Bulgarian Taxi Firm Fined over Scheme to Rip Off Clients

'Fake' taxi firms in Sofia imitating the logos of established companies in order to rip off clients have gotten a fine of BGN 50 000 only. Photo by BGNES

Bulgaria’s Supreme Administrative Court has confirmed the BGN 50 000 fine of a Sofia taxi firm which imitates the brand of another cab company.

In November 2008, Bulgaria’s Competition Protection Commission imposed a BGN 150 000 fine on the cab firm OK Superchance for adopting an identical logo to that of mainstream and established taxi company OK Supertrans.

Later, the competition watchdog reduced the fine to BGN 50 000, and the lower fine was confirmed by the Administrative Court some 1.5 years later.

The Competition Commission justified its decision on the grounds that the OK Superchance firm sought deliberately to trick the consumers into believing that they were using the cabs of OK Supertrans.

OK Superchance is one of the notorious smaller cab companies in Sofia imitating the appearance and brands of mainstream firms with reasonable rates.

There have been dozens of cases in which foreign citizens have complained to the Bulgarian police for having to pay up to EUR 100 when taking a cab from the Sofia Airport to the downtown while at the rates of the mainstream cab firms, the sum would hardly exceed BGN 10.

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