Have you been somewhere that Taxi's are unregulated? After they refuse to give you your luggage until you pay $20 over what was agreed, rob you, leave you at the wrong destination, etc... is when you realize taxi regulation was setup to protect consumers.

edit To clarify, I'm not saying there are no problems with the current cab systems, only that public safety and consistent fares are one of the main reasons cabs are regulated by the government

I've been in places where taxis are regulated and I've been ripped off too, primarily boston and new york:

1. The taxi driver refused to turn on his meter and then just demanded a fee.

2. Taxis refusing to take you where you want to go, i.e. getting a cab to brooklyn.

3. Taxis not showing up when they've been reserved ahead of time, early morning airport runs.

4. Taxis taking long and wrong routes to drive up the fare.

5. Taxis not knowing the area, and not having a GPS, so they get lost and then just give up leaving you somewhere.

6. Being in a taxi where the license picture does match the driver.

So, I've had lots of bad experiences of "regulated" taxis. I've had lots of good experiences too. As for unregulated, I've been in a few in south and central america, not sure if they were regulated or not.

Saying that you've had bad experiences with regulated taxis is not a counter argument. For all six of those, there is a number you can call to report them. And none of them are all that bad.

Get into an unregulated taxi, and you're at their mercy.

Yes, it's a good argument. It shows how the regulation that ostensibly was set up to protect customers does not consistently do that. And what am I going to do with a phone number? Spend 20 minutes on hold before I can tell a disinterested minimum wage call center employee about how my would-have-been $50 missing taxi caused me to miss my $1500 flight so it's recorded in some log that nobody ever reads?

The fact that some people might accept the service-failures listed by the GP as not being bad just shows how low expectations to taxies has become. Luckily some people believe taxies can do better.

Finally, all but the stauchest libertarians would accept a sensible minimum of regulation that would provide a minimum of protection, including mandatory insurance and conspicuous display of photo ID inside the vehicle.

You haven't been ripped off by an unlicensed cab before, have you? The licensed cabs operate in a manner that will at least keep them from having their medallion taken away. Unlicensed cabs have nothing to fear.

No. I don't ride in unlicensed cabs. That doesn't keep me from wanting significantly less regulation.

I have been ripped off by licensed ones, though - twice, I think. Both cases involved foreign counties and drivers who conveniently and suddenly lost their command of English.

Like I said, being ripped off by licensed cabs isn't an argument for less regulation. It's an argument for something else, possibly more regulation. Show me that cabs don't need licensing and regulation using unlicensed cabs as an example, and you'll have an argument.

Uhm, I wasn't giving a counter argument. I was replying to your question. What you want to do with that is up to you.

Any demonstration in the vein you propose will rely on a measure of caveat emptor. I would guess I am willing to accept a greater degree of this (trading strict consumer protection for better competition leading to better service and lower prices) than you seem to be.

Have you ever done that? Does it work?

I’ve always been to flustered to get a medallion number when things are going south. And I always figured that it didn’t matter anyhow.

Did you complain to the authorities? Every regulated cab I've been in has a hotline you can call for these types of things.

1) If the meter isn't running, you don't pay. If he refuses to release your bags, call the police. This constitutes theft (and possibly false imprisonment if he won't let you out of the passenger area), so you may be able to call 911.

2) Report the company to the local taxi licensing commission. After a few complaints, they lose their license/medallion. One caveat: taxis at the end of a shift are allowed to pick their destination. If the taxi isn't at the end of the shift, let the local bouncer/valet know and that taxi won't be allowed back.

3) See #2.

4) See #2.

5) See #2.

6) See #2. Also, call the police because you are probably not in a licensed taxi.

You don't need taxi-specific regulations to stop people being robbed and cheated. For legal matters you have legal recourse, and for customer service problems you can call the taxi company. Even if some regulation is necessary to protect the consumer, though, it's clear that much of it also exists to protect the industry. You don't need wide-reaching oversight powers or price controls to enforce minimum service requirements.

Looking to the future, things like smartphones and Google Glass will lessen the need for consumer protection by making user-reviews always at-hand. If you look at a taxi and see "Two stars, poor service" automatically overlaid, or if you get a list of rated companies when you try to call a cab, the market will be able to weed out bad eggs. This is a far more democratic solution than legislation.

How does limiting supply and artificially raising prices "protect the consumer"?

And it sounds like your pitfalls are already illegal.

Also regulating and managing supply are too very different things, if all one has to do is register and fill out forms then I'd have less of a problem. Unfortunately it seems they'd also like to ensure demand and centrally plan the supply.

Thats not an issue of regulation. Theft is already illegal as is fraud. Telling someone they must pay more after a transaction is a violation of an implicit contract. Adding further regulation doesn't stop shit like that.