diff --git a/lib/speechmatics.rb b/lib/speechmatics.rb
index 2e193a7..8e8909e 100644
--- a/lib/speechmatics.rb
+++ b/lib/speechmatics.rb
@@ -7,6 +7,8 @@
 require 'speechmatics/configuration'
 require 'speechmatics/connection'
 require 'speechmatics/response'
+require 'speechmatics/response/error'
+Gem.find_files('speechmatics/response/error/*.rb').each { |path| require path }
 require 'speechmatics/api'
 require 'speechmatics/api_factory'
 require 'speechmatics/client'
diff --git a/lib/speechmatics/api.rb b/lib/speechmatics/api.rb
index f7ce758..f2dc4fd 100644
--- a/lib/speechmatics/api.rb
+++ b/lib/speechmatics/api.rb
@@ -48,7 +48,7 @@ def request(method, path, params={}) # :nodoc:
           request.body = params[:data]
         end
       end
-      Speechmatics::Response.new(response, {api: self, method: method, path: path, params: params})
+      Speechmatics::Response.parse(response, {api: self, method: method, path: path, params: params})
     end
 
     def base_path
diff --git a/lib/speechmatics/response.rb b/lib/speechmatics/response.rb
index b6228df..bfd0cfa 100644
--- a/lib/speechmatics/response.rb
+++ b/lib/speechmatics/response.rb
@@ -2,25 +2,22 @@
 
 module Speechmatics
   class Response
+
+    def self.parse(response, request={})
+      new(response, request).tap do |res|
+        res.check_for_error
+      end
+    end
+
     attr_accessor :raw, :request
 
     def initialize(response, request={})
       @raw     = response
       @request = request
-
-      check_for_error(response)
     end
 
-    def check_for_error(response)
-      status_code_type = response.status.to_s[0]
-      case status_code_type
-      when "2"
-        # puts "all is well, status: #{response.status}"
-      when "4", "5"
-        raise "Whoops, error back from Speechmatics: #{response.status}"
-      else
-        raise "Unrecongized status code: #{response.status}"
-      end
+    def check_for_error
+      raise Error.classify(self) unless (200..299).include?(raw.status)
     end
 
