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Helsinki Region: Using Taxis

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Whim Customer Care
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Overview

With Whim you get access to taxis via our partners, which include Taxi Helsinki, Lähitaksi and Menevä. You can book and pay for rides in just a few taps. In this article, you will learn about:

How to Book a Taxi Using Whim

1. Select Taxis from the Home View  (Fig. 1).

Fig. 1. Taxi button

2. Enter your destination address. You can also edit the pick-up address or choose your exact location from the map (Fig. 2).

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Fig. 2. Set drop off address

3. Whim presents you with ETAs* and pricing from different service providers in advance before you request a taxi. By tapping on Any Taxi (Fig. 2) a drop-down menu appears (Fig.3) and lets you choose a taxi from a specific provider or a taxi of specific size to suit your requirements (subject to availability).

*Please note that ETA is an estimated time of arrival. This information is currently available for taxis from Taksi Helsinki and Menevä.

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Fig. 3. Prices from different service providers

4. If you want, you can also add a message to the driver with more detailed pick-up instructions by tapping "Add a message for the driver" and adding your message to the message field provided (Fig. 4).

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Fig. 4. Add message for the taxi driver

5. After selecting the service provider, Whim will charge you a fixed taxi fare (Fig. 5).

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Fig. 5. Payment window         

6. After the payment, Whim will request a taxi for you (Fig. 6).

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Fig. 6. Whim requesting a taxi

7. You may cancel the request by clicking the “Cancel” button (Fig. 7 and 8). Please wait until you receive the green message saying “Booking was cancelled” (Fig. 9).

 

Fig. 7. Cancel the request             Fig. 8. Confirm the cancellation request  Fig. 9. A successful cancellation

8. After a successful request, Whim will show you the taxi number as well as the estimated time of arrival of the taxi (Fig. 10).

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Fig. 10. Taxi number and pickup estimation

9. You will receive an email confirmation about the payment. If you need a receipt with more detail, please select the trip from the past trips view and tap Send receipt by email.

More information on how to book a taxi through Whim can be found here.

Questions and Answers:

How are taxi trips priced?

Taxi trips are priced according to meter price estimate. Depending on which Whim season ticket, serial ticket or bundle you are subscribed to, your taxi trips will be charged as follows:

  • Users without a season ticket, serial ticket or bundle: Standard pricing applies.
  • HSL 30-day season ticket, HSL 30-day student season ticket, 10-ticket and City Bike season pass:
    • Your season ticket, serial ticket or bundle includes flat-rate 12,50€ Taksi Helsinki taxis for trips that are max. 3km/10min long. This pricing applies to all 3km/10min Taksi Helsinki trips, even at night time. If your trip is longer than 3km/10min, standard meter pricing applies.
  • Whim Unlimited: Taxi trips within 5km from your departure location are free (max. 80 rides per month). Standard pricing applies for taxi rides beyond 5km, for taxi rides made when you are using a rental car and for rides beyond the 80 rides/month limit. If the number of rides per month exceeds 80, the price of any rides exceeding the limit will be charged afterward with standard taxi pricing.

More pricing information from our service providers:

Can I cancel my booking through Whim?

If the taxi order has already been confirmed by the driver, unfortunately, it can no longer be cancelled. However, you are able to cancel the booking before the request being accepted by the driver (Fig.10 and 11). Please be patient when the app is cancelling your request, you will get a confirmation message “Booking was cancelled” after a successful cancellation (Fig.12).

If you didn’t get a notification of successful cancellation, it may indicate that a taxi driver has already accepted your booking and is on their way to you. In these cases we advise you to check your Whim app ticket view for an active trip.

Please also note that if you do not cancel your taxi booking, you might be charged with a maximum of 10€ customer-no-show fee by the taxi company.

 

Fig. 10. Cancel the request           Fig. 11. Confirm the cancellation request  Fig. 12. A successful cancellation

I called the taxi center to cancel my taxi, why do I still get charged?

If you can not cancel your taxi booking any more via the app, you may cancel it by calling the taxi center. Please note that you are entitled to a cancellation fee if the cancellation is made after the driver has accepted your request and is on the way to pick you up.

The cancellation fee is decided by our service providers and it will be charged from the user:  

  • Taksi Helsinki:    Maximum 10€
  • Lähitaksi:                Maximum 10€

Can I use Whim for any taxi in the capital region?

For the time being, you may order taxis from Taksi Helsinki, Lähitaksi and Menevä through Whim.

Can I pay with Whim if I grab a cab at a taxi rank?

Unfortunately, this is not possible just yet. We are working on a solution to this to make traveling with Whim even more convenient for you in the future.

How can I order the closest available taxi?

When ordering a taxi, it is now possible to see the estimated time of arrival (ETA) for taxis from different service providers. Please note that the ETA is an estimate and not a definite time of arrival.

I ordered a taxi but something went wrong. Did I lose the payment I spent on the order?

We get notified of all failed orders and return the payment for this trip to you automatically.

If you need help, however, please contact us via the Whim customer support channel or online.

Can I still change the destination once a booking is made via the app?

Once a booking is made via the app, the destination can no longer be changed. If you notice that your address is incorrect while Whim is still searching for a taxi for you, you can cancel the booking in the app by tapping the Cancel button and make a new booking. When cancelling a taxi please wait until the app shows you a "Booking was cancelled" message.

Can I leave detailed pick-up instructions for the taxi driver?

Yes. After choosing the taxi operator and taxi type, tap “add pick-up-instructions” and type in your message. You can type in max 160 characters. Confirm by tapping “add message” and continue to confirm the order. Please note that messages cannot be sent or edited after order is placed. Drivers cannot send a reply to your message.

This feature is currently supported by Lähitaksi, Menevä and Taksi Helsinki.

Can I request a taxi with a specific requirement (e.g. pet friendly or with a child seat)?

If you have a specific request (a taxi with a baby seat, a taxi for the disabled, a taxi where accompanying pets are allowed, etc.), you can now specify these by leaving a message to your taxi driver. However, we kindly ask you to note that this may result in delays of getting a taxi and does not guarantee you to get a taxi that will accommodate your request.

Is it possible to make an advance booking through Whim?

Unfortunately, it is not yet possible to make an advance booking via Whim. We currently only process real-time bookings.

If the GPS location detected by the Whim App is wrong, how do I amend the address?

If the GPS location detected is wrong, you can tap to change the pick-up location, then manually key in the address in the "Choose starting point" field to correct it.

 

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