Some Automakers Charge Extra for Automatic Crash Notification. These Don’t Make You Pay More for This Lifesaving Feature.

“All cars should be required to have this feature, and nobody should pay for it,” says Eileen Bulger, MD, a professor of surgery with University of Washington Medicine in Seattle who has researched the benefits of ACN on crash survival rates and presented those findings to NHTSA. “It’s a safety feature.” 

Bulger is also the chief of surgery for Seattle’s Harborview Medical Center, a Level 1 trauma center that’s capable of handling the most severe injuries. She says that she has treated patients who would have benefited from automatic crash notification, including a woman who was found eight days after her car went off the road and down a ravine and was unable to call for help. “She survived because she didn’t have life-threatening injuries, but she was critically dehydrated and had significant complications associated with that,” Bulger says. “Automatic crash notification would have immediately said, ‘This car is off the road, here’s where it is, here’s the exact location,’ and somebody would have gone to investigate it.”

An extension of this technology, known as advanced automatic crash notification, or AACN, automatically shares detailed information about a crash—such as how fast the car was traveling, which airbags deployed, and how many people were in the car—directly with 911 dispatch centers so that medical professionals can be better prepared to treat victims. Currently, not all vehicles are equipped to send advanced automatic crash notification data, and not all 911 systems are equipped to receive it. For example, OnStar says its advisers can always verbally share crash details, including the likelihood of severe injury, with 911 call centers over dedicated phone lines. But in some states, including California, Arizona, Tennessee, and Kansas, OnStar uses advanced automatic crash notification technology to share this information automatically and electronically.

“To make this really work, it will need to be in all vehicles, and all vehicles would need to transmit this data in a uniform way to, ideally, 911 dispatch centers,” Bulger says. “Then you would send maybe different resources to the scene. You’d more quickly dispatch a helicopter or a rescue team that has the ability to cut somebody out of a crash.”

Automatic crash notification is often bundled with convenience features such as remote start and door lock control via a mobile app, mobile WiFi hot spots, roadside assistance, and concierge services. But Alex Knizek, CR’s manager for auto testing and insights, says it would be easy for automakers to separate automatic crash notification and offer it free while still charging for other connectivity services. “The necessary cellular hardware is already included in most new vehicles sold today. Automakers can simply activate ACN independently,” Knizek says.

CR’s Wallace says consumers shouldn’t have to pay for convenience features to benefit from a potentially lifesaving technology. “People injured in a crash shouldn’t have critical medical care delayed because they choose not to pay for features like remote start or a mobile hot spot,” he says. “It’s one thing for automakers to charge extra for conveniences, but this is about safety, and safety isn’t optional.”

While cell phones can still dial 911 even if they’re not connected to a paid plan, and many new cell phones offer some form of crash detection that doesn’t require an additional subscription, automatic crash notification often costs extra—even on vehicles with built-in cellular connections. One of the most expensive plans comes from OnStar, which charges $29.99 a month or $299.90 a year for its Safety & Security Plan after a free trial period. It’s the least expensive OnStar plan that includes automatic crash notification, which it calls Automatic Crash Response. OnStar says these subscription fees are necessary to pay for the resources used to operate the feature. 

“Certain features and services, including Automatic Crash Response, require ongoing updates, network connectivity, staffed call centers, among other recurring costs to operate,” an OnStar spokesperson, Rita Kass-Shamoun, told CR.

If you’re wondering which automakers offer automatic crash notification, CR has compiled a list of car brands that offer this lifesaving feature free on their new vehicles, based on our analysis of owner’s manuals and manufacturer communications, and our conversations with automakers.

We’ve also included brands that charge after a free trial period, and how much you’ll have to pay. Sometimes brands offer different versions of automatic crash notification depending on the specific vehicle or options package chosen. The information is current as of April 2023. (Even systems that are initially free may eventually stop working if the phone networks they use are shut down, which has happened in the past.)

Acura AcuraLink Assist

Additional features: Some Acura vehicles rely on the driver to connect their own phone, and will use that connection to dial for help—a feature known as AcuraLink Assist. Additional features, including remote lock/unlock, Amazon Alexa integration, in-vehicle WiFi, with subscription,  are available on certain vehicles with a monthly subscription, as is an ACN feature that works over built-in cellular connection.

Availability: Available on select vehicles and trim levels. Free service is provided on some AcuraLink Assist-compatible vehicles as long as a phone is paired via Bluetooth.

Audi Connect CARE
Additional features: Remote lock/unlock, car locator, stolen vehicle locator. 
Availability: On select models, according to Audi.

BMW ConnectedDrive
Additional features: Unlike automatic crash notification, other features, such as roadside assistance, are free for a trial period but then require a subscription.
Availability: Requires Live Cockpit Plus or Pro packages, or BMW Assist eCall option on some 2019 or newer models. BMW says the feature is active “for as long as the network technology can support it.”

Ford/Lincoln 911 Assist
Additional features: Remote lock/unlock, remote start, vehicle status check. Unlike many other systems, these vehicles don’t use a built-in cellular connection. Instead, they rely on the driver to connect their own phone and will use that connection to dial for help. “This means the driver has to remember to set the system up and have their phone inside the vehicle,” Knizek says. “The phone is also less protected during a crash than a built-in system, but it is better than no system at all.”
Availability: All new Ford and Lincoln vehicles, as long as the feature is activated and a phone is paired through Bluetooth.

Genesis Connected Services
Additional features: Lock/unlock, car locator, remote start, vehicle status check.
Availability: All model year 2023 and newer vehicles.

