Frequently asked questions

Start at Responder registration, select your country and choose the organisation or scheme you are joining. The form shows the identity and qualification requirements for that scheme. You will need a device with a working camera to photograph your ID and take your profile photo.

If you need GoodSAM for work, including professional video or AI features, contact your organisation's GoodSAM administrator rather than creating a volunteer account.

Eligibility depends on the scheme you join. For cardiac responding, the registration form can offer registered medical professional, certified first aider and self-certified CPR-competent routes. Each organisation decides which routes it accepts, so choose an option actually offered on your form and provide the evidence it requests.

Your identity and application must be approved before you can use the Responder app. Being a student, having a job title or holding a work ID does not by itself establish your CPR competence.

The volunteer registration form requires you to be at least 18. You must also meet the requirements of the organisation or scheme you select.

Where your selected scheme offers the self-certification route, you can declare that you are competent in CPR and AED use without uploading a formal training certificate. This can include non-certificated CPR awareness sessions or online training such as RCUK Lifesaver.

You still need to complete identity verification and the declaration on the form. If self-certification is not offered, follow the qualification requirements shown for that scheme. Only respond within your abilities and training.

Identity: select an ID type offered by your scheme, enter its details and expiry date, and photograph the whole ID using the form's camera. Take a separate, current profile photo with the camera. A passport or driving licence proves identity; it does not prove CPR training.

Qualifications: the medical professional route asks for your registration body, registration number and supporting evidence. The certified first aider route asks for a current certificate and its expiry date. Supporting qualification or scheme evidence can be photographed or uploaded as JPEG, PNG or PDF. The self-certification route uses a declaration instead of a certificate.

Make sure your name and the relevant details are readable. Submit evidence through the registration or renewal form.

If you have an NHS.net account, use the NHS sign-in option on the login page or in the app rather than completing a separate volunteer registration. Other organisations may provide Microsoft single sign-on or issue an account directly.

Use the sign-in method your organisation specifies. If your organisation requires single sign-on, reset your organisation password through its own IT service.

Select the organisation that asked you to register or that will verify your credentials. Do not select an organisation simply because you recognise its name.

If you are registering independently in the UK, choose "I'm not registering under a specific organisation". Outside the UK, follow the form's independent-registration instructions and select GoodSAM where offered. The options depend on the country and scheme.

After registering, follow the verification link sent to your registered email address. Check your spam or junk folder if it has not arrived.

You can request another link using the resend verification form on the login page. It sends a link only if that account still needs email verification. For privacy, the confirmation does not reveal whether the address has an account or is already verified.

Email verification and Responder approval are separate steps. Verifying your email confirms the address; your Verifying Organisation must also review and approve your application.

If you are waiting for approval or have been asked for more evidence, contact the organisation you registered under. For independent GoodSAM registrations, contact hello@instant.help. Do not create another account to bypass the review.

Use the password reset form on the login page and enter the email address you registered with. If an account exists for that address, you will receive a reset link. Check your spam or junk folder.

If you sign in through NHS or Microsoft single sign-on, use that sign-in option and your organisation's password recovery process.

Log in to the website, open Manage and find "Change your password" in your account or personal details settings. You will need your current password. A new GoodSAM password must have at least eight characters, including an uppercase letter, a lowercase letter and a number.

If you use single sign-on, change your organisation password through its own account service.

Open the expired certificate notice in the app's Me tab to access the renewal form. Supply the current ID, profile photo and qualification evidence requested for your scheme.

A renewal is sent back to your Verifying Organisation for review. Keep your qualifications current and follow your scheme's instructions; expiry can affect your eligibility for alerts.

The website's Manage page directs you to register again using your existing email address and current GoodSAM password. Select the new organisation or scheme and complete its requirements.

This replaces your registration details and may require approval again. It can also remove access to organisation features. If your organisation issued your account or you use single sign-on, contact its administrator before changing schemes.

For an independent GoodSAM volunteer account, email hello@instant.help with your registered email address to request deletion. If your organisation issued the account, contact its administrator or support team.

