Life360 crash alert helps Madison family respond after Tennessee wreck

MADISON, Ala. (WAFF) – A Madison family says a safety feature in the Life360 app helped their loved ones react quickly after a crash on an interstate in Tennessee.

The Claytons were traveling back to Madison, Alabama, after a visit to the Jack Daniel’s Distillery, when they saw another vehicle suddenly cut them off and T-bone their car.

Gerald Clayton’s daughter, Tiffany, was in Atlanta when she says her phone sounded an alert she’d never heard before.

“My phone does this crazy notification I’ve never heard, and I look down, and it says something like detected that Gerald might have been in a collision.”

Tiffany said Life360 noted the event could have been something minor like a dropped phone but flagged a sudden movement consistent with a collision.

Gerald Clayton said he was riding in the back seat. His sister was driving, and his brother-in-law was in the front passenger seat.

“Basically, cut us off and I’m looking at this saying to myself, this is not going to end well.”

He said he braced for impact.

“So I just slipped my left hand between my seatbelt and my chest because I knew that the impact was going to be really severe.”

Clayton says the crash fractured his sternum.

“It’s like somebody hitting you in the stomach and knocking the air out of you.”

Tiffany said when her father didn’t answer, she began making calls including to her mother in Huntsville to figure out what was happening.

Life360’s crash detection also prompted an in-app check-in.

“The app basically shows me in motion at 60 miles an hour. And then all of a sudden, it shows me at zero. So then I get this instant message from the app, you know, are you okay? Do you need to call the paramedics or anything like that?”

Life360 includes a free option for location tracking and crash detection. Tiffany said the incident showed her the benefit of having those tools while family members are on the road.

“This is something I think can provide that extra layer of safety and visibility on people that you care about.”

Clayton agreed.

“Without a doubt. I mean, I can see the benefits of it, especially when you’re traveling.”

Wear your seatbelt. If you’re traveling, make sure someone knows your route and consider enabling safety features on your phone or apps you already use.

Clayton remained in the hospital for four days recovering while his sister and brother-in-law were released within hours of the wreck. He credits wearing his seatbelt for the outcome.

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