The crash detection feature built into the iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Pro and the new Apple Watch caused a skier to accidentally call emergency services, according to Utah news site KSL.
The crash detection feature, which is designed to help users call emergency services when a crash is detected, can be triggered while skiing, and dispatchers in Summit County, Utah, say the number of misdialed 911 calls is on the rise. They often get calls that the owner of this Apple Watch or iPhone has been in a serious collision or that they’ve been in a car accident, and people don’t respond on the phone at first because they don’t know the call has been dialed, after which they usually say, “Oops, I’m sorry, I was skiing. Everything’s fine.”
The above dispatcher reportedly said that there are three to five emergency calls a day from Apple devices, and so far none of them have been intentional calls from users.
Some Reddit users have also confirmed that skiing can indeed trigger the crash detection feature, with one user claiming that his Apple Watch started dialing 911 while he was descending the mountain at a moderate speed. so while skiing, users would be wise to turn off the crash detection feature on the iPhone 14.
In addition to the crash detection feature on the iPhone 14 series, Apple Watch Series 8, the new Apple Watch SE and Apple Watch Ultra, there is also a fall detection feature on a range of Apple devices that could also lead to calls to emergency services.
The crash detection feature in the new iPhone and Apple Watch can also be triggered by roller coasters, and just today Apple released an update to iOS 16.1.2 that includes “crash detection optimizations. Apple did not provide specific information, but it is likely that the feature will be less likely to be accidentally triggered in the absence of an actual car accident.
