Overview
The article discusses how to use Careco cars with Whim. In this article you can find information on the following:
- Using Careco shared cars
- Verifying the driving license
- Booking Careco car with Whim
- Questions and answers
Using Careco shared cars
With Whim, you can book and pay for Careco shared cars in Japan. Currently, only pay-as-you-go rides are available.
To find out the service areas of Careco shared car stations, please refer to Careco’s website (Japanese) for the available areas for the stations.
Before accessing the Careco shared cars through Whim, all customers must first verify their driving licenses. It may take 1-2 days to verify the license.
Please note that at the moment Careco is available to the Whim users with a Japanese driver’s license.
Verifying the driving license
Choose “Rental car” from the Whim Home view
(Fig.1) Whim home view
Rental date and time selector screen will open. Click on Verify driver's license.
(Fig.2) Rental date and time selector
Scroll down to “Verify driver's license”. By clicking “Continue”, you have accepted Privacy Policy and Careco´s terms and conditions.
(Fig.3) Start Verification (Fig.4) Verification
You will then be directed to do the license authentication. Please have your driver's license ready and start the authentication process.
(Fig.5) Start Authentication
Follow the instructions on the App and fill in the required information and also driver's license information
(Fig. 6 ) Required details
(Fig. 7) Drivers license details
Take a selfie of yourself and also take photos of the driving license´s front and backside.
(Fig. 8 ) Photo authentication view
You will receive a notification that the license will take between 1-2 business days to be verified. Until your data has been verified, you will not be able to book a car. During this time, you are also able to re-enter your document details if you need to change something.
Once you are verified, you will receive an automatic notification and an email. Then you are ready to use Careco.
(Fig. 9) Registration request sent (Fig.10) Information being processed
Booking Careco car with Whim
Once the license has been verified, an approval email and notification will be sent to you. You can now proceed to book a car. To book a car with Whim, go to the Whim app’s home screen, tap on the “Rental Car” icon.
(Fig. 11) Choose Rental Cars from the Home View.
The Car Share View will open up. You can edit pick-up and drop-off dates and times on the date and time picker.
Fig. 12. Find car, Edit time and date Fig. 13. Service provider list
Once your pick-up and drop-off times and dates have been set, Whim will show you all available cars by car station location. Tap specific cars listed to view more details of the shared car you wish to book.
(Fig.14) Cars listed by station
Once you have chosen a car that suits you, proceed to “Select”. Confirm the payment to reserve your shared car.
About the fare of Careco's shared cars
The fares structure for Careco shared car booked from Whim are based on Careco's 'No Monthly Fee Plan (月会費無料プラン) '. The quoted amount displayed on the app is an estimate of the hourly rate. Distance charges may be added depending on the total time used and the applicable package for your ride. For detail, please refer to the Careco website (Japanese).
(Fig.15) Select this car (Fig.16) Confirm payment and booking
Your booking has been made! You can view your upcoming bookings under the “Active Tickets” section in the Home View. Swipe up to see more booking details. You can also edit or cancel the booking from this view.
(Fig.17 ) Booking confirmed. (Fig.18) Cancel booking
Under the “Active Tickets” tap a booking to open up a detailed view of the booking.
(Fig.19) Booked Car in Active Tickets section.
If you wish to cancel your booking, open up the detailed booking view by tapping the booking under the “Active Tickets” section in the Home View. Scroll down to the bottom of the page and choose “Cancel booking”. Once your booking has been canceled, you will see a confirmation at the top of the app’s screen.
If the cancellation is made before the start time of the booking, no cancellation fee is charged. If the booking is canceled after the start time, a cancellation fee will be charged according to the time. Please refer to Careco's terms and conditions of use and fee structure.
It usually takes several working days for your credit card company to process the refund to your card or another registered payment method.
(Fig.20) Cancel booking
Picking up the car
Tap on the car booking from the home view to see your booking details (incl. the parking lot no., license plate no. and car model) and unlock the car with Whim by “swiping to unlock”.
You can either review the instructions on your screen before unlocking or after unlocking, such as starting the car, returning the car, refueling/recharging, car wash, damage inspection, calling customer care, etc.
