Although there are still no hard facts regarding the allegations that cabbies manipulated their meters to overcharge their passengers, the suspicion persists widely. Riders keenly observe everything inside the cab, carefully scrutinize the drivers and repeatedly count their money before paying their fare. Many of them forgo tipping the cabbies altogether or gives small tips – the generous tips of the past are gone.

This new attitude severely affects the cabbies financially and professionally, with many saying they have lost interest in this traditional profession, which many saw as a "cash cow." Some see this situation as the ruin of the profession and feel it cannot regain its good standing.

Shah Alam, a member of the Bangladesh Yellow Society New York, Inc., said the massive media coverage of the meter scandal tarnished the reputation for all cabbies. Now passengers get into the cab and keep their eyes fixed on the GSP device, an attitude that he finds offensive. He has also seen the tips diminish, affecting his income. The alleged scandal got wide coverage in the media, while it did not give equal treatment to the fact that there was no evidence to support the accusation.

Zakir Hawoladar, former president of the Bengal Cabby Society, agrees that the situation has affected cabbies professionally and financially. Even though there is still no proof of what actually happened, the cabbies have suffered the consequences. He believes that of the 50,000 cabbies perhaps two or four were involved in the tampering, making it unjust to accuse all the drivers.

The founder secretary of the Padma Yellow Society, Shakhawat Biswas said that it will take time to remove the distrust that has gained ground in the passengers' mind as a result of the scandal helped along by the massive media coverage. "The dispute is still under investigation," he stated. "We don't know whether the report is true or not. But it should have been investigated before the issue was flashed in the media perhaps – cabbies might not have faced such a loss. But now it has deteriorated the relation between the cabbies and the riders, who reduced tips or even do not offer any tip. Many riders pay their bills through credit card without giving any tip. As a result the cabbies are facing losses.

Fakhrul Islam Masum said that passengers were initially suspicious of the cabbies when the meter scandal first appeared in the media, but feels that their suspicion is lessening. For him, the financial loss is more the result of the overall economic recession. [pic]

Sultan Uddin, a taxi driver, agrees that the diminishing tips are result of the money crisis.

Shoheb Thakur, also a cabbie, saw a change in passengers' behavior with the drivers after the meter scandal went public and have been less friendly. Those who pay the fare with cash at least give a little tip, he said, but those who pay with a credit card almost never tip, representing a loss for the driver.

Cabbie Mossharraf Hossen, who also is experiencing drastically reduced tips, believes that this can be due to passengers' suspicion that they are being charged an excessively large fare.

Another driver, who preferred to remain unnamed, said that cabbies now have neither honor nor income like before. Despite working hard day and night, he says, he is unable to bring home the desired income and plans to change his profession.