You get an alert: a loved one hasn’t confirmed they’re okay.

Or you’ve been calling for hours and they don’t pick up.

At moments like these it’s easy to panic.

Having a plan helps you think clearly.

1. Breathe: it’s almost always nothing

In the vast majority of cases there’s a simple explanation.

The phone is flat, it’s in another room, the sound is off, or they simply forgot.

Keeping that in mind doesn’t mean playing it down: it means acting calmly, and therefore better.

2. Look at what you know

In the I’m Okay alert you’ll find the time, the last location and, on the contact’s card, when their phone last checked in.

If a “battery almost flat” alert arrived shortly before, that’s probably the explanation.

If the location is at home, you already know where to look.

3. Call, then call again

Make a first call.

If there’s no answer, wait a few minutes and call again: sometimes it takes time to get to the phone.

Send a message too, which stays there even if they don’t hear it ring.

4. Share the tasks

If the alert went to several people, decide who takes charge.

In I’m Okay just tap “I’ll handle it”: the others know someone is already on it, and ten people don’t all call at once.

5. Ask someone nearby

If you can’t get through, ask someone who can go in person.

A neighbour, the building caretaker, a relative who lives nearby, a friend with a key.

Often a knock on the door sorts everything out.

6. If you fear danger, call the emergency number

If nobody answers, if the person has health problems, or if you have reason to think they’ve fallen or are unwell, don’t wait.

Call the emergency number: 112 in Italy and across the European Union, 999 in the UK, 911 in the US and Canada.

Have this information ready:

• the exact address, with floor and flat number;
• how long they haven’t answered, and when they were last heard from;
• any health problems and important medicines;
• who has the keys, or how to get in.

Don’t put yourself in danger and don’t force doors on your own: leave it to the emergency services.

7. Afterwards: talk about it

When it’s all resolved, let the others know everything is fine.

Then ask whether anything should change: a check-in time that’s too early, a grace period that’s too tight, a phone that always runs flat.

Every false alarm is a chance to make the system calmer for everyone.

Prepare in advance

The best time to make a plan is when you don’t need one.

• Keep the number of a neighbour of the person you care about in your contacts.
• Know who has a spare key.
• Note down important health information, with their permission.
• In I’m Okay, choose carefully who gets automatic alerts and in what order.

And if a loved one lives abroad, find out the emergency number for their country.