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It varies by maker, but the pattern is a handful of retries a few minutes apart, and you can usually change it. Lexmark defaults to five redials three minutes apart (adjustable from zero to nine); OKI lets you set the tries and interval yourself; Ricoh redials automatically per its factory defaults. Your region can cap retries regardless of settings.
| Maker | Default behavior | How you change it |
|---|---|---|
| Lexmark | Automatic Redial: 5 attempts, 3 minutes apart; range 0-9 attempts, 1-200 minute intervals | Fax Send Settings, Admin Controls (figures confirmed on Lexmark's own support pages) |
| OKI | Retries on busy, no-answer, or communication error; counts and intervals are user-settable | Device Settings, Fax Setup, Other Settings: "Redial Tries" and "Redial Interval" |
| Ricoh | Automatic redial on busy or error, repeating per factory default settings | The interval and attempt count are adjustable; see the machine's fax settings pages |
Busy signals are the classic case, but machines also redial when the other end never answers, when the line drops mid-transmission, or when a communication error corrupts the page data. Most machines treat all four as the same event: wait the interval, then try again. A genuinely dead or disconnected number usually fails fast rather than burning through all the retries, since the exchange returns a "not in service" signal instead of ringing.
Usually, within the machine's range. Lexmark's ceiling is nine attempts; other makers have their own caps. Shortening the interval helps when the other side is a busy office fax that frees up quickly. But there is a legal footnote: some countries limit how often a device may redial, to keep one machine from harassing a line. Lexmark's documentation notes that regional rules can override your settings. If you crank the retry count and the machine stops short, that is probably why.
The machine gives up and tells you. Typically it prints a communication failure report or a transmission result report showing the number, the time of the last attempt, and the error code. The document usually stays in memory so you can resend without rescanning, at least until memory fills up. On some machines, pending jobs block later faxes, so check the queue after a failure rather than assuming everything after it went out.
Look for the Stop or Clear/Stop button on the machine: pressing it while a redial is pending usually cancels the job. On machines with a job list, you can also delete the pending fax from the transmission queue. If the document was scanned into memory and you cancel, clear it deliberately; some machines hold canceled jobs in memory until they are explicitly purged, and a half-canceled job can retry on its own.
For a fax that matters, yes. Calling the recipient first confirms the number is a working fax line and tells you whether anyone is actually near the machine. One confirmation call saves more time than five automatic redials into a line that has been unplugged since 2019. It also catches the most common fax failure of all: a number that rings forever because the machine is set to manual answer and nobody is there to press Start.
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