Is Your Apple Watch Fall Detection Turned On
Beginning in 2021, Apple began notifying 911 centers of Apple series 4 watch wearers having a hard fall, crashing their bikes, and now they are working on crash detection. In each scenario, Apple gives their customers 30 seconds to respond to an alarm in the chance the fall does not warrant an emergency response. The alarm is loud enough so that someone nearby can also respond to it. The customer can simply turn off the alarm or verbally respond to the alarm. IN the chance that no answer is given, Apple contacts the local 911 center and provides a longitude and latitude if this feature is turned on with the Apple watch feature on the customer’s iPhone. If a customer enters their age over 55, the fall detection turns on automatically (Apple, 2022).
This crash detection has been in the works over the past year. IN 2021, 10 million crashes were detected in which 50,000 calls were made to 911 (Apple iPhone Also Becomes a Savior in a Car Accident! Check What’s Coming, 2022). In October of 2021, I personally was involved in a serious crash in which I was unconscious and broke both my arms. My wash was smashed. I was unable to contact law enforcement and stopped breathing. I did not have this feature turned on, as I was unaware of it. I have since learned that to activate it you have to go to the “watch” app within your Apple iPhone. Once inside the app, you then go to “Emergency SOS” and turn on “Fall Detection”. You can choose “always on” or “only on during workouts”. My suggestion would be to have this always turned on.
It is important to note that several third-party apps already have crash detection services. Google Pixel and Life 360 are examples of these applications. Life 360 will notify your chosen friends or relatives when they detect you have been involved in a crash. OnStar has had this feature since 1996 (Winkler, 2021). Apple is claiming that they will make more safety features once their crash detection is in full swing for driving (Winkler, 2021).
References:
Apple. (2022, March 31). Use fall detection with Apple Watch. Apple Support. Retrieved April 15, 2022, from https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT208944
Apple iPhone also becomes a savior in a car accident! Check what’s coming. (2022, April 10). Www.Newsbeezer.Com. Retrieved April 15, 2022, from https://newsbeezer.com/newzealand/apple-iphone-also-becomes-a-savior-in-a-car-accident-check-whats-coming/
Winkler, R. (2021, November 1). Apple Wants iPhones to Detect Car Crashes, Auto-Dial 911. WSJ. Retrieved April 15, 2022, from https://www.wsj.com/articles/apple-wants-iphones-to-detect-car-crashes-auto-dial-911-11635768001