On-call after hours
A maintenance firm sends after-hours calls to a switch: when it is on, calls are transferred to the mobile of the technician on duty.
Phone system
Forward calls to a mobile or another number
A transfer sends the call to a number outside the phone system, such as the on-call mobile or a partner’s office, going out through one of your own numbers.
- Call to +44 161 496 0742After hours
- On-call switch: onWhen on destination
- Transfer: Engineer on dutyOut through the Manchester line
- +44 7700 900318 answersRings for up to 40 seconds
What it is for
Call forwarding is the simplest way to reach someone without an extension on the phone system: a mobile, a landline at another site, a supplier’s number. You give it a name, enter the number and choose which of your numbers the call goes out from.
Once created, the transfer is a destination like any other: you pick it on a number, an IVR menu key, a queue exit, a switch or for closed hours. The outside number rings for 40 seconds, and whoever answers can transfer the call again.
The person receiving the call gets the customer’s number as caller ID, if the line’s provider allows it. The transfer is priced by your price list.
Use cases
Owner always reachable
In a small practice’s IVR menu key 9 forwards the call to the owner’s mobile, for clients who need to speak to them in person.
Another site without the phone system
Calls for the warehouse, which only has a landline, are passed from the main number to the warehouse number with a transfer.
Queue overflow
When the wait in the queue passes its maximum, the Timeout exit forwards the call to a partner who handles second-line support.
How it works
Create the transfer
In Transfers press New transfer, give it a name and enter the number to call in international format.
Choose the line
Pick the number the call goes out from: it must be one of your active numbers.
Use it as a destination
Choose it as the destination of a number, an IVR key, a queue exit, a switch or the out-of-hours route.
Try it
With a test call you ring the transfer from your browser: the call to the outside number really goes out, so you can check it all works.
What you can set
Call
- Name
- The name you pick the transfer by as a destination, such as “On-call mobile”.
- Number
- The outside number to call, in international format; it rings for 40 seconds and whoever answers can transfer the call again.
- Line
- The number the call goes out from; the transfer is priced by your price list.
List
- Without a line
- The count of transfers with no line: until you choose one, the call cannot go out.
- Test call
- Try the transfer from your browser; the outside number really rings.
- Delete several transfers
- Select several transfers and delete them together; modules that use them need checking.
Frequently asked questions
How do I forward phone system calls to my mobile?
Create a transfer with your mobile number and the line to go out from, then choose it as the destination of the number, of an IVR key or of the out-of-hours route.
How long does the outside number ring?
For 40 seconds. If nobody answers in that time, the call ends.
Does the person receiving the transfer see the customer’s number?
The phone system passes on the caller’s number. Some providers replace it with the number of the line the call goes out from: it depends on the provider of the line you chose.
Do call transfers cost anything?
Yes, the outgoing call to the outside number is priced by your price list, and it is charged only if someone answers.
What if the chosen line is not active?
A transfer needs an active number to go out from. If the line is missing or switched off the call cannot go out and ends; transfers without a line are flagged in the list.
Related features
Try it on your own phone lines
Sign up free and try this feature with your numbers, or message us on WhatsApp and we’ll show it to you.