Build and test human escalation in echowin

A human escalation path needs a clear request, a real recipient, an honest fallback and a way to verify what happened. In echowin, configure the voice agent's call transfer tool for the live handoff, then use a post-call workflow to route unresolved requests. Test both parts with real calls before deployment.

Why this belongs on the January checklist

California's AB 1609 takes effect January 1, 2027. It introduces human-access and AI-disclosure requirements for covered large businesses serving California customers. The law has a national revenue threshold and exceptions. Read the official announcement and chaptered text to assess scope.

This guide shows a phone workflow. It does not establish compliance, supply human staffing or cover your other service channels.

1. Decide who receives the call

Before opening the agent builder, choose the person or team number that will receive transfers. Confirm who covers each period and what happens during absences. Use a number your team can actually answer, and check any extension from a real phone.

If different requests belong to different people, give recipients distinct names such as “Customer Support” and “Billing Support.” Decide which recipient is the default when the caller does not specify a department.

2. Make the human request clear

In the voice agent's instructions, disclose that it is AI and tell callers they can ask for a person. Make an explicit human request a reason to transfer. Do not require the caller to finish an unrelated troubleshooting script first.

Here is an instruction example to adapt to your staffing:

Introduce yourself as our AI phone agent. Tell callers they can ask to speak with a person. When a caller asks for a person, use the configured call transfer tool. Use Customer Support unless the caller needs Billing Support. Explain that you are attempting a transfer before using the tool. Do not say someone has answered until the connection is actually established. If the conversation continues after an unsuccessful transfer, explain the outcome honestly and ask whether the caller wants follow-up. Confirm their name, callback number and reason. Do not promise a callback time that our team has not agreed to.

These are behavior instructions to configure and test. They do not guarantee that every model response or telephone-network outcome will match the example.

3. Configure the live transfer

Open your voice agent's Instructions and Tools area and add the call transfer tool. Configure the recipient names and numbers, and any required extension. Match the names used in the instructions to the names in the tool.

The tool can select among configured recipients. Avoid assuming that listing a second person proves every unanswered call will reach them. Verify the actual no-answer behavior in your deployed configuration.

4. Route unresolved requests after the call

Create a workflow with a Post-Call trigger. Add a decision step with an output for unresolved human requests and a separate output for conversations that need no follow-up.

Use a decision instruction such as:

Select the unresolved-request path when the conversation shows that the caller still wants human help and there is no clear confirmation that the request was resolved. Include uncertain outcomes for review. Do not infer that a person answered just because a transfer was attempted.

On that path, add Send Email to the designated recipient. Ask it to include the caller's confirmed name, callback number, reason and any requested callback window. If a detail is missing, say that it was not provided. Never invent contact information or a promised time.

A conversation-based decision is not an authoritative measure of whether someone answered. Review uncertain outcomes against your call records. The email routes information; your operating process must confirm availability and complete the human response.

5. Run this acceptance checklist

Test call	What to verify
“I want to speak with a person.”	The voice agent attempts the intended transfer without unrelated questions.
“Can I speak with billing?”	The correct configured recipient is selected.
Recipient answers	A person can hear and speak with the caller.
Recipient does not answer	You know what happens next, and the caller hears an accurate explanation if the AI conversation resumes.
After-hours request	The agent uses your actual coverage rules and does not promise unavailable human help.
Unresolved request with details	The intended workflow email arrives with accurate contact details and reason.
Missing callback number	The email marks the missing information rather than inventing it.

Use the deployed phone number for transfer tests. An instruction preview alone cannot validate the recipient, extension or telephone connection. Review the conversation and workflow output after each test. Record the expected and observed result, then correct and repeat any failed path.

6. Own the follow-through

Decide who checks unresolved requests, confirms a callback appointment and handles overdue follow-up. Track the time of the original human request, the actual connection or confirmed appointment, and completion in your service process. Do not treat an email timestamp as proof that the caller reached a person.

For businesses covered by AB 1609, a generic promise to call later is not the same as the law's specific appointment alternative. Staffing, timing, other service channels and statutory exceptions need their own review.

Build your voice agent in echowin.