     def body
diff --git a/lib/speechmatics/response/error.rb b/lib/speechmatics/response/error.rb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9651024
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/speechmatics/response/error.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,46 @@
+# -*- encoding: utf-8 -*-
+
+module Speechmatics
+  class Response
+    class Error < StandardError
+      TYPES = []
+
+      class << self
+        def inherited(subclass)
+          TYPES << subclass
+        end
+
+        def classify(response)
+          klass = TYPES.find { |t| t.matches?(response) } || Unknown
+          klass.new(response)
+        end
+
+        def matches?(response)
+          matches_status?(response.raw.status) &&
+            matches_message?(error_message(response))
+        end
+
+        def matches_status?(status)
+          self::ERROR_STATUS == status
+        end
+
+        def matches_message?(message)
+          self::ERROR_MESSAGE == message
+        end
+
+        def error_message(response)
+          response['error']
+        rescue
+          ''
+        end
+      end
+
+      attr_reader :response
+
+      def initialize(response)
+        @response = response
+        super self.class.error_message(response)
+      end
+    end
+  end
+end
diff --git a/lib/speechmatics/response/error/bad_gateway.rb b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/bad_gateway.rb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..cacb566
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/bad_gateway.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+# -*- encoding: utf-8 -*-
+
+class Speechmatics::Response::Error
+  class BadGateway < self
+    ERROR_STATUS = 502
+    def self.matches_message?(_message); true; end
+  end
+end
diff --git a/lib/speechmatics/response/error/cannot_align.rb b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/cannot_align.rb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..57438b1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/cannot_align.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+# -*- encoding: utf-8 -*-
+
+class Speechmatics::Response::Error
+  class CannotAlign < self
+    ERROR_STATUS = 404
+    ERROR_MESSAGE = 'Text could not be aligned to audio'
+  end
+end
diff --git a/lib/speechmatics/response/error/insufficient_credit.rb b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/insufficient_credit.rb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..32236c5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/insufficient_credit.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+# -*- encoding: utf-8 -*-
+
+class Speechmatics::Response::Error
+  class InsufficientCredit < self
+    ERROR_STATUS = 403
+    ERROR_MESSAGE = 'Insufficient Credit'
+  end
+end
diff --git a/lib/speechmatics/response/error/internal_server_error.rb b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/internal_server_error.rb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b6edb8a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/internal_server_error.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+# -*- encoding: utf-8 -*-
+
+class Speechmatics::Response::Error
+  class InternalServerError < self
+    ERROR_STATUS = 500
+    def self.matches_message?(_message); true; end
+  end
+end
diff --git a/lib/speechmatics/response/error/invalid_audio.rb b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/invalid_audio.rb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b1f6458
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/invalid_audio.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+# -*- encoding: utf-8 -*-
+
+class Speechmatics::Response::Error
+  class InvalidAudio < self
+    ERROR_STATUS = 403
+    ERROR_MESSAGE = 'Job rejected due to invalid audio'
+  end
+end
diff --git a/lib/speechmatics/response/error/job_in_progress.rb b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/job_in_progress.rb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1b51eb7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/job_in_progress.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+# -*- encoding: utf-8 -*-
+
+class Speechmatics::Response::Error
+  class JobInProgress < self
+    ERROR_STATUS = 404
+    ERROR_MESSAGE = 'Job In Progress'
+  end
+end
diff --git a/lib/speechmatics/response/error/job_not_found.rb b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/job_not_found.rb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..58571b6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/job_not_found.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+# -*- encoding: utf-8 -*-
+
+class Speechmatics::Response::Error
+  class JobNotFound < self
+    ERROR_STATUS = 404
+    ERROR_MESSAGE = 'Job not found'
+  end
+end
diff --git a/lib/speechmatics/response/error/malformed_request.rb b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/malformed_request.rb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e98d3c5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/malformed_request.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+# -*- encoding: utf-8 -*-
+
+class Speechmatics::Response::Error
+  class MalformedRequest < self
+    ERROR_STATUS = 400
+    ERROR_MESSAGE = 'Malformed request'
+  end
+end
diff --git a/lib/speechmatics/response/error/missing_callback.rb b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/missing_callback.rb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..39d1020
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/missing_callback.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+# -*- encoding: utf-8 -*-
+
+class Speechmatics::Response::Error
+  class MissingCallback < self
+    ERROR_STATUS = 400
+    ERROR_MESSAGE = 'Missing callback'
+  end
+end