See our Data Protection Policy for information about your data.

Open the Me tab and use "Complete setup" to review the app's location and alert permissions. Allow background location so GoodSAM can receive your position when the app is not on screen, and allow notifications so you can receive alerts.

Camera and microphone access are needed for features such as live video and voice messages. On Android, also follow the setup prompts for background operation and alert settings. If your location is missing, check that the phone's location services are enabled and reopen the app.

Where your organisation allows you to change it, use "Adjust your location accuracy" in the Me tab. Lower accuracy reduces location work and battery use; higher accuracy can provide a more precise position.

Android and iPhone use different location services, so a slider position does not guarantee a particular accuracy or battery percentage. Background permission, phone settings and signal conditions also affect updates. Your organisation or team may fix the setting for you.

Log in to the website, open Manage and select "Check your current location". It shows your last reported position and the time of the last update. This may be an old position if the app has not been able to send a new one.

If it is wrong or stale, check location and background permissions in the app's Me tab, make sure the phone has an internet connection, and reopen the app.

It tells GoodSAM that you are available for the activities your organisation dispatches. Some dispatch rules alert only responders who are on duty. Follow your scheme's instructions, report on duty when available and go off duty when you finish. Some schemes ask for a call sign and shift end time.

On Android, being on duty also starts the foreground location service to help keep background updates running. It does not replace location permission or the phone's background settings. Your organisation may control the duty setting.

Check that your registration is approved, your qualifications are current, the Me tab's setup is complete, your phone has internet access and GoodSAM has a recent location. Report on duty if your scheme requires it, and check your maximum activity distance where that setting is available.

An alert is not sent to every nearby responder. The dispatching service sets the area, distance, skills, availability and number of responders to alert. There may be no qualifying incident, or enough other responders may already have been selected. A successful notification test checks delivery, not whether you will be selected for a real incident.

Open the app and complete the alert setup in the Me tab. Then put the app in the background, log in to the website, open Manage and select "Test your push notifications" to send yourself a notification.

Notifications are silent while the app is in the foreground on both Android and iPhone. Check that notification sounds are allowed and the relevant volume is turned up. Silent mode, Focus or Do Not Disturb can affect background sounds. Where available, review Android's "Bypass silent mode" setting or iPhone's Critical Alerts permission.

If you use an Apple Watch, notification delivery can move to the watch depending on whether the phone and watch are locked. Review Apple's notification guidance. If the test does not arrive, reopen the app with an internet connection, check its permissions and try again with the app in the background.

"Simulate" in the Me tab creates a practice alert for your own account so you can try the response screens. It is not a real request for help.

The app is open during this test, so there is no foreground alert sound. Use the website's push notification test with the app in the background to check sound delivery.

Open the Apple App Store on iPhone or Google Play on Android, find GoodSAM Responder and install any available update. Use the same store account you used to install the app.

After updating, open the app and check the Me tab for any setup items that need attention.

The app uses the permissions and settings assigned to your account, organisation and team. Invites, media, activities, reporting, live video, AI Scribe and AI Translate are not available to every account, and some settings are controlled by your organisation.

Contact your administrator if you need access to a feature. After permissions change, you may need to reopen the app or sign in again for the navigation to reflect them.

The Responder app needs a supported Android phone or iPhone and an internet connection through mobile data or Wi-Fi. Location updates, notifications, incident details and messages depend on connectivity.

Do not assume you will receive an SMS instead if the app is offline. If your organisation offers a separate alerting arrangement, ask it how that scheme works.

After accepting an alert, use the response screen's details and chat views to read the information supplied by the dispatching service, including the address and any instructions or stand-down messages. The available details depend on what that service shares.

Assigned or scheduled activities can also appear in the Activities tab. Keep checking the activity's messages and follow the service's instructions.

No. Decline the alert if you are unable to respond safely, for example because you are working, caring for someone or have consumed alcohol. If you have already accepted and can no longer attend, use the response screen's option to withdraw or indicate that you are unable to attend.

