Farezi Verification Standard · version 1
How Farezi verifies taxi fares
Minibus taxi fares are set by associations and change without notice. Farezi shows the fare, then says plainly how we know it and whether it is still current. Those are two different questions, so every fare answers both.
The eight things we record for every fare
- Fare
- The price in rand, or a range when the taxi rank quotes one.
- Evidence status
- How we know it: Official, Association confirmed, Farezi verified or Reported (below).
- Confidence
- High, medium or low, from the status and from whether independent sources agree.
- Effective from
- The date the fare starts to apply, taken from the notice when there is one.
- Valid until
- When we stop calling the fare current unless it is checked again.
- Last verified
- The last date someone at Farezi checked it. Shown on every route page.
- Source
- The document or confirmation behind it. Official fares link to a notice we hold on file.
- Methodology version
- The version of this standard that was applied, so a fare can be re-assessed if the rules change.
Dimension 1: evidence status (how we know)
- Official
- Taken from a notice issued by the taxi association, and Farezi holds that document. Without the document a fare cannot be Official, however sure we are.
- Association confirmed
- A named person at the association confirmed the fare to us (by call, message or in person). We record who and how.
- Farezi verified
- Two independent sources agree, for example an association notice and commuters who paid the same fare recently.
- Reported
- Reported by the association or by commuters. It is on the page because it is useful, but Farezi has not yet checked it against a second source.
When we are unsure, a fare is Reported. We never raise a status to look more certain than we are.
Dimension 2: freshness (is it still current)
Freshness is worked out from the valid-until date every time a page is built. It is never typed in by hand, so it cannot go out of date quietly. How long a fare stays valid depends on its status: 12 months from the notice date for Official, 6 months for Association confirmed, and 90 days for Farezi verified and Reported.
- Current
- Inside its validity period.
- Due for review
- Expires within 14 days. Still shown, and queued for a re-check.
- Expired
- The validity period has ended. We still show the last known fare, clearly marked, and ask you to confirm with the driver.
- Historical
- Replaced by a newer fare. Kept for the record.
When sources disagree
- We do not average prices. A current Official or Association confirmed fare is the fare of record.
- If commuters keep reporting a price more than 10% away from it, we keep those reports and show them beside the fare, with how many there are, until we have checked.
- If the fare really did change, the new fare replaces the old one, and the status starts again from what we can prove about the new price.
The opposite direction
Many taxi routes charge the same fare in both directions, so Farezi shows the return trip using the fare of the outward trip and says “Based on the opposite direction”. It carries no status badge of its own, because nobody has independently confirmed that direction.
What this is not
Farezi is not a taxi association, does not sell tickets, takes no payment for a journey and does not guarantee that a fare will be charged. Fares are indicative: confirm with the driver or rank marshal. See the disclaimer.
Spotted a wrong fare? Tell us what you paid.