Someone's just had a car accident, a boundary dispute, or needs a will sorted urgently. They call your firm. Your fee earners are heads-down on billable work or in court, reception's stretched, and the call rings out. That caller doesn't wait — they ring the next firm on their list and instruct them instead.
For a law firm it's a genuine no-win: every call answered is billable time interrupted, but every call missed is a client — and their fee — lost. Here's the real cost, and the way out.
A missed enquiry is a lost instruction
New-client enquiries are time-sensitive and high-value. A single instruction can be worth thousands in fees, and the client who instructs you often stays for future matters. Miss the first call and you've lost all of it. The calculator will show you the annual cost on your own average matter value.
Why law firms miss new-client calls
- Fee earners can't break off. Stopping billable work to answer the phone costs money — so it rings out.
- Enquiries are urgent and emotional. Accident, dispute, deadline, family matter — these callers want reassurance now, not an answerphone.
- The first firm to respond wins. People ring several solicitors; the one who answers warmly and books them in gets the instruction.
The fix: a professional front of house that never misses
You don't need to pull fee earners off billable work. Alice answers for solicitors in a calm, professional, discreet tone, takes the caller's name, contact and the nature of the matter, and books an initial consultation — all without interrupting a single billable hour. Every enquiry is summarised to the right person the moment the call ends.
So the client who calls at 5:30pm gets a warm, capable first impression, your team stays focused on the work in front of them, and qualified new-client enquiries stop going cold in a voicemail box.
See exactly what missed calls are costing your business — in 30 seconds.
Take the testSee how much you're losingOr see how Alice works for solicitors.