# AI Front Desk for Home Services: 24/7 Answering Source: https://insertchat.com/industries/home-services > Capture service requests while your team is on the job. An AI front desk for home service businesses answers calls, texts, and website chats while your crews are on jobs. InsertChat’s assistant answers from your services, service area, and hours, collects the address and job details, books visits on your calendar, and flags emergencies such as flooding, gas smells, or no heat for your team. ## Turn a service call into a visit request Example workflow: Phone inquiry. Illustrative scenario. Answers depend on your sources; actions depend on your connected tools and permissions. This is not a customer testimonial or measured result. A homeowner calls while your technicians are out on jobs. > Do you service heat pumps in Westbrook? I’d like to book our annual maintenance. ## Check the service details Use your service-area list, maintenance packages, and opening hours to answer the initial questions. ## Help arrange the visit Collect the address and equipment details. Use your connected calendar and scheduling permissions to help with the appointment. ## Give the technician context Keep the customer’s request and contact details together so your team can prepare or follow up. ## Your team sets the boundaries Route urgent faults, uncertain pricing, and specialist questions to your team. ## What it handles for home service businesses Handled by your assistant: - Service area, opening hours, and call-out fee questions - Maintenance, tune-up, and estimate visits booked into open calendar times - What is wrong, which equipment, and how long it has been happening - Rescheduling or canceling a visit the assistant booked - Callback requests, confirmed to the customer by text or email after the call Sent straight to your team: - Flooding, burst pipes, and sewage backups - Gas smells, CO alarms, sparking, or burning smells - No heat in a cold snap or no cooling in a heat wave - A door stuck open, a car trapped in a garage, or a child locked inside - Photos homeowners text of the problem - Complaints about recent work and upset customers ## What it asks and what it needs to know Details it collects: - Name and callback number - Service address and ZIP code - What the problem is and when it started - Equipment type, brand, or age when it matters - Whether it is an emergency or can wait for a scheduled visit - Owner or tenant, and who will let the technician in - Preferred visit window What to add to its knowledge: - The services you offer and the jobs you turn down - Your service area, by city or ZIP code - Opening hours, after-hours policy, and emergency availability - Call-out, diagnostic, and trip fees you are happy to share - Safety steps for gas, water, and electrical emergencies - Brands you service, warranties, and financing options ## Which home service businesses use an AI receptionist? Any business where the phone rings while the team is on site: plumbers, HVAC companies, electricians, roofers, contractors, landscapers and tree services, cleaners and carpet cleaners, pest control, locksmiths, garage door, restoration, moving, pool, appliance repair, painters, flooring, solar, septic, junk removal, handymen, pressure and window washing, fencing, and home inspection companies. Each page below shows the calls, intake questions, and handoff rules for that trade. ## How does it handle emergency calls? It collects the address and what is happening, reads the safety steps you wrote, and marks the call urgent so your team is notified. You can ring your own phone first and let the assistant answer only when nobody picks up, or let it answer after hours. ## How much does an AI receptionist for home services cost? Paid plans start at $98 per month for Pro, with one phone number, monthly credits, 3 AI assistants, and 3 team seats. Additional numbers are $10 per month. Calls round up to whole minutes, and SMS and WhatsApp can carry their own charges. ## Can homeowners text photos of the problem? Homeowners can text your InsertChat number and get answers from the same knowledge as your phone line. Picture messages go to a person on your team instead of an automatic reply, and customers who reply STOP are opted out. ## Can it book jobs into my schedule? Yes, when you connect a calendar: InsertChat’s built-in calendar, Google Calendar, Outlook, Calendly, or Cal.com. It offers open times within your booking rules and confirms the visit with the customer. If you schedule in field service software, it collects the job details for your office instead. ## AI receptionist or answering service: which fits a home service business? An AI receptionist answers from your exact service list, books straight onto your calendar around the clock, and handles texts and website chat with the same knowledge. A live answering service fits a business that wants a person on every call; InsertChat doesn’t transfer live calls, so urgent calls are flagged and emailed to your team instead. The table below compares the three options. ## Does it work for garage door, locksmith, and other emergency trades? Yes. Trades where a stuck door or a lockout can’t wait get the same urgent flag: the assistant takes the address and what happened, reads the safety steps you wrote, and marks the call needs-you so your on-call technician is emailed. Routine repairs and installs go straight onto the calendar. ## AI receptionist vs voicemail vs a live answering service for service calls | Compared | InsertChat AI receptionist | Voicemail | Live answering service | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Answers questions | Yes, from your knowledge base | No; callers leave a message | From the script you give the