AVOID Mthata (BP petrol station and more) | Warning

Description of men involved at first approach.

2 men, one with a longer face (driver) and one about 1.85m, with a larger posture, round face etc. White blouses, chique clothes, looks and sounds trustworthy.

VW Polo station with license plate Kgj782ec

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We missed this warning, but came out lucky.

Today they claimed the N2 is blocked due to protests (including people throwing stones) and you can get an escort by verifying yourself first. This card can be bought at the Caltex gasstation (or any other). They ask you to follow them, and bring you to machine similar to an ATM (it is an ATM, but someone managing that thing is in on it) at a gasstation (in our case another gasstation as mentioned before). The scam involves tapping your Creditcard at the machine, they watch to see your code and then claim there is loadshedding - machine stops working. The card is taken by the machine and the scammer now knows your pincode. Do pay attention, MANY people will verify the story of these men making it extremely easy to fall for this trick.

In our case, approximately 5 'random' people confirmed the story about needing the tickets, there were actual riots and the police was indeed collecting tickets. Making the story incredibly credible. 95% of everything checked out, but it felt off.

Our card was taken by the machine but luckily we used a fake/old card as we didn't trust it. It seems locals, ATM managers and a (fake?) police officer were in on it.

Happy we felt the vibe and could diffuse the scam by offering up an old automobile club card that looked like a creditcard.

Take care in this city! Don't be dramatic, but be vigilant. Don't shop or use the fuel stations.

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We crossed the city today at 6:30pm and we closed the windows in case of... we didn't see any problem or any guys like this. No problem for us.

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It is clear that it is a not a very save place.
Every one told us to take care in that city.
It seems that the problem is coming from north.
We crossed today from south to Port St Johns and everything was fine.
We know that more people crossed without problems!
Just keep your windows up and doors locked and do not stop innecesary (just in trafic lights????).

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We were stopped by 2 guys in reflective jackets. They told us we had to get a permit at the petrol station for a alternative route because the bridge was broken. We just said okay and drove away. One of the guys tried to stop us by jumping in front of our car. Luckily for him he stepped away on time 😌

Don’t listen to them and don’t fully open your window when they want to talk to you.

Later a car (new VW Polo) with 2 guys drove up next to us and waved with a “permit” and said we really had to get it. Again we said okay and drove away.

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We got followed by a new bronze Toyota Hi Lux into town, from the university onwards. In town a guy with a yellow vest jumped in front of us asking for us to follow him and buy a permit. This was just before the bridge. We doubled back and continued again when the guy in the vest jumped out again. Ofcourse we continued on 👍. Be wary of people following you and mirroring your moves.

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This almost happened to us. Luckily we thought it was sketchy once we pulled over to the gas station and decided to leave. The guy however was adamant about us getting out and paying or we would be in big trouble.

As said: don’t listen to anyone trying to tell you you have to pay a fee here! its a scam

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Heard about this scam too from several other travellers/tourists. They ask you to pay toll or some kind of fee, and you have to pay by card. Then they somehow distract you after you entered your pin and take your card!

Just continue driving when someone stops you and asks for toll!

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Extremely dangerous and crowded city. We were scammed for a lot of money at the BP petrol station. They say you have to pay tol for a bridge. That's the scam! It suppose it happens a lot...

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