diff --git a/lib/speechmatics/response/error/missing_data_file.rb b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/missing_data_file.rb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..92c5779
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/missing_data_file.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+# -*- encoding: utf-8 -*-
+
+class Speechmatics::Response::Error
+  class MissingDataFile < self
+    ERROR_STATUS = 400
+    ERROR_MESSAGE = 'Missing data_file'
+  end
+end
diff --git a/lib/speechmatics/response/error/missing_language.rb b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/missing_language.rb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c28cf2c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/missing_language.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+# -*- encoding: utf-8 -*-
+
+class Speechmatics::Response::Error
+  class MissingLanguage < self
+    ERROR_STATUS = 400
+    ERROR_MESSAGE = 'No language selected'
+  end
+end
diff --git a/lib/speechmatics/response/error/not_alignment_job.rb b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/not_alignment_job.rb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ca909f1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/not_alignment_job.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+# -*- encoding: utf-8 -*-
+
+class Speechmatics::Response::Error
+  class NotAlignmentJob < self
+    ERROR_STATUS = 404
+    ERROR_MESSAGE = 'Job is not of type alignment'
+  end
+end
diff --git a/lib/speechmatics/response/error/product_not_available.rb b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/product_not_available.rb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b9a8323
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/product_not_available.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+# -*- encoding: utf-8 -*-
+
+class Speechmatics::Response::Error
+  class ProductNotAvailable < self
+    ERROR_STATUS = 400
+    ERROR_MESSAGE = 'Requested product not available'
+  end
+end
diff --git a/lib/speechmatics/response/error/rejected_on_submission.rb b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/rejected_on_submission.rb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d8e075d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/rejected_on_submission.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+# -*- encoding: utf-8 -*-
+
+class Speechmatics::Response::Error
+  class RejectedOnSubmission < self
+    ERROR_STATUS = 404
+    ERROR_MESSAGE = 'Job was rejected on submission'
+  end
+end
diff --git a/lib/speechmatics/response/error/service_unavailable.rb b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/service_unavailable.rb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9df8248
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/service_unavailable.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+# -*- encoding: utf-8 -*-
+
+class Speechmatics::Response::Error
+  class ServiceUnavailable < self
+    ERROR_STATUS = 503
+    def self.matches_message?(_message); true; end
+  end
+end
diff --git a/lib/speechmatics/response/error/too_many_requests.rb b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/too_many_requests.rb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b2f4b2d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/too_many_requests.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+# -*- encoding: utf-8 -*-
+
+class Speechmatics::Response::Error
+  class TooManyRequests < self
+    ERROR_STATUS = 429
+    def self.matches_message?(_message); true; end
+  end
+end
diff --git a/lib/speechmatics/response/error/unauthorized.rb b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/unauthorized.rb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d7ba4a1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/unauthorized.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+# -*- encoding: utf-8 -*-
+
+class Speechmatics::Response::Error
+  class Unauthorized < self
+    ERROR_STATUS = 401
+    def self.matches_message?(_message); true; end
+  end
+end
diff --git a/lib/speechmatics/response/error/unknown.rb b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/unknown.rb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..454af40
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/unknown.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,7 @@
+# -*- encoding: utf-8 -*-
+
+class Speechmatics::Response::Error
+  class Unknown < self
+    def self.matches?(_response); false; end
+  end
+end
diff --git a/lib/speechmatics/response/error/unsupported_output.rb b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/unsupported_output.rb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4e9beac
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/unsupported_output.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+# -*- encoding: utf-8 -*-
+
+class Speechmatics::Response::Error
+  class UnsupportedOutputFormat < self
+    ERROR_STATUS = 404
+    ERROR_MESSAGE = 'Output format Not Supported'
+  end
+end
diff --git a/lib/speechmatics/response/error/unsupported_output_format.rb b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/unsupported_output_format.rb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4e9beac
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/speechmatics/response/error/unsupported_output_format.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+# -*- encoding: utf-8 -*-
+
+class Speechmatics::Response::Error
+  class UnsupportedOutputFormat < self
+    ERROR_STATUS = 404
+    ERROR_MESSAGE = 'Output format Not Supported'
+  end
+end
diff --git a/speechmatics.gemspec b/speechmatics.gemspec
index 1747321..61d9394 100644
--- a/speechmatics.gemspec
+++ b/speechmatics.gemspec
@@ -28,6 +28,7 @@ Gem::Specification.new do |spec|
 
