the destination.
An app driver may accept the ride and then contact you asking you to cancel.
Or a driver may repeatedly avoid the pickup location until you give up.
Save:
- Plate number
- App screenshots
- Driver messages
- Pickup point
- Destination
- Time
In Seoul, passenger refusal is one of the issues that can be submitted through the city's multilingual Taxi QR Complaint System.
If a Kakao T driver asks you to cancel, choose the correct cancellation reason
This is a very practical detail.
Kakao Mobility's driver-requested cancellation FAQ says that if the driver contacts you and asks you to cancel because of the driver's circumstances, use the cancellation reason corresponding to:
기사님 사정으로 연락 후 취소
roughly:
“Cancel after driver contacted me due to the driver's circumstances.”
Choosing another cancellation reason may incorrectly trigger a cancellation fee.
If the correct option is unavailable or you believe a cancellation fee was charged unfairly, contact Kakao T customer service through the app.
Official source: Kakao Mobility Customer Support
Do not argue with a driver if the situation feels unsafe
If a driver is simply refusing service, document the situation and use the complaint system.
If the driver becomes threatening, violent, follows you after you leave, refuses to let you exit, or creates another immediate safety threat:
Stop treating it as a normal taxi complaint.
Call:
112 — Police
If there is a serious injury or medical emergency:
119 — Ambulance / fire / rescue
Your safety matters more than proving the fare was wrong.
You left your phone or bag in a taxi. What should you do first?
Act quickly.
A moving taxi can be much harder to identify several hours later.
If you booked through an app, start there.
If you hailed the taxi from the street, look for:
- Receipt
- Card payment record
- Vehicle plate photo
- Approximate pickup time
- Pickup and drop-off location
The more specific the ride information, the better your chances of identifying the vehicle.
Lost something in a Kakao T taxi?
Kakao Mobility says the app's driver-call option is available for 14 days after the completed ride. Its service-use FAQ distinguishes this from displaying the driver's contact number: the number can be viewed for three days, followed by protected calling. Kakao Mobility: contacting a driver after a ride; checked October 18, 2026.
Use:
Open your Kakao T ride history, select the relevant taxi ride, and use the driver-call option if still available. Menu labels may change. Kakao Mobility taxi lost-property FAQ; calling and vehicle-number availability checked October 18, 2026.
The detailed ride page can also show driver and vehicle information.
One important limit:
The vehicle number is available in the app for 7 days.
So if you lose something, do not wait two weeks before checking the ride information.
If the driver does not answer, Kakao Mobility recommends contacting the taxi company or taxi association. Its FAQ still refers to the former LOST112 service. For the current police lost-property portal, use Police Civil Service 24; see the police section below.
Official source: Kakao Mobility Customer Support — Taxi Lost Property.
Related AllThingsK8282 guide: Kakao T Without a Korean Number: Payment, Pickup, and k.ride
Paid by card but did not use an app? Tmoney may help identify the taxi
Many Korean taxis use Tmoney payment infrastructure.
Tmoney Mobility's taxi portal currently provides services for passengers including:
- Lost-property vehicle lookup
- ARS lost-property lookup
- Electronic receipt verification
The current customer-service number is:
1644-1188
General counseling hours are:
Weekdays 09:00–18:00
with a lunch break from 13:00–14:00.
The official ARS guide distinguishes general counseling from automated and fault-reporting menus. After-hours menu availability does not promise a staff response. The portal number and counseling hours above were checked October 18, 2026.
Official source: Tmoney Taxi Portal
Why paying by card can make a lost-item case easier
A card transaction creates a record tied to a particular payment terminal and ride.
If you paid cash, did not take a receipt, did not use an app, and do not know the plate number, identifying the taxi can be much harder.
This does not mean you should never pay cash.
It means:
If you pay cash, ask for the receipt before getting out.
That receipt can become extremely valuable if you realize ten minutes later that your passport is still on the back seat.
