SMS delivery rates disclosure for alert texts
This SMS delivery rates disclosure sets out what Welco can and cannot promise about alert texts in Canada and elsewhere. We don't promise or publish a delivery rate, because mobile networks and phones decide the final step. Texts the network fails to deliver are not refunded or credited.
The short version
- Welco does not promise that every text will reach its phone. No texting service can reach every phone, every time.
- We do not publish a delivery rate or a success percentage for alert texts.
- A text uses its message credits once we hand it to the mobile network, whether or not the phone receives it.
- There are no refunds and no credits for texts the network did not deliver.
- Welco carries alerts to your own staff only. Do not rely on it to protect lives.
What delivered and not delivered mean
Every text gets a status in your Welco feed. Only Delivered means the text reached the phone. Each other status means it did not.
The same status words appear in your delivery reports.
Delivered
- What it means
- The network told us the text reached the phone. It does not tell us whether anyone opened or read it.
- What you can do
- Ask staff to keep alert texts unmuted, especially overnight.
Phone off
- What it means
- The network could not reach the phone because it was switched off or had no signal.
- What you can do
- Send alerts that can't wait to a second phone as well.
Number not recognized
- What it means
- The number does not exist, has a typo, or is no longer in service.
- What you can do
- Get the person's current cellphone number and have them join again.
Landline
- What it means
- The number belongs to a line that cannot take texts at all.
- What you can do
- Use a cellphone number for that person instead.
Replied STOP
- What it means
- The person opted out, so Welco sends nothing more to that phone.
- What you can do
- Only they can turn alerts back on, by texting START.
Dropped or blocked
- What it means
- The text was stopped before it reached the phone. The feed gives the reason, such as a drop rule or network filtering.
- What you can do
- Read the reason in the feed and fix the rule, sender or wording.
What affects whether a text arrives
Most texts that fail do so because of the phone, the number or the network. A few causes sit with the sender.
- The phone: it is off, out of coverage, or set to block texts from unknown senders. A reservoir or pump station well outside town may have weak coverage.
- The number: it is a landline, has a wrong digit, was disconnected, or moved to another carrier.
- The network: carriers in Canada and the US run their own filters and may hold back texts they judge to be spam.
- The content: very long texts, or texts packed with links, are more likely to be filtered.
- The person: anyone who replied STOP gets no Welco texts until they text START.
When a text uses message credits
A text uses message credits at the moment we hand it to the mobile network. From then on, delivery is in the network's hands.
If the network later fails to deliver that text, the credits stay used. We do not refund them or add them back to your balance.
Texts that Welco rejects or holds before sending use no credits. Neither do emails your own rules drop.
Your part in getting alerts through
A few habits make a big difference to how often alerts land.
- Trim each alert to the part that matters, so it fits in one text. See short alert texts.
- Have every person save the Welco alert number in their contacts and let it through quiet hours.
- Send the alerts that matter most to more than one phone.
- Open your delivery reports after any setup change and whenever a phone goes quiet.
- Run a test with test mode after you change a rule, a phone or a sender.
- Keep links few and skip public link shorteners.
Alerts only, with blocked words held
Welco sends system alerts to staff who opted in. It is never for spam, marketing or texting the public.
If an outgoing text contains a blocked word or phrase, we hold it. A held text is never sent and costs no credits. The full list is on our stop words and blocked words page.
Breaking the rules: warnings, closure and no refunds
Every breach of our acceptable use policy or SMS terms leads to a written warning. We email it to the account owner.
When a third written warning is issued, the account closes on its own. Fraud, phishing, illegal content, or an order from a carrier or regulator can suspend an account straight away.
Nothing is refunded when an account is warned, paused or closed for a breach. This includes plan fees, credits you have not used, and any credit packs you bought. Our terms of service hold the full wording.
How we measure and report delivery
For each text, your feed shows the latest status that the mobile network has reported back to us.
Network reports can come in late, and some never come at all. So a status may change after you first look, and a few texts may never get a final one.
We use these reports to help you fix problems. We do not combine them into a delivery rate or publish one.
Questions about a missing text
Email hello@welco.ai with the date, the time (with the time zone, such as ET or PT) and the phone number involved. We will go through the delivery record for that text with you.
Frequently asked questions
Does Welco promise a delivery rate for alert texts in Canada?
Do I get my credits back for a text that wasn't delivered?
How can I check whether an alert text reached the phone?
Why would a Canadian carrier filter an alert text?
Ask us about a text that never arrived
Send the date and the phone number, and we will check the delivery record with you.