The dispatching service manages who else is alerted. Declining does not guarantee that a particular responder will be selected next.

Do not accept or continue a response if you believe it is unsafe. If you have already accepted, indicate that you are unable to attend and follow the dispatching service's instructions.

A GoodSAM alert gives you no special driving rights. Obey road traffic rules and do not speed or take risks to reach an incident. Follow the Code of Conduct for your region and provide help only within your abilities and training.

Open the Report view in the app. Depending on your account and phone, it may be a separate tab or sit alongside Activities. Select an activity to view its record and complete the reporting options offered by your scheme.

Your organisation controls the available report fields and access to records.

Responder pins show people visible on the nearby map. Tap a pin to see the details that person is permitted to share. A responder carrying an AED is shown with the AED backpack icon.

Separate equipment pins show registered AEDs and other kits, including bleed kits, water rescue equipment and outdoor firefighting equipment. A combined pin can represent several kinds of equipment at one location. Responder pin colour does not identify whether someone belongs to your organisation.

Tap the equipment pin on the map to see its recorded location, notes and photo where supplied. Check the access information before trying to collect it; a map entry does not guarantee that equipment is accessible or working at that moment.

If the record is wrong, use the pin's Report option and explain the problem. To add equipment, use the add-kit button on the map and complete the registration form.

Use the AED equipment switch in the Me tab when you have a defibrillator with you or in your vehicle. Your responder pin then shows the AED backpack icon. Turn the switch off when you no longer have the device with you.

Tap a responder pin and choose "Send message" to open a conversation, where you can send text or voice messages if that responder accepts them.

Where your organisation allows it, the Me tab's "Messages from other responders" setting controls whether you accept these messages. "Only from my organisation" limits them to responders in your organisation. These settings are separate from your eligibility for incident alerts.

Where your organisation enables it, the Me tab lets you start a Lone Working session with an expected finish time. You can extend it if you need more time and check out when you finish.

The organisation manages monitoring and any follow-up under its own lone-working arrangements. Use it as instructed by your organisation and do not treat it as a substitute for calling emergency services.

A Verifying Organisation reviews applications from the responders linked to its scheme and decides whether they meet its identity and qualification requirements. Organisations can manage their responders, permissions and teams through GoodSAM.

Emergency services, first aid organisations, charities and training organisations can use this role. To discuss setting up a scheme, contact hello@instant.help.

Approve only people who belong to your scheme and meet its eligibility, identity and qualification requirements. Set the accepted qualification routes and supporting evidence to match the work those responders will do.

Review renewals, keep permissions and skills appropriate, and handle personal data in accordance with your scheme's governance and applicable data protection requirements. Do not assume that every scheme requires the same certificate or offers the same self-certification route.

No. If someone needs emergency help, call the emergency number for your location. Registering with GoodSAM, messaging another responder or running a simulation does not request an emergency-service response.

GoodSAM is also used by organisations for activities beyond cardiac arrest. Follow the instructions of the service or organisation that issued your alert; do not assume every GoodSAM activity means an ambulance is already on its way.

Where your organisation allows it, use the Me tab's "Show me on the map", "Reveal first name", "Reveal last name" and "Reveal profile picture" settings. Organisation-directory visibility is a separate setting where that feature is enabled.

Hiding your nearby-map pin is separate from going off duty or stopping location reporting to GoodSAM. Your organisation can control these settings and has its own access to responder information. See our Data Protection Policy.

Check with your organisation and indemnity or insurance provider what applies to your scheme, role and country. Do not assume that registration with GoodSAM or a Good Samaritan law guarantees cover or protection from a claim.

Medical Protection's published FAQ says that a GoodSAM response following the GoodSAM Code of Conduct falls within its definition of a Good Samaritan act. Members should confirm their own entitlement and circumstances with the provider.

Always follow your regional Code of Conduct, act within your abilities and training, and follow your scheme's governance requirements.

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