diff --git a/lib/screens/settings_screen_sections/proximity_alerts_section.dart b/lib/screens/settings_screen_sections/proximity_alerts_section.dart
index 40ead36..437147c 100644
--- a/lib/screens/settings_screen_sections/proximity_alerts_section.dart
+++ b/lib/screens/settings_screen_sections/proximity_alerts_section.dart
@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@ import 'package:provider/provider.dart';
 
 import '../../app_state.dart';
 import '../../services/localization_service.dart';
+import '../../services/proximity_alert_service.dart';
 import '../../dev_config.dart';
 
 /// Settings section for proximity alerts configuration
@@ -17,6 +18,8 @@ class ProximityAlertsSection extends StatefulWidget {
 
 class _ProximityAlertsSectionState extends State<ProximityAlertsSection> {
   late final TextEditingController _distanceController;
+  bool _notificationsEnabled = false;
+  bool _checkingPermissions = false;
 
   @override
   void initState() {
@@ -25,6 +28,37 @@ class _ProximityAlertsSectionState extends State<ProximityAlertsSection> {
     _distanceController = TextEditingController(
       text: appState.proximityAlertDistance.toString(),
     );
+    _checkNotificationPermissions();
+  }
+  
+  Future<void> _checkNotificationPermissions() async {
+    setState(() {
+      _checkingPermissions = true;
+    });
+    
+    final enabled = await ProximityAlertService().areNotificationsEnabled();
+    
+    if (mounted) {
+      setState(() {
+        _notificationsEnabled = enabled;
+        _checkingPermissions = false;
+      });
+    }
+  }
+  
+  Future<void> _requestNotificationPermissions() async {
+    setState(() {
+      _checkingPermissions = true;
+    });
+    
+    final enabled = await ProximityAlertService().requestNotificationPermissions();
+    
+    if (mounted) {
+      setState(() {
+        _notificationsEnabled = enabled;
+        _checkingPermissions = false;
+      });
+    }
   }
 
   @override
@@ -62,18 +96,82 @@ class _ProximityAlertsSectionState extends State<ProximityAlertsSection> {
             // Enable/disable toggle
             SwitchListTile(
               title: const Text('Enable proximity alerts'),
-              subtitle: const Text(
+              subtitle: Text(
                 'Get notified when approaching surveillance devices\n'
-                'Uses extra battery for continuous location monitoring',
-                style: TextStyle(fontSize: 12),
+                'Uses extra battery for continuous location monitoring\n'
+                '${_notificationsEnabled ? "✓ Notifications enabled" : "⚠ Notifications disabled"}',
+                style: const TextStyle(fontSize: 12),
               ),
               value: appState.proximityAlertsEnabled,
               onChanged: (enabled) {
                 appState.setProximityAlertsEnabled(enabled);
+                if (enabled && !_notificationsEnabled) {
+                  // Automatically try to request permissions when enabling
+                  _requestNotificationPermissions();
+                }
               },
               contentPadding: EdgeInsets.zero,
             ),
             