Honda HondaLink Assist
Additional features: Some Honda vehicles rely on the driver to connect their own phone and will use that connection to dial for help—a feature known as HondaLink Assist. Additional features are available on certain vehicles with a monthly subscription, including an automatic crash notification feature that works over a built-in cellular connection.
Availability: Available on select vehicles and trim levels. Free service is provided on some HondaLink Assist-compatible vehicles as long as a phone is paired via Bluetooth. With other vehicles, there’s a yearly fee of $89 after a free trial period of 12 months to use a car’s built-in cellular connection for HondaLink with automatic crash notification.

Hyundai Bluelink+
Additional features: Lock/unlock, car locator, remote start, vehicle status check.
Availability: 2024 model years and newer, but not available on some trim levels.

Jaguar/Land Rover InControl Protect SOS Emergency Services
Additional features: Vehicle status check, vehicle locator.
Availability: All new Jaguar and Land Rover vehicles.

Mazda Automatic 911 Dialing
Additional features: Like Ford and Lincoln’s systems, Mazda’s Automatic 911 Dialing doesn’t use a built-in cellular connection. Instead, it relies on the driver to connect their own phone and will use that connection to dial for help. Aside from automatic crash notification, features such as remote lock/unlock and vehicle finder require a paid subscription after a trial period.
Availability: All new Mazda vehicles, as long as the feature is activated and a phone is paired through Bluetooth.

Polestar Connect
Additional features: Digital key, remote lock/unlock, battery level.
Availability: All new Polestar vehicles.

Porsche Connect Care
Additional features: SOS button.
Availability: 911, Taycan, Panamera, and Cayenne from the 2022 model year and newer. Automatic crash notification doesn’t require an active account to work.

Volvo OnCall
Additional features: Aside from automatic crash notification and an SOS button, features such as remote lock/unlock and vehicle finder require a paid subscription after a trial period.
Availability: All new Volvo vehicles.

Jeep Connect
Free trial period: 10 years.
Additional features: Remote lock/unlock, stolen vehicle assistance.
Availability: Available on select Jeep vehicles not equipped with SiriusXM Guardian.

Kia UVO/Kia Connect
Free trial period: 5 years; $5.99 a month or $59 a year after the trial period ends for the Care subscription.
Additional features: Aside from automatic crash notification, lock/unlock, sports scores, vehicle status, and other features require a Care, Plus, or Ultimate subscription.
Availability: Select Kia models. Currently unavailable for model year 2022 and newer vehicles sold or purchased in Massachusetts.

Lexus Enform Safety Connect
Free trial period: 10 years for most models; $8 a month or $80 a year after the trial period ends.
Additional features: Stolen vehicle locator, roadside assistance.
Availability: 2023 Lexus ES, NX, LS, LX, RX, RZ, and UX.

Mercedes Me Connect
Free trial period: 10 years for automatic crash notification and SOS button.
Additional features: Additional features may not be included in the 10-year free trial period.
Availability: All new Mercedes models.

Ram Connect
Free trial period: 10 years; $14.99 a month after the trial period ends.
Additional features: Remote lock/unlock, stolen vehicle assistance.
Availability: Available on select Ram vehicles not equipped with SiriusXM Guardian.

Toyota Safety Connect (certain vehicles)
Free trial period: 10 years.
Additional features: Stolen vehicle locator, roadside assistance.
Availability: bZ4X, Corolla, Corolla Cross, Crown, Highlander, RAV4, Prius, Sequoia, Tundra, Venza. Other models only get a 1-year trial.

Volkswagen Car-Net
Free trial period: 5 years; $159 a year after the trial period ends.
Additional features: Vehicle status, roadside assistance.
Availability: After June 1, 2023, a 5-year free trial will be available on most 2020 and newer VW vehicles.

OnStar (Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC)
Free trial period: Three years for some Buick, Cadillac, and GMC models, 1 month for others; $29.99 a month for the Safety & Security plan after the trial period ends.
Additional features: Stolen vehicle assistance, roadside assistance, SOS button.
Availability: All new Buick and Cadillac models; optional on some Chevrolet and GMC vehicles.

SiriusXM Guardian (some Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, and Ram vehicles)
Free trial period: 12 months; $20.99 a month after the trial period ends.
Additional features: Stolen vehicle assistance, remote lock/unlock, remote vehicle start, vehicle finder, Amazon Alexa skills 
Availability: All new Chrysler and Dodge vehicles, some Jeep and Ram vehicles.

Infiniti InTouch
Free trial period: 12 months; $8 a month after the trial period ends.
Additional features: Stolen vehicle locator, roadside assistance, SOS, speed and boundary alerts
Availability: All new models.

Mitsubishi Connect
Free trial period: 2 years; $99 a year after the trial period ends.
Additional features: Roadside assistance, SOS button, stolen vehicle assistance, remote start, remote lock/unlock
Availability: 2023+ Outlander only.

Nissan Connect
Free trial period: 6 months; $8 a month after the trial period ends.
Additional features: Stolen vehicle locator, roadside assistance, SOS, speed and boundary alerts.
Availability: Available on select vehicles and trim levels.

Subaru Starlink
Free trial period: 3 years; $9.95 a month or $99.95 a year after the trial period ends.
Additional features: Roadside assistance, SOS button, vehicle diagnostics.
Availability: Available on select vehicles and trim levels.

Toyota Safety Connect (certain vehicles)
Free trial period: 1 year; $80 a year after the trial period ends.
Additional features: Stolen vehicle locator, roadside assistance, SOS button.
Availability: Camry, GR86, Tacoma, Sienna, and 4Runner. Other models get a 10-year trial.

Fiat and Tesla both offer automatic crash notification in other countries, as is required by regulation. But they don’t offer automatic crash notification in the U.S.