Why texts send from your primary number (fallback to primary)

Dispatch Bros never refuses to send a text just because a job source has no number of its own — it falls back to your company primary number. The help note in Automations → Sender Numbers states the rule: "Assign a default sender phone number to each job source." — when an automation uses the "Source Default" sender strategy, messages send from the number assigned to the job's source, and sources without one fall back to the company primary number. So if customers are getting texts from your primary line when you expected a brand-specific number, the source's sender assignment is the first thing to check.

Why the fallback exists

A hard failure would be worse: if a source had no number and Dispatch Bros simply didn't send, customers would silently miss job confirmations and review requests. The fallback guarantees delivery — the trade-off is that the text arrives from your primary line instead of the brand's line.

How to see which sources are falling back

1. Open Automations in the left sidebar, then the Sender Numbers tab.
2. Any source whose SMS Status column reads "Fallback to primary" has no sender assigned.
3. A blue chip above the table counts sources that are "missing sender" — click it to filter the table to just those rows.

How to fix it

1. Assign a sender number to each source in the Sender Number column. Ready numbers are selectable immediately; numbers still finishing carrier registration appear grayed out with their live status until they're SMS-ready.
2. Confirm the assigned number's chip shows Ready (green). A red chip means the number can't send right now — the automation would still need a working line.
3. If a specific automation should always use one fixed number regardless of source, set that in the automation's own sender settings instead — the source default only applies when the automation is configured to use it.

Troubleshooting

• Texts still come from primary after assigning a sender — the automation may be configured with a fixed sender rather than the source default, or the job itself has no job source set (no source = nothing to look up = primary). Check the job's source field and the automation's sender strategy.
• The picker won't let me choose my new number — it's not SMS-ready yet. The picker shows it disabled with its current status; assignment unlocks automatically when it reaches Ready.
• I don't want a source to use primary at all — there is no way to block the fallback; instead, assign the source its own number so the fallback never triggers.