Lone worker mobile phone: choosing the right alarm smartphone for your lone workers

Works on standard and rugged smartphones
Physical SOS key supported on Crosscall, Samsung XCover and Doro
No dedicated SIM: the phone's data plan is enough

A lone worker mobile phone is a smartphone that acts as an alarm device for staff working alone. It detects a fall or abnormal stillness, lets the user raise an SOS and sends their location to supervisors. With VigieApp, Neovigie's alarm app, a recent smartphone, standard or rugged, becomes a lone worker phone without changing hardware.

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What is a lone worker phone?

There are two kinds of lone worker phones: pre-equipped handsets, sold with an alarm function built in by the manufacturer, and ordinary smartphones running a lone worker app linked to a monitoring platform.

Neovigie takes the second approach: you choose the phone that suits the job, VigieApp turns it into an alarm device, and alerts go to VigieControl.

Which phone for a lone worker?

VigieApp runs on Android 8.0 and later, and on iPhone from the iPhone 6s (iOS 12.4 and later). The right choice depends mainly on the working environment:

Standard smartphone: offices, retail, home visits, low-risk travel
Rugged smartphone (Samsung XCover, Crosscall, Honeywell): construction sites, industry, outdoor work, knocks, dust, rain
Physical SOS key (Crosscall, Samsung XCover, Doro): raise the alarm without unlocking the screen
Android rather than iPhone for demanding use: iPhone has no SOS button on the lock screen and cannot start protection automatically on a schedule

Also check the IP rating, operating temperature range and battery life stated by the manufacturer. They decide how well the phone holds up in the field.

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What a lone worker phone detects

The phone uses its accelerometer to spot situations where the user can no longer call for help.

Falls, detected by an AI algorithm with 3 sensitivity levels
Loss of verticality
Prolonged stillness
Low battery and loss of connection with the servers

Before an automatic alarm, an audible and vibrating pre-alarm gives the user a few seconds to cancel a false alert. As an option, alarms can be handled 24/7 by the Securitas monitoring centre.

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Battery life: lasting the whole working day

Battery life depends first on the phone. A rugged smartphone usually has a bigger battery, and some models, such as the Samsung XCover range, have a removable battery that can be swapped in seconds. In the settings, VigieApp must be allowed to run in the background, excluded from battery optimisation. Without this, the phone may stop protection to save power.

Raising the alarm without looking at the screen

In the field, nobody unlocks their phone to call for help. A lone worker phone offers several ways to raise an alarm:

Physical SOS key on Crosscall, Samsung XCover and Doro phones
Floating SOS button on the lock screen (Android only)
VigieTouch Bluetooth button: worn on a belt, around the neck or on a wristband

A voluntary alarm is sent immediately, with no pre-alarm.

Bouton d'urgence sur téléphone Crosscall et XCover

Lone worker phone or dedicated lone worker device?

If your staff already carry a smartphone, the simplest option is to turn it into a lone worker phone with an app: nothing to buy, nothing extra to carry. If you want a device dedicated to protection, a purpose-built lone worker device is a better choice than a pre-equipped phone.

Smartphone + VigieApp: your existing phones, no dedicated SIM, one-click activation with Click&Protect
VigieLink lone worker device: designed for alarms only, worn on the belt, with a built-in microphone and speaker for the verification call
Device battery life: 15 hours of continuous use, on 4G with a multi-network SIM
One monitoring platform for phones, devices and watches: VigieControl

When an alarm is raised, supervisors are alerted by call, SMS, email or notification, with the user's location, and handle the alert in VigieControl.

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Effective monitoring for managers and supervisors

With the VigieControl web platform, managers see the protection status of staff using a lone worker phone in real time.

Live alerts with location
Incident handling and remote alarm management
Weekly report emailed to supervisors

Neovigie offers a clear, intuitive interface that makes team management and safety procedures easier.

Privacy and GDPR compliance

Users' data is processed securely and limited to what protection requires.

GPS location visible only during an alert
Data hosted on Microsoft Azure in the European Union
GDPR-compliant processing

The aim: protect, not monitor.

A reliable connection, even with no mobile coverage

The lone worker phone uses whatever network is available, and Neovigie continuously checks that it can be reached.

4G/5G or Wi-Fi: the app uses the phone's network
Iridium satellite network: in areas with no coverage, with the Bivy Stick beacon paired to the phone (more info here)
Continuous check of the link between the phone and Neovigie's servers
Automatic alarm if the connection is lost for too long

Where there is no mobile signal, in the mountains, in forests or at remote industrial sites, the Bivy Stick sends alerts and location by satellite.

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FAQs

Many of you ask us about protecting lone workers. Here are our answers to the most frequently asked questions.

What is a lone worker phone?

A smartphone that acts as an alarm device for someone working alone: fall and stillness detection, SOS button and location sent to supervisors.

Which app turns a phone into a lone worker phone?

VigieApp, available on Google Play and the App Store. It runs on Android 8.0 and later and on iPhone 6s and later, and connects to the VigieControl monitoring platform.

Do you need a rugged phone?

Not always. A standard smartphone is enough for low-risk work. For construction, industry or outdoor work, a rugged model with a physical SOS key is safer.

Is lone worker protection a legal requirement?

The law does not require a specific device. Employers must assess the risks of lone working and put suitable measures in place, including a way to raise the alarm. A lone worker phone is one way to meet that duty.