An "Intercept" status indicates that the telephone company was unable to deliver our broadcast call to the recipient at the time of the attempt.
Common Reasons for an Intercept
An Intercept can be caused by both temporary network glitches or permanent line issues:
Technical Disruptions: The recipient had a poor signal, a temporary network outage, or their phone was turned off at the time of delivery.
Account Status: The member's phone service may be temporarily suspended (e.g., an unpaid bill) or the number has been permanently deactivated.
Incorrect Number: The phone number is invalid, a digit was dropped, or it was entered incorrectly in your contact list.
Voicemail Issues: The recipient’s voicemail box is full, or they use a "Smart Voicemail" system that requires a specific prompt which automated systems cannot bypass.
How CallingPost Handles Intercepts (The Continued Pattern Rule)
At CallingPost, we deliver your messages because we care deeply about the quality of the phone numbers in our system. Many organizations switch to us because our competitors fail to get calls through. To maintain these high delivery rates, our system handles Intercepts using a smart, multi-step approach:
4-Attempt Verification Per Call: Our system doesn’t give up on the first try. During a single broadcast, we will utilize our adaptive 4-attempt protocol to reach the line before officially putting "Intercept" on your report.
The "Continued Pattern" Safety Switch: We understand that a single Intercept can just be a temporary issue. Because of this, we do not penalize a number after just one failed broadcast. However, if a phone number demonstrates a continued pattern of inability to connect (repeatedly hitting Intercept or UnReachable) across several separate communications over time, our system will automatically pause sending to it.
Protecting Your Scores: Allowing dead or broken numbers to stay in the system for months or years damages our overall Delivery AR (Answer/Acceptance Rate) scores with major phone carriers. By automatically pausing numbers that show a clear pattern of failing, we protect your overall account health and ensure your real messages to valid numbers don't get blocked by carrier spam filters.
💡 Important Note on Carrier Blocking: > It is entirely possible to have a number that successfully receives text messages but remains completely un-callable. This happens when a recipient's specific carrier places a voice-only block on incoming automated broadcasts, resulting in an Intercept status for phone calls even if texts are going through.
How to Fix a Paused Number
If a member is not getting your messages because their number has been paused due to a pattern of failures, you must actively verify their line:
Contact the member via another channel to ensure the number on file is correct and active.
Ask them to verify that their mobile plan allows automated broadcast calls.
Once verified, update the contact profile in your dashboard or reach out to our Customer Care team to clear the pause and reactivate the number.
Tip: If a large portion of your group is showing "Intercept," double-check that you are using a [Verified Custom Caller ID], as this can help prevent carrier filters from blocking your calls.