How can we help?

Yes: it decides how close the last position is. On a 2-minute rate, a car that drives into an underground car park can leave its last position over 1 km back up the road; on 10 seconds, the last one is from moments before it went in.

Underground, a tracker loses its GPS signal, so the last position it sent is the one you see. At 60 km/h a vehicle covers 2 km in 2 minutes, and under 200 m in 10 seconds.

• Real-Time: updates every 10 seconds. Best for theft recovery and for following a vehicle as it moves.
• Power Saver: updates every 2 minutes. Enough to see where things are and where they have been.

You choose the rate when you pick your plan, and you can change plans later.

Yes. Any of our trackers runs your own active Australian 4G data SIM.

Buy the tracker outright and put your own SIM in it. The tracker’s page says which SIM size it takes.

Platform access is not included with the tracker alone. Pick “With platform access only (No SIM or data)” on the tracker’s page: first year included, then $5/mo or $50/yr. With one of our data plans, platform access is already included.

Most people take the tracker, plan and platform on one bill, but your own SIM is a full option, not a workaround.

The SIM works on both the Telstra and Optus mobile networks, whichever the tracker can see.

Every Crucial Tracking data plan ships with a SIM that works across both the Telstra and Optus mobile networks. The SIM is not tied to one carrier: the tracker connects to whichever of the two it can see at the time.

Two networks instead of one removes a single point of failure. No mobile network covers all of Australia, and reception in any spot depends on terrain, buildings and distance to the nearest tower.

More on the dual-network SIM

Not on your own. The plan SIM is IMEI-locked to the tracker it was set up with; support can re-pair it.

The SIM that comes with a Crucial Tracking data plan is IMEI-locked to the tracker it is set up with, so it only works in that device.

Replacing a tracker, or want the plan on another of our trackers? Email team@crucialtracking.com.au or call 0413 418 743 and support will re-pair the SIM to the new tracker.

No. Crucial Tracking is independent.

We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or an agent of Telstra or Optus.

Every Crucial Tracking data plan ships with a SIM that works across both the Telstra and Optus mobile networks. The tracker, the plan, the platform and the support come from us, not from a carrier.

Your plan renews at its normal price. Same SIM, same platform, nothing else to buy.

• Power Saver: $7/mo or $70/yr.
• Real-Time: $10/mo or $100/yr.

There is no minimum term. Want the other plan later? Cancel the plan that came with your tracker and take out the other one as a self-serve subscription on the Pricing page; tell us and we keep the SIM active.

The plan you pick when you buy, on the term you choose.

Power Saver (2-minute updates) or Real-Time (10-second updates), monthly or annual. Its first year is included.

From year two it bills at its normal price: $7/mo or $70/yr for Power Saver, $10/mo or $100/yr for Real-Time.

Yes. Every plan can be billed monthly or once a year.

Power Saver is $7 a month or $70 a year; Real-Time is $10 a month or $100 a year. Either way there is no minimum term: the plan renews until you cancel it from your account.

From your account (Manage subscriptions), or contact support. There is no minimum term.

• Monthly plans stop at the end of the paid month. Payments already made are not refunded.
• Annual plans renew each year until cancelled. Cancel within 30 days of a renewal for a full refund of that payment; after that we may offer a partial refund case by case.
• Cancelling during the included first year simply ends the plan: nothing to refund, nothing further to pay, and the tracker is yours.

The tracker, and a plan bought in the same order, are covered by our 60-day money-back guarantee, unless the tracker was a special order. This does not limit your rights under the Australian Consumer Law. Full details in our subscription policy and refund policy.

Yes. Many cheap trackers sold online don’t meet Australian standards. Ours carry the Regulatory Compliance Mark (RCM), which says they do.

Plenty of low-cost trackers sold online are made for overseas markets and never tested to Australian rules. A tracker certified for sale in Australia:

• meets the Australian safety limits on the radio energy it sends out (EME);
• meets the electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) standards, which limit the interference it gives off;
• is made for the frequency bands Australia’s 4G networks use;
• is not at risk of being cut off: a carrier can disconnect equipment that doesn’t meet the rules.

Look for the RCM on the device or its listing before you buy, from anyone.

A tag has no connection of its own. A 4G tracker reports on its own, wherever it has reception.

A tag is cheap and needs no plan, and for some jobs that is fair enough. But its position is reported only when someone else’s phone passes within Bluetooth range, which is thin away from cities and quiet overnight in a yard.

A tag is also designed to protect the person it travels with, not you. A phone that notices an unknown tag moving with it can alert its owner, and a tag away from its owner for a while plays a sound when moved, so a thief is told it is there. It gives no live map, no movement alerts and no trip history.