Search Police Civil Service 24 if the driver or taxi company cannot find your item
Korea's National Police Agency operates the Police Civil Service 24 integrated lost-property system.
You can:
- Search items that have been found
- Search by location and date
- File a lost-property report online
- Visit a police station, police box, or substation to report the item
Taxi-related lost items do appear in the system.
Official source: National Police Agency Police Civil Service 24
How to file a Police Civil Service 24 report
On Police Civil Service 24, open 민원서비스 → 민원 신청·안내 and search for 분실물 신고 (lost-property report). Use 습득물 검색 separately to look for an item already found. Follow the current sign-in requirements; if online access is difficult, report at a nearby police station, police box or substation. National Police Agency lost-property reporting; checked October 9, 2026.
You can also visit:
- Police station
- Police box — 지구대
- Police substation — 파출소
Useful information includes:
- Exact item
- Color
- Brand
- Serial number or IMEI for electronics, if available
- Loss date
- Approximate time
- Location
- Taxi details
If you allow SMS or email notifications, Police Civil Service 24 can notify you when a similar item is entered into the system.
Lost passport in a taxi?
Treat this as a high-priority lost item.
Immediately try:
- Your ride-hailing app
- Driver contact
- Taxi company or payment lookup
- Police Civil Service 24
If you cannot recover the passport, you may also need to contact your embassy or consulate about replacement or emergency travel documentation.
Do not wait until the morning of your international flight to start looking.
Lost phone in a taxi?
Use another device to activate your phone's location service if available.
Do not personally chase a moving taxi or enter an unsafe location based only on a GPS dot.
Instead:
- Contact the driver
- Contact the taxi company
- Use the app's support system
- Check Police Civil Service 24
For Police Civil Service 24 searches, phone serial-number information can sometimes help identify a device accurately.
What if the driver says you must pay to get your lost item back?
There may be legitimate costs in returning a lost item—for example, the driver may need to travel to deliver it.
Do not immediately interpret any requested payment as extortion.
Ask clearly:
“Is this the taxi fare for bringing the item back?”
If the demand seems unreasonable, threatening, or unrelated to a legitimate return cost, use the platform, taxi company, or relevant authority rather than escalating the confrontation yourself.
A taxi accident is different from a normal complaint
If your taxi is involved in a traffic accident:
First check whether anyone is injured.
If there is a serious injury:
119
If police assistance is necessary:
112
Kakao Mobility's own passenger support guidance also tells passengers to contact 119 first when an accident causes personal injury.
Do not spend the first minutes of an accident arguing about the app fare.
Useful Korean phrases
Please use the meter
미터기 켜 주세요.
Please turn on the meter.
Please give me a receipt
영수증 주세요.
Please give me a receipt.
Why is the fare this amount?
요금이 왜 이렇게 나왔나요?
Why is the fare this amount?
Is there a surcharge?
할증이 붙었나요?
Was a surcharge added?
I left my phone in the taxi
택시에 휴대폰을 두고 내렸어요.
I left my phone in the taxi.
I left my bag in the taxi
택시에 가방을 두고 내렸어요.
I left my bag in the taxi.
The driver asked me to cancel
기사님이 취소해 달라고 했어요.
The driver asked me to cancel.
Example: you think a Seoul taxi overcharged you
You take a taxi from a restaurant to your hotel.
The app estimated approximately ₩17,000.
The final charge is ₩32,000.
Do not start with:
“Taxi scam!”
Instead:
- Get the receipt.
- Check whether a late-night or other legitimate surcharge applied.
- Check whether a toll was charged.
- Save the app estimate.
- Save the route.
- Save the full license plate.
- If the difference still appears unexplained, report it through Seoul 120 or the Taxi QR Complaint System.
That creates an evidence-based complaint.
Example: your app driver accepts but asks you to cancel
You request a Kakao T taxi.
The driver accepts.
Then you receive a message:
“Please cancel.”
Do not casually select:
“I changed my mind.”
