A kitchen design and fitting company in Enniskillen took about half its work from customers across the border in Cavan, Leitrim and Donegal, and the showroom manager answered every enquiry knowing that the first thing to establish was which side of the border the kitchen was on. Prices, VAT rates, delivery charges and even the fitting team depended on it, and a caller from Belturbet who was quoted in sterling usually rang back a day later sounding less keen.
The businesses in this article are illustrative examples, not named StartAutomate clients.
Key takeaways
- Businesses near the border serve two jurisdictions, and a caller from Cavan expects to hear the price and the delivery charge that apply on their side of it.
- An AI receptionist can ask where the customer is, quote in pounds or euros from the right price list, and book surveys with the team that covers that area.
- It keeps customer data under UK GDPR and handles Republic of Ireland callers under the same standard the business already applies.
Two jurisdictions on one phone line
Plenty of Northern Ireland businesses treat the border as a local road rather than a boundary. Customers ring from Clones and from Lisnaskea in the same hour, and what they need to hear depends on which one they are in.
The agent asks early where the property is, by town or by Eircode or postcode, and uses that to choose the price list, the VAT treatment, the delivery charge and the fitting team before it says anything about cost.
Quoting in pounds and euros
The business decides whether customers in the Republic pay in euros, and at what rate. The agent quotes starting prices from the right list, explains how VAT applies for that customer, and never converts a price on the fly with a rate it looked up that morning.
Full quotes still come after a survey. The agent books the survey with the designer who covers that area, and texts a confirmation with the date, the designer's name, and a note of what the customer should have ready, such as rough room measurements and photographs of the existing kitchen.
Callers from both sides
Callers use different words for the same thing on either side of the border, and some of them use Irish place names for towns the agent should recognise. We give the agent both versions for the towns in the business's area, and it asks rather than guesses when it is unsure.
Calls can be answered on a Northern Ireland 028 number and a Republic of Ireland number routed to the same agent, so customers in Cavan are not paying to ring the UK.
Data protection across the border
Personal data from customers in the Republic is covered by the EU GDPR, and the UK has an adequacy arrangement with the EU that allows data to flow between the two. The agent stores call data in UK or EU hosting under the business's existing privacy notice, and says at the start of the call if it is recorded.
Complaints, payment problems and anything about an existing order that has gone wrong go to the showroom manager.
Common questions
Can an AI receptionist quote in pounds and euros?
Yes. It works out where the customer is and quotes from the price list and currency you set for that area, without converting prices on the fly.
Can it answer both 028 and Republic of Ireland numbers?
Yes. Calls to a Northern Ireland number and a Republic of Ireland number can be routed to the same agent, which answers with the right details for each caller.
How is customer data handled across the border?
Call data is stored in UK or EU hosting under your privacy notice, following UK GDPR and EU GDPR as they apply to each customer.