Most receptionist services charge a monthly plan whether or not the phone rings. Ferrison bills from a prepaid balance instead: per call answered, per message handled, per booking captured. Every new account starts with £10 of credit, and you can go live without a card.
These are the only charges. There is no plan sitting underneath them, no onboarding fee, and no charge for extra users, extra locations or your booking page.
| What it does | How it's counted | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Voice calls | Per minute of answered call, rounded up to the whole minute | 40p |
| Text messages (SMS) | Per message, received or sent | 30p |
| Facebook & Instagram | Per reply the assistant sends | 30p |
| Website chat | Per reply the assistant sends on your booking page or website. Messages from visitors are free. | 1p |
| Email sent | Per email the assistant sends, such as a booking confirmation. Confirmation codes for web bookings are free. | 5p |
| Booking captured | Per appointment booked into your diary, whichever way it came in | £1.00 |
| Order captured | Per order taken and recorded | £1.00 |
| Enquiry captured | Per lead, quote request, or callback captured | £1.00 |
| Dedicated phone number | One-off, per number. Keep your own number instead and pay nothing. | £3.00 |
Answering a question costs you pennies. The pound is charged when the assistant actually finishes the job — a booking in the diary, an order on the sheet, a qualified enquiry with a name and a number. You pay when it wins you business.
Three worked examples with the arithmetic shown. These are illustrations built from the rate card above, not results from named customers.
A one-van plumber. The phone rings a handful of times a day and most calls end in a job booked.
Four chairs, a full diary, and a steady stream of Instagram DMs asking about Saturday.
Longer calls — new patients ask more questions — plus quote requests that need a callback.
Every figure above is the rate card multiplied by the volumes shown — nothing else is added. Your own month will differ; use the estimator below to put your numbers in. All totals exclude VAT.
Enter a typical week. We convert it to a month (× 52 ÷ 12) and price it straight off the rate card.
An estimate, not a quote. It prices the volumes you entered at the published rates and assumes one confirmation email per booking. Real months vary with call length and how many conversations end in a booking.
Ferrison runs on prepaid credit. You put money on the account, the assistant draws it down as it works, and you can watch every penny of it.
Every new account starts with £10 of credit and can go live without a card. After that, top up whenever you like from £25; the balance is available immediately.
Set a trigger amount and a top-up amount, and the balance refills itself before it runs dry. Turn it on or off whenever you want.
Your current balance and every charge against it are in the dashboard, itemised by call, message, and capture.
Each top-up produces a proper VAT invoice for your records, so your bookkeeper has what they need.
Unused balance stays on your account. A quiet month simply means the balance lasts longer.
There's no term to see out and no notice period. Stop topping up and the spending stops with it.
Prices on this page are shown in GBP and exclude VAT.
The assistant pauses answering until you top up. If you've switched auto top-up on, the balance refills itself at the trigger you set and the assistant keeps going without interruption. Your dashboard warns you when the balance is getting low, so it shouldn't come as a surprise.
No. Every new account gets £10 of credit, and you can go live without adding a card. You'll add one when you first top up or switch on auto top-up.
The page and the widget are free. Messages from visitors are free, each reply from the assistant is 1p, and a verified booking, order or enquiry is £1, the same as on any other channel. A booking made through a ten-message chat costs just over £1.
No. There's no subscription and no minimum term — it's pay as you go from a prepaid balance. You can stop at any time, and any credit you've already loaded stays on your account.
No. Zero-length calls aren't billed. Voice time is charged only for calls the assistant actually answers, from the point the conversation starts, rounded up to the whole minute.
Every price on this page excludes VAT. VAT is added at the prevailing UK rate when you top up, and each top-up produces a VAT invoice you can download for your records.
If you're running higher volumes, or several locations, get in touch and we'll talk it through. Email info@ferrison.com or book a setup call and say so on the call.
The rates on this page are in GBP. Your account is billed in one currency, set from your business address when you finish setting up, and it can't change once you've been charged. If you need something other than GBP, contact us before you set up and we'll sort it out.
Start with £10 of free credit and no card, or book a free 15-minute call and we'll set it up with you. No subscription to sign, no contract to exit.