+            // Notification permissions section (only show when proximity alerts are enabled)
+            if (appState.proximityAlertsEnabled && !_notificationsEnabled && !_checkingPermissions) ...[
+              const SizedBox(height: 8),
+              Container(
+                padding: const EdgeInsets.all(12),
+                decoration: BoxDecoration(
+                  color: Colors.orange.withOpacity(0.1),
+                  borderRadius: BorderRadius.circular(8),
+                  border: Border.all(color: Colors.orange.withOpacity(0.3)),
+                ),
+                child: Column(
+                  crossAxisAlignment: CrossAxisAlignment.start,
+                  children: [
+                    Row(
+                      children: [
+                        Icon(Icons.notifications_off, color: Colors.orange, size: 20),
+                        const SizedBox(width: 8),
+                        const Text(
+                          'Notification permission required',
+                          style: TextStyle(fontWeight: FontWeight.w600),
+                        ),
+                      ],
+                    ),
+                    const SizedBox(height: 8),
+                    const Text(
+                      'Push notifications are disabled. You\'ll only see in-app alerts and won\'t be notified when the app is in background.',
+                      style: TextStyle(fontSize: 12),
+                    ),
+                    const SizedBox(height: 8),
+                    ElevatedButton.icon(
+                      onPressed: _requestNotificationPermissions,
+                      icon: const Icon(Icons.settings, size: 16),
+                      label: const Text('Enable Notifications'),
+                      style: ElevatedButton.styleFrom(
+                        minimumSize: const Size(0, 32),
+                        textStyle: const TextStyle(fontSize: 12),
+                      ),
+                    ),
+                  ],
+                ),
+              ),
+            ],
+            
+            // Loading indicator
+            if (_checkingPermissions) ...[
+              const SizedBox(height: 8),
+              const Row(
+                children: [
+                  SizedBox(
+                    width: 16,
+                    height: 16,
+                    child: CircularProgressIndicator(strokeWidth: 2),
+                  ),
+                  SizedBox(width: 8),
+                  Text('Checking permissions...', style: TextStyle(fontSize: 12)),
+                ],
+              ),
+            ],
+            
             // Distance setting (only show when enabled)
             if (appState.proximityAlertsEnabled) ...[
               const SizedBox(height: 12),
diff --git a/lib/services/proximity_alert_service.dart b/lib/services/proximity_alert_service.dart
index 4c420a2..ea1de30 100644
--- a/lib/services/proximity_alert_service.dart
+++ b/lib/services/proximity_alert_service.dart
@@ -33,7 +33,7 @@ class ProximityAlertService {
   // Callback for showing in-app visual alerts
   VoidCallback? _onVisualAlert;
   
-  /// Initialize the notification plugin
+  /// Initialize the notification plugin and request permissions
   Future<void> initialize({VoidCallback? onVisualAlert}) async {
     _onVisualAlert = onVisualAlert;
     
@@ -54,6 +54,12 @@ class ProximityAlertService {
     try {
       final initialized = await _notifications!.initialize(initSettings);
       _isInitialized = initialized ?? false;
+      
+      // Request notification permissions (especially important for Android 13+)
+      if (_isInitialized) {
+        await _requestNotificationPermissions();
+      }
+      
       debugPrint('[ProximityAlertService] Initialized: $_isInitialized');
     } catch (e) {
       debugPrint('[ProximityAlertService] Failed to initialize: $e');
@@ -61,6 +67,31 @@ class ProximityAlertService {
     }
   }
   
+  /// Request notification permissions on both platforms
+  Future<void> _requestNotificationPermissions() async {
+    if (_notifications == null) return;
+    
+    try {
+      // Request permissions - this will show the permission dialog on Android 13+
+      final result = await _notifications!
+          .resolvePlatformSpecificImplementation<AndroidFlutterLocalNotificationsPlugin>()
+          ?.requestNotificationsPermission();
+      
+      debugPrint('[ProximityAlertService] Android notification permission result: $result');
+      
+      // Also request for iOS (though this was already done in initialization)
+      await _notifications!
+          .resolvePlatformSpecificImplementation<IOSFlutterLocalNotificationsPlugin>()
+          ?.requestPermissions(
+            alert: true,
+            badge: true,
+            sound: true,
+          );
+    } catch (e) {
+      debugPrint('[ProximityAlertService] Failed to request permissions: $e');
+    }
+  }
+  
   /// Check proximity to nodes and trigger alerts if needed
   /// This should be called on GPS position updates
   Future<void> checkProximity({
@@ -196,4 +227,31 @@ class ProximityAlertService {
   void clearRecentAlerts() {
     _recentAlerts.clear();
   }
+  
+  /// Check if notification permissions are granted
+  Future<bool> areNotificationsEnabled() async {
+    if (!_isInitialized || _notifications == null) return false;
+    
+    try {
+      // Check Android permissions
+      final androidImpl = _notifications!
+          .resolvePlatformSpecificImplementation<AndroidFlutterLocalNotificationsPlugin>();
+      if (androidImpl != null) {
+        final result = await androidImpl.areNotificationsEnabled();
+        return result ?? false;
+      }
+      
+      // For iOS, assume enabled if we got this far (permissions were requested during init)
+      return true;
+    } catch (e) {
+      debugPrint('[ProximityAlertService] Failed to check notification permissions: $e');
+      return false;
+    }
+  }
+  
+  /// Request permissions again (can be called from settings)
+  Future<bool> requestNotificationPermissions() async {
+    await _requestNotificationPermissions();
+    return await areNotificationsEnabled();
+  }
 }
\ No newline at end of file