Google Maps adds hazard reports to its CarPlay app — but Android Auto users are left out

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Android Auto users have been parked with this new update.

CarPlay setup in 2020 Nissan Qashqai
(Image credit: Future/Lloyd Coombes)

Google Maps has been updated to support incident reporting through CarPlay, allowing you to quickly add information about an accident or anything else you’ve seen on the roads.

First spotted in the CarPlay subreddit on July 16, the update has seemingly been switched on on Google’s side, meaning that the incident reporting feature is slowly rolling out to all Google Maps CarPlay users. To check if you’ve got the update, there should be a Hazard symbol with an add sign below the speed limit indicator. Pressing this symbol will allow you to report the following:

  • Objects on road
  • Speed trap
  • Slowdown
  • Stalled vehicle
  • Construction
  • Crash

Although hazard reporting is a welcome and much-needed feature for Google Maps on CarPlay, it’s notable that this hasn’t yet arrived for Android Auto users. This is Google’s take on CarPlay and lets you use apps like YouTube, Google Assistant, and Google Maps as you go from one destination to another.

Do you use Google Maps with CarPlay? If you’ve got the hazard reporting feature, let us know in the iMore Forums.

Waze has had this feature on Android Auto and CarPlay for years

Waze Carplay Split Screen

(Image credit: The Verge)

While it’s great that you can report hazards through Google Maps on CarPlay, it’s worth mentioning that another app, Waze, has been offering this feature on CarPlay and Android Auto for years.

Waze is another mapping app that helps guide you to your destination. The app also has some features that make it stand out from Google Maps and Apple Maps. This includes nearby toll pricing notifications, the ability to report other incidents such as changing speed limits in real-time, and celebrity-voiced turn-by-turn directions. Some notable examples include Arnold Schwarzenegger, Stephen Colbert, and Sesame Street’s Cookie Monster.

It’s slightly odd that Waze has been offering a bunch of unique features that Google Maps has never adopted — despite being owned by Google since 2013. Over at TechRadar, Paul Hatton wrote in February about how he replaced Google Maps with Waze and never looked back. If you own a vehicle that has CarPlay and you haven’t yet received the latest Google Maps update with the hazard reporting feature, perhaps look into giving Waze a try instead.

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Daryl Baxter
Daryl Baxter
Features Editor

Daryl is iMore's Features Editor, overseeing long-form and in-depth articles and op-eds. Daryl loves using his experience as both a journalist and Apple fan to tell stories about Apple's products and its community, from the apps we use every day to the products that have been long forgotten in the Cupertino archives.

Previously Software & Downloads Writer at TechRadar, and Deputy Editor at StealthOptional, he's also written a book, 'The Making of Tomb Raider', which tells the story of the beginnings of Lara Croft and the series' early development. His second book, '50 Years of Boss Fights', came out in June 2024, and has a monthly newsletter called 'Springboard'. He's also written for many other publications including WIRED, MacFormat, Bloody Disgusting, VGC, GamesRadar, Nintendo Life, VRV Blog, The Loop Magazine, SUPER JUMP, Gizmodo, Film Stories, TopTenReviews, Miketendo64, and Daily Star.