The rules for NYC taxis are known to everyone that has lived in their for a non trivial amount of time. Tourists might not be familiar with them but any red blo

The rules for NYC taxis are known to everyone that has lived in their for a non trivial amount of time. Tourists might not be familiar with them but any red blooded New Yorker would definitely remind the cabbie they have to go to the final destination. A more commonly abused rule is that cabbies cannot refuse a destination but many will do so if it's in the outer boroughs (imagine Manhattan to Queens or Brooklyn) as they're not guaranteed a fare on the return. At night many will ask you where you're going before you get in to weed this out specifically (illegal). Again, anybody who's lived in the city long enough knows to just ignore the driver and get inside before instructing him where you're going. I've heard stories that there are undercover folks working for the city that test out the cabbies and fine them if they refuse a legit fare.