A 4G tracker carries its own SIM and reports as often as its plan says, wherever it has reception, which is what helps a recovery. Wired in behind the dash, it is hard for a thief to find as well.

It needs an OBD-II port. Most cars, utes and vans sold new in Australia since the mid-2000s have one.

The OBD-II port is a D-shaped, 16-pin socket, usually under the dash on the driver’s side near your knees, sometimes behind a small cover or trim panel. Petrol, diesel and most hybrids have one.

Not every electric vehicle has one, and some imports, older Japanese imports especially, may use a different socket. So do many heavy trucks and buses: for those a hardwired tracker is the better fit. Where the port sits too close to your legs or the pedals, a hardwired tracker suits better too.

Not sure about yours? Email team@crucialtracking.com.au or call 0413 418 743 with the make, model and year before you buy, and we will check.

It depends on the tracker and how much it moves. Each tracker’s page says what to expect.

• A battery-mount tracker runs off the vehicle’s, caravan’s or boat’s own battery, so there is nothing to charge. It draws under 5.5 mA in its deepest sleep, at 12 V.
• A battery-powered asset tracker’s life depends on how often it moves and reports. Our built-in single-use battery tracker is rated for up to 7 years at one report a day.

Not into the vehicle. Two wires onto the battery, or none at all for a battery-powered tracker.

A battery-mount tracker connects straight to the caravan’s or boat’s battery with two wires, no ignition wire to find. A battery-powered tracker needs no wiring at all.

On a boat, fit the battery-mount tracker somewhere sheltered: it is rated IP65 (dust-tight and protected against water jets) and is not made to go under water.

Want the tow vehicle covered too? See our vehicle trackers.

You get an alert, and every position already sent stays on the platform.

A hardwired tracker alerts you if the power is cut and keeps reporting on its backup battery. A plug-in tracker alerts you if it is pulled from the port.

Whatever happens to the tracker, the trail it has already sent stays on the platform.

You know the moment it moves: movement and ignition alerts go to your phone, and the live map shows where it is headed.

A hardwired tracker also alerts you if someone cuts its power, and keeps reporting on its backup battery.

1. Open the live map from the alert.
2. Call the police (000 if it is happening now) and tell them where it is.
3. Do not go after it yourself.

A battery-mount tracker sends a movement alert as it happens, then a live trail on the map.

That is a solid head start for you and the police to get it back.

A battery-powered tracker reports on a schedule to save its battery, so how soon you hear depends on how often it is set to report.

One platform for every tracker, hosted in Melbourne, Australia, included with every data plan.

Live map, alerts, trip history, PDF reports, live traffic, automatic backups and integrations, at platform.crucialtracking.com.au. There is no separate platform fee on a monthly or yearly data plan.

Buying a tracker without a plan? Pick “With platform access only (No SIM or data)” on the tracker’s page: first year included, then $5/mo or $50/yr. Already own a tracker with its own SIM? Add platform access on its own for the same price, billed from the first payment.

See what the platform does

Yes, on request. Web and email alerts come with every account. SMS is switched on per account and billed separately at 13c per message plus GST (14.3c including GST). A trial is available.

Every platform account sends alerts in the web app and by email, at no extra cost. Text messages cost money to send, so SMS is not switched on by default.

To try it, or to add it to your account, email team@crucialtracking.com.au or call 0413 418 743 and we’ll set it up for you. Once it is on, SMS appears as a delivery channel beside web and email, and you choose which alerts use it. Each SMS sent is billed separately, on top of your plan, at 13c per message plus GST (14.3c including GST).

At platform.crucialtracking.com.au, one login for everyone.

Your tracking: platform.crucialtracking.com.au.

Your store account, with orders, subscriptions and details: /account/login.

On our platform, on servers in Melbourne, Australia.

Your stored movement history stays in Australia, and support comes from the people who run the system.

Free delivery, Australia wide. Dispatched in 1–2 business days.

We ship multiple times a week and hold stock locally, so your order comes from us, not from overseas.

Every tracker sold new has a 24-month warranty. If it fails in normal use, we repair or replace it.

Rechargeable batteries are covered against failure, not normal ageing. Single-use cells are covered if they are faulty on arrival.

Warranty details. This is on top of your rights under the Australian Consumer Law.

Call 0413 418 743, message WhatsApp on +61 413 418 743, or email team@crucialtracking.com.au.

WhatsApp is best for technical support and install photos.

We're open Mon–Fri 8:30am–8:00pm, Sat–Sun 8:30am–7:00pm. We reply within 1–3 hours during business hours.