After-hours answering service that books, not just takes messages
Infold answers your business line when you’re closed — evenings, weekends and holidays — and does the job instead of taking a message. It books into your calendar where it’s connected, sends real emergencies to your on-call person by your rules, and leaves everything else in a morning summary.
- C$699/mo billed yearly (C$8,388 + tax) · setup included
- Live in 2 business days once we have access and your approvals
- 30-day money-back guarantee
- Keep your number
After hours · 2:14 AM
- Incoming call · 2:14 AM “Our furnace quit and it’s minus 20.”
- Emergency rule matched On-call tech called and texted
- Morning summary · 7:00 AM 5 calls · 2 booked · 1 emergency
Illustrative calls · fictional callers, real workflow
What’s the difference between taking a message and booking the call?
A message-only answering service takes a name and a number, and you still call everyone back in the morning — by which time some callers have booked someone else. Infold finishes the job while the caller is still on the line.
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Message-only service Takes a name and a number
Infold Books the appointment during the call, where your calendar is connected
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Message-only service You return every call in the morning
Infold The caller gets a text confirmation tonight
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Message-only service Wakes you for everything, or for nothing
Infold Only what your rules call urgent reaches your on-call person
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Message-only service Notes scattered across voicemail and email
Infold One summary of the night, waiting when you open
Is after hours where most calls are missed?
Often not. In many trades most calls arrive during the working day, when the line is busy or the person who answers is on a job. Nights and weekends still matter: that’s when an emergency waits longest and nobody else is there to pick up.
That’s why Infold also answers when your line is busy or nobody picks up during the day. See overflow call answering
9.8–14.1%
of inbound calls to residential HVAC companies came in outside Monday to Friday, 8 to 5, across 2025 — the low in October, the high in June.
Here’s your phone at 11:52 tonight.
Type your business name and press play. One version goes to voicemail. The other gets answered, booked and texted to you.
“Do you have anything tomorrow morning?”
Without Infold
- “You’ve reached Your business. Please leave a message after the beep.”
- Missed call11:52 PM · nobody picked up
- VoicemailThe caller hung up. No message.
Nothing booked. Just a missed call.
With Infold
Answered by InfoldSays it’s an AI assistant
- “Thanks for calling Your business. I’m the AI assistant — how can I help?”
- Booked Wed 9:30 AMJordan · confirmation texted
- Details texted to youName, number and what they need
- 7:00 AM summary1 new booking
Scripted sample · fictional caller, real workflow. Your business name stays in your browser.
What happens to the calls after you close?
Each one gets an answer and a next step, and only the emergency wakes anyone up. Follow one illustrative night at a plumbing company — then the summary waiting at 7:00 AM.
One Tuesday night at a four-truck plumbing company
- 5:30 PM
Office closes. Calls forward to Infold.
- 6:12 PM Dinner time
“Can someone look at a running toilet this week?”
Booked Thursday, 10 to 12 · confirmation texted
- 8:47 PM Evening
“Are you open on Saturdays?”
Answered from the hours you approved
- 11:48 PM Overnight
“Water’s pouring from under my kitchen sink.”
Emergency rule · your shut-off step given · Dev, on call, called and texted the address
- 2:05 AM Overnight
A robocall
Not a real caller · never counts toward your calls
- 6:40 AM Before opening
“I need a quote on a new water heater.”
Site visit booked Friday, 8 to 10 · photo link texted
Illustrative night · fictional business and callers, real workflow
Who gets the 2 AM call?
Only the calls your rules call urgent, and only the person you name. Everything else waits for the morning summary, so nobody is woken for a reschedule.
What “urgent” can mean — you set the rules:
- HVAC No heat in freezing weather, or a CO alarm
- Plumbing An active leak, flooding or a sewage backup
- Dental Swelling, trauma or a knocked-out tooth
- Law An arrest, or a court or limitation deadline
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It matches your urgent rule
The caller’s situation fits what you defined as urgent when we set it up.
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It gives your safety script
Only the steps you approved — like turning off the water, or leaving the house and calling 911 if there’s a gas smell.
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It reaches your on-call person
By call or text, with the caller’s name, number, address and what happened.
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Nobody is left guessing
If the on-call person doesn’t pick up, it texts them the details and tells the caller what happens next.
How does after-hours call forwarding work?
You keep your number and your phones. Outside your hours, calls forward to Infold, which answers in your business’s name. There are three common ways to set it up, and we walk you through whichever your phone provider supports.
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On a schedule
Many business phone systems can forward calls automatically outside the hours you set — evenings, weekends and holidays.
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When nobody answers
No-answer forwarding sends a call to Infold after the rings you choose. It covers nights without anyone remembering a switch — and busy moments in the day.
