In some cases, signal attenuation may occur when a mobile device communicates with a vehicle. To accommodate for this, a vehicle may determine a distance between the vehicle and the mobile device by evaluating a signal strength of a wireless signal received from the mobile device. An erroneous distance result may be produced when the wireless signal is attenuated by an intervening object. A wearable device worn by the individual is used to detect the presence of the mobile device. The detection procedure involves measuring a separation distance between the wearable device and the mobile device at different instances in time as the individual swings his/her arm back and forth while moving towards the vehicle.