What calls should not be handled by AI?
Question. Which calls should stay with people, at least at first?
Calls involving safety, clinical or financial judgement, disputes, vulnerable callers or unresolved outbound authorisation should not be an agent’s first job.
A useful scope is defined as much by what the agent will not do as by what it will. Exclusions are not a sign of weak technology; they are how you keep the failure that matters most off the phone.
Keep these with people
- Emergency triage: gas, flooding, electrical hazards, medical symptoms.
- Clinical, legal or financial advice of any kind.
- Disputes, complaints and anything needing authority to make an exception.
- Callers who say they are in distress or appear vulnerable.
- Outbound calls where consent and purpose have not been reviewed.
Outbound is a separate decision
In February 2024 the FCC confirmed that AI-generated voices fall within the TCPA’s restrictions on artificial or prerecorded voices. That does not make every AI call unlawful; it means consent and purpose must be reviewed by qualified counsel before outbound calls begin.
This article is not legal advice. Use it to brief your reviewers, not to replace them.