If Smart Arrival isn’t triggering when it should, or the app isn’t detecting your location:
- Permissions: Double-check that you granted the app location permission. On iPhone, you may need to set it to “Always Allow” if you want background arrival detection. On Android, ensure location is allowed and that battery optimization isn’t preventing background GPS.
- Device settings: Make sure your phone’s GPS is turned on. Some devices have a “High Accuracy” mode for location – use that for better results. Also, if you’re in Airplane Mode (with GPS off) the device might not get a satellite fix.
- Connection: If you’re completely offline (no Wi-Fi or cellular data) and you haven’t been to the area before, the app might not have the map data to know about that location yet. Smart Arrival has an offline cache, but it helps if you open the app when you have connection earlier so it can preload data for your destination. If offline, you might need to manually search and check in.
- Background usage: Some phone models aggressively kill background apps to save battery. If Smart Arrival never works in background, check your phone’s settings for battery optimization/power saving and make an exception for VanLife Connect (especially on certain Android phones like Huawei, Xiaomi, etc.). This will allow the app to run the geofence service.
If location services still seem wonky, try using another map app to see if it’s a general GPS issue or specific to our app. If your phone’s GPS is not working in general (e.g., Google Maps can’t find you), that indicates a device issue. A device reboot or toggling GPS off and on might help.
As always, report the issue to us if it persists. Include your device model and OS, and any pattern you notice (e.g., “Smart Arrival worked at two places but not at Site X”). We can investigate if there’s a mapping issue on that particular location or a bug affecting certain devices.