AI intervention rights & escalation design
Decide in advance how an AI action gets stopped.
Clear triggers, escalation routes and override authority for every consequential AI workflow — so when something goes wrong, people know who acts, how fast, and what happens next.
Methodology stage: Governance at Execution™
“When an AI system misbehaves, who has the authority to stop it — and how quickly?”
The problem
Most frameworks explain how AI decides — not how it's stopped
- Nobody is named as able to pause or override an AI-driven action.
- Escalation relies on whoever notices first.
- Work already done by the AI has no plan for reversal.
What you get
Deliverables
Intervention triggers
The signals that require a person to step in.
Escalation pathways
Who is told, in what order, and within what time.
Override authority
Named people able to pause, reverse or override actions.
Reversibility plan
How affected work is checked, corrected or undone.
How it works
Four steps
- 1
Identify
We select the AI workflows that act on customers, money or records.
- 2
Design
We set triggers, thresholds and escalation routes for each.
- 3
Authorise
We agree override authority with your leadership.
- 4
Test
We walk through scenarios and hand over a board-level assurance pack.
What it looks like
A sample output
| Trigger | First responder | Escalate to | Time limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unusual refund volume | Finance Analyst | Finance Director | 1 hour |
| Candidate rejected without review | Recruiter | Head of Talent | Same day |
| Customer complaint about AI reply | Team Lead | Client Services Head | 4 hours |
Extract from a sample escalation design (fictional data)
Fixed fee
AI Intervention Rights & Escalation Design Pricing
£1,750–£2,250
fixed fee one-off design, sized to the number of systems in scope · optional oversight £395/mo, quarterly reviews included
Best for: Businesses running automations or AI-assisted workflows that act on customers, candidates, money or records — and anyone asked what happens when one of them goes wrong.
Enquire about this serviceCommon questions
Do you need access to our systems?
No. This is a governance design, not an implementation. We work from workflow walk-throughs and configuration screens and hand you the design. If your team wants help building a pause or a hold window afterwards, that is separate work and quoted separately.
We're a small business — isn't escalation overkill?
The pathways are sized to the business. In a ten-person company that is often two levels and one named deputy — but it is written down and tested rather than assumed, which is exactly what a client, insurer or board asks to see.
What is the board-level assurance pack?
A short, dated document stating which systems have intervention rights defined, who holds them, what the triggers are, when escalation was last tested and what residual risk remains. It is written to be read in five minutes and filed as evidence.
How often should triggers be reviewed?
Triggers drift as systems, volumes and staff change, so oversight includes a quarterly review of thresholds, escalation contacts and test results. It is £395 per month and can be cancelled at any time.
Is this the same as an incident response plan?
No — they complement each other. An incident plan covers a breach or an outage. Intervention rights cover a system running exactly as configured but producing outcomes you no longer accept, which is the situation most businesses have no written answer for.
Works well with
Not legal advice. Trestano provides governance tooling, documentation and practical guidance. Sample outputs use fictional data.