Overflow call handling
Overflow Call Handling For The Calls Your Team Can’t Reach.
Keep answering your own phone when you can. When lines are busy, staff are stretched, or the office is empty, calls roll to us instead of voicemail.
Trusted by 1,000+ UK SMEs · 4.4/5 on Trustpilot
- UK-based receptionists
- Answered during and after business hours
- GDPR-compliant
- 10+ years
Your team first, us second
Divert on busy or no-answer. If your staff pick up, we never see the call and you never pay for it.
No more engaged tones
Lunchtime rushes, sick days, and marketing spikes stop sending callers to a competitor. Every overflow call gets a human.
Seamless to the caller
The same greeting, the same script, the same booking rules your own team uses. Handoffs are invisible.
Pay only for overflow
Per-call pricing means quiet weeks cost you almost nothing and busy weeks never overwhelm you.
What we do
Overflow call handling means your team answers first and Pocket Receptionist catches the rest. Set your line to divert on busy or after a set number of rings, and any call your team cannot take rolls seamlessly to a UK receptionist answering in your business name. Callers never know the difference; you never lose the enquiry. Because pricing is per call, you only pay for the calls that actually overflow.
See how it works or the pricing.
Extra capacity without adding headcount
Overflow cover protects the caller experience when demand exceeds your in-house capacity. Your team stays in control and we answer only the calls that would otherwise ring out or reach voicemail.
Choose exactly when calls overflow
Divert on busy, after a chosen number of rings, during meetings, over lunch, or for a planned absence. The routing can match how your phone system and working day operate.
- Busy-line overflow
- No-answer overflow
- Peak and seasonal cover
- Holiday and absence cover
Consistent handling on both sides
We follow the same greeting, qualification questions, booking rules, and escalation path as your own team. Messages and outcomes are delivered immediately, making the handover easy to manage.
How it works
How our UK answering service works
Three steps. Set up within 24-48 hours. Calls answered during and after business hours.
- 1
Forward your calls
Two-minute setup. Forward all calls or only when you’re busy / out of hours.
2 min setup - 2
We answer in your company name
Trained UK receptionists pick up using your script. Qualify, book, escalate.
UK-based team - 3
You get the work
Bookings dropped into your calendar. Messages and lead details by SMS + email instantly.
Instant delivery
The questions everyone asks
- Is this expensive?
- Per-call pricing - typically £85–£240/month for most SMEs, with month-to-month contracts and real-time spend visibility in the app. About 80% cheaper than hiring a part-time UK receptionist.
- Will receptionists sound like my business?
- Yes. A trained UK team answers using your script and tone.
- What if calls spike unexpectedly?
- Plans are month-to-month - step up to a higher tier when you’re busy, step down again when you’re not. The app shows your spend in real time, and you can adjust your forwarding rules whenever you need to.
- How fast can I be set up?
- Most customers go live within 24-48 hours. Forwarding rules are two-minute changes on every UK telco.
- Can you book directly into my calendar?
- Yes - Google, Outlook, Calendly, plus CRM bookings into Zoho, HubSpot, and Salesforce.
- What about confidentiality?
- Call data is encrypted in transit and at rest, with role-based access for the receptionist team. GDPR-aligned by default; UK-only storage.
Frequently asked
You set your phone system or line to divert calls when busy or unanswered after a set number of rings. Diverted calls arrive with us flagged as yours, and a UK receptionist answers in your business name and follows your instructions. It is a two-minute setting change on every UK network.
Yes. Many customers overflow only at lunchtimes, during meetings, in peak season, or while a receptionist is on leave. You control the divert, so you control when we answer.
You get the caller details, the reason for calling, and any booking by SMS and email the moment we hang up, plus a full log in the app and your CRM if connected.
The same simple per-call pricing as every Pocket Receptionist plan, from £75 per month for 30 calls. Calls your own team answers never count.
Stop losing customers today.
7-day free trial. Cancel any time.
- UK-based receptionists
- GDPR-compliant
- 7-day free trial
- Cancel any time