Safety Tips

Last updated: July 26, 2026

Meeting people on the road is different from meeting people in a city. Cell signal is patchy, help can be an hour away, and "my place" is a vehicle in the dark. None of that means you should not go — it means a few habits are worth having. Here are ours.

Before you meet someone

• Chat in the app first. If someone pushes to move to another app or to your phone number straight away, slow down.
• Video call before meeting. One short call catches most fake profiles. Someone who always has a reason not to is telling you something.
• Search the details. A quick search of their name, photos, or rig can be revealing.
• Tell someone your plan. Who you are meeting, where, and when you expect to be done — someone off the app who will notice if you go quiet.
• Keep your own transport and your own keys. Arrive and leave on your own terms.

The first meeting

• Meet in a public, populated place — a town, a café, a busy trailhead, a full campground. Not a remote pullout, and not at your rig or theirs.
• Daylight for the first time. Arriving somewhere unfamiliar after dark takes away most of your options.
• Know where you are. Note the nearest town, the road number, and whether you have signal. If you had to call for help, could you say where you are?
• Keep your drink with you and stay in control of how much you drink.
• You can always leave. No explanation owed, no politeness required. If something feels off, that feeling is information — act on it.

Remote spots and camping together

Sooner or later a meetup means camping in the same place. That is much of the point — just do it in stages.

• Meet in town first. Save the shared camp spot for when you actually know someone.
• Camp near rather than blocked in: keep a clear way out and do not park where you cannot drive off without help.
• Share your live location with a trusted friend for the night — in the app or outside it.
• Lock up when you sleep, and keep keys and phone where you can reach them.
• Do not hand over your keys, your documents, or your only means of leaving. Not for a favour, not for a repair, not for anything.
• If you have no signal, agree a check-in time with someone before you lose it.

Your location is yours

• Strangers never see your exact position — only a rough area about ten miles across, and you can switch that off entirely.
• Precise location is shared only with friends you have individually approved, and only while you leave it on. You can switch any of them off at any time, and you do not owe anyone a reason.
• Your position updates when you open the app. There is no background tracking.
• Turn a share off when a friendship changes. It is one tap in Profile → Friends & location sharing.
• Be careful posting exact coordinates of where you are sleeping in a public post.

Giving someone your exact position

The app never hands out your precise spot by itself. When you want it to — a friend driving out to meet you, or a dispatcher on the phone — Map → My coordinates shows where you are standing, in two forms:

• Decimal, like 35.198284, -111.651302, to paste into a message or a map app. Send to someone hands it to any app you like — WhatsApp, SMS, mail — together with a tappable map link, so the person receiving it does not need NomadHearts.
• Degrees, minutes and seconds, like 35°11'53.8"N 111°39'04.7"W. That is the form emergency dispatchers and search-and-rescue teams ask for, and spoken digit by digit it is far harder to get wrong than a long decimal.

It also shows how accurate the reading is, and can open the spot in your map app — useful for finding your way back to a remote place you liked.

Handy Nomads: someone coming to your rig

Repair help means letting a stranger into your home. A few precautions cost nothing:

• Read their ratings and the comments behind them, not just the number.
• Agree the job and the price in the app chat before they start, so it is in writing.
• Do the work somewhere with people around when you can, and try to have someone else nearby.
• Put away valuables, documents, cash, and spare keys first.
• Do not pay in full up front. Pay on completion, or in agreed stages.
• Stay with your vehicle while work is done, and do not hand over keys unless the job truly requires it.
• If the job turns out to involve gas, high-voltage systems, brakes, or structure, stop and get a professional. Some things are worth the shop rate.
• Rate honestly afterwards — it is how the next person stays safe.

Marketplace: meeting for a trade

• Meet in a public place in daylight. Many police stations have a designated exchange spot — use it for anything valuable.
• Bring someone with you when you can, and tell someone where you are going.
• Inspect before you pay. Test electronics, check the serial number, look for damage.
• NomadHearts does not process payments and offers no buyer protection. Prefer cash or a payment method with recourse, and be wary of anything irreversible.
• Never send money by wire, gift card, or crypto to someone you have not met.
• Do not ship before payment clears, and be suspicious of anyone who "overpays" and asks for the difference back — that is a classic scam.
• Never give out bank details, card numbers, or login codes.

Convoys and group travel

• Everyone is responsible for their own vehicle and their own decisions. A convoy leader is a fellow traveller, not a guide.
• Agree the route, the day's stops, and a rough pace before you set off, so nobody drives beyond their limits to keep up.
• Have a way to communicate without cell signal — radios help, and so does an agreed "we regroup at the next junction" rule.
• Know each vehicle's real limits: clearance, tyres, range, water. Say so if yours cannot do a track.
• Leave proper following distance. Convoys tempt people to drive too close.
• Leaving a convoy early is completely normal. Say so and go.

Online safety and scams

• Never send money to someone you met on the app — no matter the story. Emergencies, stranded travellers, customs fees, medical bills, and investment tips are the standard scripts.
• Be wary of fast, intense affection from someone who cannot meet or video call.
• Keep chats in the app until you trust someone. Screenshots and reports only work here.
• Do not share documents, banking details, passwords, or verification codes — with anyone, ever.
• Watch what is visible in your photos: plates, addresses, workplace, distinctive landmarks near your camp.
• NomadHearts will never ask you for your password, your payment details, or money.
• Report suspicious accounts. Even if you saw through it, the next person might not.

If something goes wrong

• In danger, contact emergency services first. In the US and Canada, dial 911. Report to us afterwards so we can act on the account.
• Somewhere without cell coverage, a satellite messenger or a personal locator beacon is the difference between an inconvenience and an emergency. If you spend time off-grid, carry one.
• Asked where you are? Map → My coordinates gives you your position in the format dispatchers ask for, ready to read out — see “Giving someone your exact position” above.
• You can block someone immediately from their profile or your chat. They are not told.
• Report through the app or write to info@nomadhearts.online. Tell us what happened and where — screenshots help.
• If something serious happened, save the evidence before you delete anything: screenshots, times, places.
• Nothing that happened is your fault for having used an app to meet people.

Travelling solo

• A check-in habit beats a plan: one person who knows roughly where you are and hears from you daily.
• Vary where you sleep, and be discreet about posting your spot in real time. Posting after you leave is safer than posting while you are there.
• Trust your read of a place. If a pullout feels wrong at dusk, drive on — there is always another one.
• LGBTQ+ travellers: laws and attitudes vary sharply between regions and countries. It is worth knowing where you are heading and choosing where you are open about your life.
• Meeting other nomads in numbers first — an event or a busy campground — is an easy way to build a circle before meeting anyone one-to-one.

Support resources (United States)

If you need help beyond what we can offer:

• Emergency: 911
• Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: call or text 988
• National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-7233
• RAINN National Sexual Assault Hotline: 1-800-656-4673
• National Human Trafficking Hotline: 1-888-373-7888

Outside the US, look up your local emergency number and support services before you travel.