CANCUN, Q. Roo — The practice of corrupt traffic cops extorting bribes from drivers of rented vehicles in Cancun will be the focus of a brief survey given to customers by car rental companies.
Even though few tourists who rent autos formally file complaints after traffic stops, starting this month the Car Leasing Association of Quintana Roo will ask customers to report whether they have been victims of police extortion during their stay.
There are more than 19,000 rental cars in Quintana Roo state, and visiting renters continue to be victims of acts of corruption by some Municipal Transit officers. Starting this month, all auto renters will be given a survey asking three questions to determine the quality of the treatment they received and whether they were victims of extortion.
(PHOTO: Reuters)
This was disclosed by Thomas Polanco Valencia, president of the Car Leasing Association in Quintana Roo, who said that customers prefer not to report bribe-soliciting cops because they don’t want to waste time on their vacation.
“There continue to be such cases, but the client is not reporting the fact, they do not want them to retain their documents,” Polanco said. “They do not want to waste time. So from this month we will apply a three question survey: ‘How was the service from the car rental company? Did you have any inconvenience during your stay? And would you recommend us?’
“With this we will have a complete control of complaints, to do something about it,” he said.
Although there is willingness from the leadership of Traffic Division, there are elements that continue to commit these acts of corruption.
“In the case of Playa del Carmen police, Secretary Martin Estrada has had contact with us to ask if there have been cases of corruption and to take action on the matter, in this sense there is a willingness on their part,” said Polanco Valencia.
The auto rental association will also be distributing a brochure that was provided by the Association of Hotels of Cancun and Puerto Morelos (AHC) for visitors to know the emergency phone numbers, and in the case of foreigners, the location of consulates.
“It is a coordinated work we are doing with the consuls, the AHC and the Mexican Association of Travel Agencies (AMAV), because we are interested and this affects everybody,” Polanco said.
Source: sipse.com
1 comment
What is the real purpose of this survey? Everyone knows the police extort money from tourists. There is no question about that. The real question is how many times did they solicit bribes? Typically they look for a rental car with tourists headed to the airport with packed suitcases. They know you don’t have time to contest it and that you will just pay and leave. Fortunately it only happened to me once on my recent trip to Cancun. Well at least I can say that I got to bribe a cop. I wish it was that easy in the US. Definitely a lot cheaper than the fines and court costs in the States.
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