Will a Cellular Apple Watch Series 5, without an active cell plan, still initiate a call to emergency services AND transmit your location and Medical ID IF you are away from wifi and your phone (like on a run or out at the mailbox etc)?

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Will a Cellular Apple Watch Series 5, without an active cell plan, still initiate a call to emergency services AND transmit your location and Medical ID IF you are away from wifi and your phone (like on a run or out at the mailbox etc)?

Will a Cellular Apple Watch Series 5 (or later) without an active cell plan, still initiate a call to emergency services AND transmit your location and Medical ID following a Fall with the wearer being immobile/unconscious IF you are away from wifi and your phone (like on a run or out at the mailbox etc)?

Apple Watch Series 5

Posted on Nov 14, 2021 5:40 PM

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Answer 1

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lobsterghost1

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147,884 points

Nov 14, 2021 6:19 PM in response to Mltckr

Sorry, but I can't answer that question. For total clarity, I suggest you contact Apple directly. We are just users on this user to user only forum.

For me, I pay the $10/month for a cellular plan on my Apple Watch. It's worth the $10/month charge. And if you frequently go running with your watch and are concerned about being in a situation where you may need to use location and emergency services, you might want to give more consideration to being as safe as you can be. Of course, that's entirely up to you.

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Answer 2

Mltckr Author

Level 1

4 points

Nov 14, 2021 6:07 PM in response to lobsterghost1

I was reading the bottom of this article in the ‘International Emergency Calling’ where it talks about “In some countries and regions, international emergency calling works even if you haven't set up cellular service on the watch.” And the US is listed in the link below that portion.

So it appears that even without a cell plan active, an emergency service call will still be initiated. But my question is will the rest of the ‘Emergency Call’ actions such as transmitting you location, Medical ID, and then sharing location and info with Emergency Contacts still take place.

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT206983

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Answer 3

Nov 14, 2021 5:54 PM in response to Mltckr

A cellular watch which is not set up on a cellular plan operates exactly as a GPS only watch. And for a GPS only watch to be able to reach emergency services, your companion iPhone would have to be near you.

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Will a Cellular Apple Watch Series 5, without an active cell plan, still initiate a call to emergency services AND transmit your location and Medical ID IF you are away from wifi and your phone (like on a run or out at the mailbox etc)?

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