If the cancellation is because of the driver's situation, use the appropriate driver-requested cancellation reason provided by Kakao T.
Take a screenshot of the message before canceling.
If a cancellation fee appears incorrectly, contact Kakao T support.
Example: you leave your wallet in a street taxi
You did not use an app.
You paid by card.
You have no idea what the license plate was.
Do this:
- Check your card transaction.
- Find the taxi receipt if you kept it.
- Use the Tmoney taxi lost-property lookup if the payment used that network.
- Contact Tmoney customer service if needed.
- Search Police Civil Service 24.
- File a lost-property report if the item does not appear.
Example: you paid cash and have no receipt
This is harder, but not hopeless.
Write down immediately:
- Pickup location
- Drop-off location
- Exact or approximate pickup time
- Arrival time
- Taxi color/type
- Any part of the license plate you remember
- Description of the missing item
Then contact the appropriate taxi or lost-property service and file a Police Civil Service 24 report.
This is why asking for a receipt is a good habit even when the taxi ride seemed completely normal.
Before you leave any taxi in Korea: take five seconds
Before closing the door, check:
Phone
Wallet
Passport
Bag
Receipt
Five seconds can save hours of calls later.
Best practices for tourists using taxis in Korea
- Use a ride-hailing app when convenient because it creates a ride history.
- Match the license plate shown in the app before boarding.
- Save your hotel name and address in Korean.
- Check the pickup pin carefully.
- Do not stand in an unsafe traffic lane waiting for your taxi.
- Keep the app screen until the ride is finished.
- Ask for a receipt after a street-hail ride.
- Check the back seat before closing the door.
Related AllThingsK8282 guides
- Kakao T Without a Korean Number: Payment, Pickup, and k.ride
- Lost Something in Korea? How to Find and Claim Lost Property
- What to Do If Your Luggage Is Lost or Delayed at a Korean Airport
Official sources checked
-
Seoul Metropolitan Government — Taxi Service Guide
Checked current fare guidance, legitimate surcharge categories, 120 Dasan Call Center reporting, foreign-language support, plate-number requirements, and taxi complaint information.
View official Seoul taxi guidance -
Seoul Metropolitan Government — Taxi QR Complaint System
Checked multilingual reporting for unfair fares, meter problems, passenger refusal, and other taxi inconveniences.
View official QR complaint guidance -
Seoul Metropolitan Government — 2026 Taxi Overcharging Measures
Checked recent foreign-passenger complaint data, English receipt improvements, surcharge display changes, and enforcement measures.
View the January 28, 2026 official announcement -
Korea Tourism Organization — 1330 Travel Helpline & Complaint Center
Checked nationwide tourist information, interpretation, complaint reporting, online chat, and overseas contact information.
View 1330 official guidance -
Kakao Mobility Customer Support
Checked driver-requested cancellation procedures, unfair cancellation-fee support, driver contact after a ride, lost-property procedures, and ride-history availability.
View Kakao Mobility support -
Tmoney Mobility — Taxi Portal
Checked passenger lost-property vehicle lookup, ARS search, electronic receipt services, and current customer-service contact information.
View Tmoney Taxi Portal -
National Police Agency — Police Civil Service 24
Checked lost-property search, online lost-item reporting, police-station reporting, and notification procedures.
View Police Civil Service 24
Editorial note: This article was checked against official Seoul, Korea Tourism Organization, Kakao Mobility, Tmoney Mobility, and National Police Agency information rechecked on October 21, 2026. Taxi fares, surcharge rules, local complaint channels, app menus, and lost-property procedures can change. Seoul-specific systems such as 120 and the Taxi QR Complaint System should not be assumed to apply identically in other Korean cities.
Updated October 22, 2026 (KST): Added current 1330 hours and the route to KTO’s operating-information table; clarified Police Civil Service 24 reporting/search menus, the in-person alternative and Seoul’s foreign-language menu step. The old illustration remains unchanged, including its printed LOST112 address; this update does not certify that address or the complete artwork.
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