   spec.add_development_dependency "bundler", "~> 1.3"
   spec.add_development_dependency "rake"
+  spec.add_development_dependency "byebug"
 
   spec.add_development_dependency('minitest')
   spec.add_development_dependency('simplecov')
diff --git a/test/response/error_test.rb b/test/response/error_test.rb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0619807
--- /dev/null
+++ b/test/response/error_test.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,94 @@
+# -*- encoding: utf-8 -*-
+
+require File.expand_path(File.dirname(__FILE__) + '/../test_helper')
+
+describe Speechmatics::Response::Error do
+  described_class = Speechmatics::Response::Error
+
+  describe '::classify' do
+    # see error table at https://app.speechmatics.com/api-details#errorCodes
+
+    describe '4xx errors' do
+      tests = [{
+        response: {status: 400, error: 'Malformed request'},
+        error_class: described_class::MalformedRequest
+      },{
+        response: {status: 400, error: 'Missing data_file'},
+        error_class: described_class::MissingDataFile
+      },{
+        response: {status: 400, error: 'No language selected'},
+        error_class: described_class::MissingLanguage
+      },{
+        response: {status: 400, error: 'Missing callback'},
+        error_class: described_class::MissingCallback
+      },{
+        response: {status: 400, error: 'Requested product not available'},
+        error_class: described_class::ProductNotAvailable
+      },{
+        response: {status: 401, error: 'Invalid User Id or Token'},
+        error_class: described_class::Unauthorized
+      },{
+        response: {status: 403, error: 'Job rejected due to invalid audio'},
+        error_class: described_class::InvalidAudio
+      },{
+        response: {status: 403, error: 'Insufficient Credit'},
+        error_class: described_class::InsufficientCredit
+      },{
+        response: {status: 404, error: 'Job not found'},
+        error_class: described_class::JobNotFound
+      },{
+        response: {status: 404, error: 'Text could not be aligned to audio'},
+        error_class: described_class::CannotAlign
+      },{
+        response: {status: 404, error: 'Job was rejected on submission'},
+        error_class: described_class::RejectedOnSubmission
+      },{
+        response: {status: 404, error: 'Job is not of type alignment'},
+        error_class: described_class::NotAlignmentJob
+      },{
+        response: {status: 404, error: 'Job In Progress'},
+        error_class: described_class::JobInProgress
+      },{
+        response: {status: 404, error: 'Output format Not Supported'},
+        error_class: described_class::UnsupportedOutputFormat
+      },{
+        response: {status: 429, error: 'Too Many requests'},
+        error_class: described_class::TooManyRequests
+      }]
+
+      tests.each do |t|
+        it "correctly classifies #{t[:response][:status]}: #{t[:response][:error]}" do
+          raw_response = raw_response_stub(
+            t[:response][:status],
+            { 'error' => t[:response][:error] }
+          )
+          response = Speechmatics::Response.new(raw_response)
+          err = described_class.classify(response)
+          err.class.must_equal t[:error_class]
+        end
+      end
+    end
+
+    describe '5xx errors' do
+      tests = [{
+        status: 500,
+        error_class: described_class::InternalServerError
+      },{
+        status: 502,
+        error_class: described_class::BadGateway
+      },{
+        status: 503,
+        error_class: described_class::ServiceUnavailable
+      }]
+
+      tests.each do |t|
+        it "correctly classifies status #{t[:status]}" do
+          raw_response = raw_response_stub(t[:status])
+          response = Speechmatics::Response.new(raw_response)
+          err = described_class.classify(response)
+          err.class.must_equal t[:error_class]
+        end
+      end
+    end
+  end
+end
diff --git a/test/response_test.rb b/test/response_test.rb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..83dbbbb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/test/response_test.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,27 @@
+# -*- encoding: utf-8 -*-
+
+require File.expand_path(File.dirname(__FILE__) + '/test_helper')
+
+describe Speechmatics::Response do
+  describe '::parse' do
+    describe 'with an error response' do
+      let(:response) { raw_response_stub(422) }
+
+      it 'raises a Speechmatics::Response::Error' do
+        lambda {
+          Speechmatics::Response.parse(response)
+        }.must_raise Speechmatics::Response::Error
+      end
+    end
+
+    describe 'with an successful response' do
+      let(:response) { raw_response_stub(200, 'good stuff') }
+
+      it 'returns a Response object' do
+        res = Speechmatics::Response.parse(response)
+        res.class.must_equal Speechmatics::Response
+        res.body.must_equal 'good stuff'
+      end
+    end
+  end
+end
diff --git a/test/test_helper.rb b/test/test_helper.rb
index 8af2801..a9cfc26 100644
--- a/test/test_helper.rb
+++ b/test/test_helper.rb
@@ -9,3 +9,7 @@
 require 'minitest/spec'
 
 require 'speechmatics'
+
+def raw_response_stub(status, body = '')
+  Struct.new(:status, :body).new(status, body)
+end