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At closing time
Turn call forwarding on when you lock up and off when you open. It’s one setting with your phone provider.
Holiday hours change? Tell us, and the greeting and bookable times follow them. All three forwarding modes, explained
What does after-hours answering look like in your industry?
Every receptionist is built around your services and your rules, so “urgent” means what it means in your business.
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HVAC No-heat calls on a cold night No heat in freezing weather goes to your on-call tech with the address and symptoms. Tune-ups are booked into open windows.
AI receptionist for HVAC companies -
Plumbing Burst pipes at midnight Your approved shut-off step, then your on-call plumber. Drain and fixture jobs are booked for the morning.
AI receptionist for plumbing companies -
Dental Toothaches after close Pain and swelling follow your emergency rule: the first emergency slot, the dentist on call, or both. Never clinical advice.
AI receptionist for dental offices -
Law firms New matters at night Intake with conflict-check details and a consultation booked. Urgent matters escalate by your rules. Never legal advice.
AI receptionist for law firms -
Veterinary Worried owners after hours Urgent concerns get your instructions — your on-call vet or the emergency clinic you refer to. Routine requests wait for the morning.
AI receptionist for veterinary clinics -
Auto repair Evening bookings and drop-offs Diagnostics and tire changeovers booked for the next open slot, with the vehicle and the concern on the work order.
AI receptionist for auto repair shops
How much does an after-hours answering service cost?
C$699/month billed yearly (C$8,388), or C$999/month with no contract. Setup is included. Both Infold plans include 100 handled calls a month; extra calls are C$4.99 each. Prices in CAD, plus applicable taxes.
After hours only? It’s the same plan. Calls your team answers during the day never reach Infold, so they never count.
- Built for your business: greeting, services, prices you approve, your rules
- Answers after hours, on busy lines and when the front desk is with someone
- Books, changes and cancels in your calendar where it’s connected
- Texts confirmations to callers and alerts you about urgent calls
Managed AI Receptionist
C$699/month
Billed yearly at C$8,388. Setup included. 100 handled calls a month.
Save C$3,600 a year compared with monthly
C$999/month
Setup included. 100 handled calls a month. No contract — cancel by email any time.
Extra calls C$4.99 each, never more than C$499 a month without your OK. Prices in Canadian dollars, plus applicable taxes.
30-day money-back guarantee. If Infold isn’t right for your business, email us within 30 days of your go-live date and we’ll refund everything you’ve paid — setup and extra calls included. One guarantee per business.
After-hours answering: questions owners ask
Something else? Book a demo and ask us directly, or read the general FAQ.
What does an after-hours answering service do?
It answers your business line when you’re closed. Infold goes further than taking a message: it answers from information you approve, books or changes appointments where your calendar is connected, sends emergencies to your on-call person by your rules, and texts you a summary of the night.
Can it reach my on-call person in an emergency?
Yes. You decide what counts as urgent — no heat, a flood, a knocked-out tooth, a court date tomorrow. Those calls go straight to whoever is on call, by call or text, with the caller’s name, number and what happened. If they don’t pick up, it texts them the details and tells the caller what happens next.
Will it wake me up for every call?
No. Only calls that match your urgent rules reach anyone at night. Bookings, questions and messages wait in your morning summary.
Do I need to change my phone number?
No. You keep your number. Calls forward to Infold after hours — on a schedule, when nobody answers, or when you switch forwarding on at closing. It’s a setting with your phone provider, and we walk you through it.
Does it cover weekends and holidays?
Yes, the same way it covers nights. Tell us your weekend and holiday hours during setup, and the greeting and bookable times follow them.
Are most missed calls after hours?
Often not. ServiceTitan’s platform data for residential HVAC companies put calls outside weekday working hours at 9.8 to 14.1% of inbound calls in 2025. In many businesses the bigger leak is daytime: a busy line, or a front desk that’s with someone. That’s why Infold also answers overflow calls during the day.
Will callers know they’re talking to an AI?
Yes. It says it’s your AI assistant at the start of every call, then gets on with what the caller needs. If they want a person, it takes a detailed message or transfers by your rules.
How much does after-hours answering cost?
C$699/month billed yearly (C$8,388), or C$999/month with no contract. Setup is included. Both Infold plans include 100 handled calls a month; extra calls are C$4.99 each. Prices in CAD, plus applicable taxes.
Tonight’s calls are coming either way.
Decide who answers them. Live in 2 business days once we have access and your approvals.
- C$699/mo billed yearly (C$8,388 + tax), setup included · 30-day money-back guarantee
C$699/mo billed yearly (C$8,388 + tax) · setup included