The town hall answers residents’ questions by phone, even when the switchboard is closed.
At the switchboard, the same questions come up every day: recycling centre opening hours, documents needed for a civil registry certificate, school enrolment. The Alyas agent answers them using the information provided by the municipality and transfers to the town hall number you have configured.
What the agent does for you
Answer residents’ recurring questions: opening hours, documents needed for a civil registry certificate, recycling centre, school enrolment.
Keep phone reception going outside the town hall’s opening hours.
Transfer the call to the configured town hall number, or note the request for the department concerned.
Capture the resident’s contact details for a callback from the department concerned, with a transcript and summary in the client dashboard.
An example workflow
Illustrative example
A scenario written to show how it works: it is not the recording of a real call.
- The contactThursday, 6:30 pm, the town hall is closed; a resident calls to find out which documents are needed for a birth certificate.
- Alyas agentThe agent says it is an AI, then gives the documents and the civil registry office’s opening hours provided by the municipality.
- Alyas agentIt explains the procedure communicated by the town hall — at the counter or online — and notes the contact details for a callback.
- The next day, the civil registry office finds the call summary and calls the resident back.
Connected tools
Transfer to the town hall number you configure. Appointments at the town hall possible via Google Calendar or Cal.com once connected.
Further reading
Solutions
Conversational IVRSolutions
AI phone systemUse cases
Answer recurring questions without tying up your team.Blog
Town halls: 10 questions that keep coming up at the switchboardResources
AI on the phone: what the GDPR and the AI Act sayIndustries
Tourist officesBlog
Small municipality without a full-time secretary: how to organise phone answeringBlog
French town halls: where to start before handing phone reception to an AIIndustries
Joint local authoritiesIndustries
Social welfare centresIndustries
AssociationsBlog
Continuity of public service in France: what it changes for phone receptionBlog
Civil registry (état civil): directing certificate requests without collecting civil status informationIndustries
Libraries and museumsIndustries
Social landlords
Other industries: Public sector & non-profits
Frequently asked questions
Will elderly residents be told that they are talking to an AI?
Yes: every call starts with the announcement of the AI and the recording, made before any question. A resident who would rather speak to a member of council staff can ask: the call is transferred to the town hall’s configured number, or their request is noted for a callback from the department concerned. See also our guide to what the GDPR and the AI Act require.
A resident wants to report a pothole or a broken street light: does the agent take the report?
Yes: it notes the nature of the problem, the address or a landmark and the resident’s contact details, then passes it on with the summary in the municipality’s client dashboard. It promises no timeframe and no intervention by the technical services.
Civil registry, planning, after-school care: is a single agent enough for the whole town hall?
It can give information on each department if you provide their details: opening hours, documents required, procedures. However, an agent has only one transfer number, for example reception’s, which then directs callers to the right department.
What happens in an emergency?
The agent is not an emergency service: it asks the caller to dial France’s emergency numbers (15 for medical emergencies, 17 for the police, 18 for the fire service, or 112) and can transfer to the on-call service if the municipality has configured a dedicated number.
Where is call data hosted?
Hosting is located in the European Union. Every call begins with an announcement stating that an AI is answering and that the call is recorded, and transcripts are available in the municipality’s client dashboard.
No call or message left unanswered.
Channel, integrations, volume: you get a clear proposal before you commit.