Before starting the car you are required to perform a damage inspection of the car. Please walk around the car and mark potential damages, scratches, etc. in the physical booklet that can be found in the car’s glove compartment.
Turn the key in the center console/glove compartment. Take it out and insert the car key into the ignition to start the car.
- Only the person who made the booking via Whim can drive the car.
Ending the Ride
If you want to end your ride, press “End ride” on the app. Please make sure that the key in the center console/glove compartment (depending on the car) is turned to the “off” position, that all windows and doors are closed and that all lights are turned off.
After confirming to end the ride, you can see the details of your ride such as; travel distance, usage time, late return fees, cancellation fees.
You will be charged the price of the ride at the end of the reservation in Whim.
- Should you incur additional fees, e.g. cleaning or damage fees, these will be settled and charged by the 10th day of the next month. This is when you will receive the final price, which Whim will notify you about.
Questions and Answers
- How will I know what the final price of the rental is?
- What do I do if the car is running low on fuel?
- Can someone else drive the car?
- Do I need to pay for parking the car?
- What is the minimum and maximum time to reserve a Careco car?
- How do I end the ride?
- Do I get any notifications that the rental is about to end?
- I arrived at the car early. Can I start my reservation before the official start time?
- What happens if I exceed the reservation time?
How will I know what the final price of the rental is?
You will be charged the price of the ride at the end of the reservation in Whim. Changes to your invoice may happen until the 10th of the next month (due to potential extra charges such as penalty fees, damage or cleaning fees, etc. Whim will notify you about these.
What do I do if the car is running low on fuel?
Refueling is included in the rental price. Therefore, if the remaining amount of gasoline falls below 1/2, please cooperate with refueling using the card found in the car manual.
Can someone else drive the car?
Unfortunately, this is not possible. Only the person who made the booking via Whim may drive the car.
Please keep in mind that at the moment Careco is only available to Whim users with a Japanese driver’s license.
Do I need to pay for parking the car?
Yes, you need to pay parking fees when pausing your ride. The user is responsible for paying for any parking fees if they decide to stop somewhere.
What are the minimum and maximum times to reserve a Careco car?
The minimum reservation time is 30 minutes and the maximum is 72 hours. Any time which is less than the billing unit (every 10 minutes) is rounded up.
How do I end the ride?
You can only end the ride via the app while you are at the station. If you are trying to tap “End Ride” in the app without turning off the ignition, the car key in the ignition will speak to you: “Turn off the engine before ending the reservation”. Then turn the other key in the center console to be able to press “End ride” in the app.
In the case that the key in the center console is not turned to the off position, the window/trunk is left open, the engine is on, or the headlights/brakes are on, the app won’t let you end the ride.
Do I get any notifications that the rental is about to end?
Yes. 15 minutes before the reservation end time, the car will start to beep to remind you that the rental time is about to end in 15 minutes.
I arrived at the car early. Can I start my reservation before the official start time?
If the car that you booked is available already before the start time that you originally set in Whim, you can unlock the car already then (e.g. 10 minutes earlier). The end time of your reservation will automatically adjust (e.g. 10 minutes earlier).
What happens if I exceed the reservation time?
It is not possible to extend your booking hours after the start time of use from the Whim app. This is because a different user might have already made another reservation after your booked returning time.
However, if you are unable to return the vehicle in time, please be sure to contact the Careco Support Centre (0570-060-300 / 24 hours). They will only accept changes if the vehicle is available. An overtime charge (in a double rate) may apply if the vehicle is not available with another booking, etc.
Please note that unreported extensions are subject to penalty charges. If you are unable to return the vehicle in time, please make sure to contact the Careco Support Centre before the end time.
Also, in the event of an extension by contacting the Careco Support Centre, the overtime penalty fee will be once charged to your registered payment method automatically and you'll have to contact Whim's Customer Care (via the 'Contact Us' page of the app or by phone (050-3161 -2698 / 10 am-6 pm, 365 days) for a request to modify the final charge to the one confirmed by the Careco Support Centre.
We highly recommend that you book as close to your expected usage time as possible in this respect also.
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