Why driver location freezes in the browser, and how an app fixes it
By Eli Foltyn · Updated November 5, 2026
Short answer
Phone browsers pause a web page when it is not on screen. When the driver locks the phone or opens Google Maps to navigate, the page stops sending location and the customer's map freezes. Only a real app with background location permission keeps sending. On Android that means a foreground service with a notification. On iPhone it means "Always" location permission.
This was the wall I hit hardest. My web version worked perfectly on my desk. Then a driver locked their phone, and the customer watched a truck that had not moved in ten minutes.
What keeps working, and what stops
Page open on screen
- Web page
- Sends location
- App with background location
- Sends location
Driver switches to Google Maps
- Web page
- Stops
- App with background location
- Keeps sending
Screen locked
- Web page
- Stops
- App with background location
- Keeps sending
Phone in a pocket for an hour
- Web page
- Stops
- App with background location
- Keeps sending
Customer needs an app
- Web page
- No
- App with background location
- No, the customer still uses the link
| Situation | Web page | App with background location |
|---|---|---|
| Page open on screen | Sends location | Sends location |
| Driver switches to Google Maps | Stops | Keeps sending |
| Screen locked | Stops | Keeps sending |
| Phone in a pocket for an hour | Stops | Keeps sending |
| Customer needs an app | No | No, the customer still uses the link |
Why browsers do this
Phones save battery by pausing pages that are not on screen. Both Safari on iPhone and Chrome on Android pause location for hidden pages. No setting on a website gets around it, and you would not want a website able to track you after you leave it.
What the app needs
Android
- A foreground service: Android requires a notification that stays visible while you share location.
- Background location permission, asked for after normal location permission.
- In Google Play: a background location declaration and a short video showing the feature that uses it, plus a privacy policy.
iPhone
- Background mode for location turned on in the app.
- A clear reason in the permission prompt for why you need "Always" location.
- Apple reviews this closely. Your app has to do more than show a website.
The cheap way to build it
Keep your web app and wrap it with Capacitor, which is free. Add a background geolocation plugin (I used @capgo/background-geolocation). The driver page stays the same. Only the location part runs natively. That gets you to both stores without writing two apps.
Make freezes honest
Even with an app, a phone can lose signal. Show the customer "updated 2 minutes ago" under the map. A frozen truck with no warning makes customers call. A frozen truck that says "updated 2 minutes ago" does not.
Take Fleet's driver app for Android and iPhone exists only for this: so the customer's map does not freeze when the driver locks the phone. Customers never need an app.
Try Take Fleet free →Questions people ask
Why does location sharing stop when my phone locks?+
Phone browsers pause web pages that are not on screen to save battery, and that includes location. Only an app with background location permission keeps sending.
Can a website track location in the background?+
No. Safari and Chrome on phones stop sending location from a website when it is not on screen. You need a native app with background location.
Does the customer need an app to see the driver?+
No. Only the driver needs the app. The customer opens a normal link in any browser.