---
title: Calls not reaching my phone
slug: business-phone-system/calls-not-reaching-my-phone
createdAt: 2025-10-11T16:41:47.030Z
---

Your call transcript indicates that the call reached your phone and was not picked up. However, in reality, the call never reached your phone.

### Explanation

Exotel determines call outcomes based on **ISDN cause codes** received from telecom operators. These codes tell us what happened during the call journey — for example, whether it was connected, not answered, busy, or failed.

In some cases, operators return incorrect or inconsistent cause codes. When this happens, our system may report that a call reached your device (and was not answered), even though it never actually rang.

We’ve implemented internal heuristics to improve accuracy, but since these codes originate from telecom operators, the root cause often depends on how each operator reports call events. This varies by operator and region (or *circle*).

Our engineering teams are actively working with operators to standardize these configurations and make the reports more reliable.

### Why It Happens

- **Operator-level reporting issues:**
   Some telecom operators send incorrect cause codes, leading to mismatched call statuses. 
- **User vs. operator behavior:**
   The system can only display what the operator reports. For instance, if the operator classifies the call as “not answered,” Exotel will reflect that, even if the call never actually reached your device. 
- **Telecom infrastructure limitation:**
   The current telecom architecture does not allow Exotel to directly verify if a call physically rang on your phone. 

### What You Can Try

If you frequently face calls not landing on your phone, please try the following basic troubleshooting steps:

1. Turn on **Airplane Mode**. 
2. Power off your device. 
3. Remove and reinsert your **SIM card**. 
4. Turn on your device again. 
5. Turn off **Airplane Mode**. 

If the issue persists, share the **Call SID** and **timestamp** of the affected call with our support team — this helps us trace the exact operator response and escalate as needed.