DAMMAM: Several Saudi tourists have complained of being cheated in the Malaysian Island of Lankawi by taxi drivers and boat owners with police failing to act on complaints. The cases generally relate to the Saudis paying double the approved prices for marine trips to the Island.

Makkah newspaper quoted Fayez Al-Otaibi, an official of the Citizen's Affairs Department in the Saudi Embassy in Malaysia, as saying the problem lies with the Saudi citizens who are gullible and don’t file complaints with the embassy.

The newspaper cited the cases of at least seven Saudis who had been cheated. One of them was Sara Al-Qahtani. She said she and her companions took a sea taxi trip for SR500. After they paid the money they were taken to an island and told they had just one hour to explore.

When they came back they couldn’t find the boat and there was no way to communicate with the rental agency. So they waited three hours for the boat to return. When she demanded a refund because they didn’t complete their trip, the official refused.

Sarah added that they threatened to go to the police, but the company didn’t seem to care. So they went to a police station where an officer told them that he couldn't do anything for them and that they should file a complaint with the tourist police.

After they returned to the hotel, a tourist official told them that they had been cheated and that these companies were unlicensed. Official prices for these trips are SR250 for a boat and SR30 for a person.