Check for incident reports while using Android Auto

Incident reporting is one of the more useful features Google Maps offers. However, the ability to create new reports has been sorely lacking in the Android Auto version of the app. A refreshed version of the incident reporting system is expected to appear in Android Auto at some point, but a full rollout has yet to happen. While we wait for a wide release, the feature has reportedly made its way to the app for at least one Android Auto user.

Just for context, the incident reporting feature is a crowd-sourced tool. The Google Maps community can report anything that gets in their way, such as accidents, hazards, speed traps, and more. This is helpful because it lets other drivers know to avoid or prepare for these obstacles.

While Google has announced that the rollout of the improved incident reporting system is coming to Android Auto in the US, almost no one has seen the feature in real life. However, it looks like the feature has been rolled out to at least one person on Reddit, giving us a glimpse of how it will work.

A Reddit user shared a photo of the live feature in his vehicle. Based on the image, it appears that incident reporting appears as a yellow triangle with a plus symbol in the middle. This icon is located below the Settings, audio, and compass icons.

If you tap the icon, an “Add report” menu will appear with options for reporting accidents, slowdowns, roadworks, lane closures, and more. The other options aren’t visible in the image, but the rest of the list likely includes a stopped vehicle, an object in the road, and a speed trap, since those options are available in the mobile app.

It’s still unclear when this feature will become widely available. But when it does, there’s a good chance more people will start reporting incidents, which would improve the usability of incident reports.