operators | | Books appointments | Into the built-in calendar, Google Calendar, Outlook, Calendly, or Cal.com | No | Depends on the provider and your calendar access | | When it answers | Always, after hours, or when your team doesn’t pick up | When nobody answers | During the hours your plan covers | | Record of each call | Transcript and AI summary in the shared inbox | A recorded message | Message notes from the operator | | Urgent calls | Flagged and emailed to your team, with the safety steps you wrote; no live transfer | Heard when someone checks messages | Handled with the escalation instructions you give | | Other channels | Website chat, SMS, email, and WhatsApp from the same knowledge | Phone only | Varies by provider | | Pricing | From $98 per month with monthly credits; calls billed in whole minutes | Usually included with your phone service | Varies by provider; often per minute or per call | Voicemail and answering service details vary by provider. Check the terms of any service you compare. ## Can an AI receptionist handle after-hours service calls? Your connected phone assistant can answer from your service information and collect the caller’s contact details, address, and request. Configure your opening hours and handoff rules so urgent faults reach the right person and appointment requests follow your scheduling rules. ## Can I keep my current business phone number? In the US and Canada, keep your business number and forward calls to InsertChat. Elsewhere, use a local or toll-free InsertChat number where one is available. Number porting is not offered. Place a test call before routing customer calls. ## Does InsertChat work with ServiceTitan, Jobber, or Housecall Pro? Not directly. InsertChat books into its built-in calendar, Google Calendar, Outlook, Calendly, or Cal.com. If your jobs live in field service software, the assistant collects the job details in the shared inbox and your office enters them there. ## Can it quote prices for jobs? It shares the prices you add, such as call-out fees, diagnostic fees, and price ranges for common jobs. InsertChat does not create formal quotes or invoices; for work that needs a site visit, it books an estimate or collects the details for your team. ## Related features - [AI receptionist](https://insertchat.com/product/phone) - [After-hours answering](https://insertchat.com/product/after-hours) - [Scheduling](https://insertchat.com/product/scheduling) ## Home services by business type - [Plumbing](https://insertchat.com/industries/plumbing): Answer emergency and routine plumbing calls while your crew is on a job. - [HVAC](https://insertchat.com/industries/hvac): Take no-heat, no-cooling, and tune-up calls when every technician is already booked. - [Electrical](https://insertchat.com/industries/electrician): Book EV charger and panel upgrade visits, and flag burning smells and sparking right away. - [Roofing](https://insertchat.com/industries/roofing): Separate active leaks from estimate requests and book roof inspections after a storm. - [Landscaping](https://insertchat.com/industries/landscaping): Collect lot size and mowing frequency, and book design consultations by phone, text, or chat. - [Cleaning](https://insertchat.com/industries/cleaning): Explain what each clean includes, collect home sizes, and book walkthroughs by phone or chat. - [Pest control](https://insertchat.com/industries/pest-control): Book inspections, explain prep before treatment, and flag nests and stings for your team. - [Locksmiths](https://insertchat.com/industries/locksmith): Capture lockout, rekey, and smart lock calls while you’re working at another door. - [Garage doors](https://insertchat.com/industries/garage-door): Book broken spring, off-track, and opener repairs while your techs are on other jobs. - [Water damage restoration](https://insertchat.com/industries/restoration): Take the first call about a flooded basement or kitchen fire, day or night. - [Moving](https://insertchat.com/industries/moving): Handle quote requests, survey bookings, and moving-day calls while your crews are out. - [Pool services](https://insertchat.com/industries/pool-services): Book green pool cleanups and equipment repairs, and answer weekly service questions. - [Appliance repair](https://insertchat.com/industries/appliance-repair): Book fridge, washer, dryer, and oven repairs with the brand and model already noted. - [Tree service](https://insertchat.com/industries/tree-service): Separate trees on houses from removal estimates, and book estimate visits after every storm. - [Painting](https://insertchat.com/industries/painting): Book interior and exterior estimates, collect room counts and siding type, and log color questions. - [Flooring](https://insertchat.com/industries/flooring): Book in-home measures, collect square footage and subfloor details, and answer material questions. - [Solar](https://insertchat.com/industries/solar): Answer solar leads from your ads, collect bills and roof details, and book consultations. - [Septic](https://insertchat.com/industries/septic): Tell sewage backups from routine pump-outs, and book real estate septic inspections. - [Junk removal](https://insertchat.com/industries/junk-removal): Answer “how much to haul this?”, collect item lists and access details, and book pickup windows. - [Handyman](https://insertchat.com/industries/handyman): Sort honey-do lists, flag jobs that need a licensed trade, and book visits on your calendar. - [Pressure washing](https://insertchat.com/industries/pressure-washing): Book house washes and driveway cleaning, collect surfaces and square footage, and explain soft washing. - [Carpet cleaning](https://insertchat.com/industries/carpet-cleaning): Book room-based carpet, upholstery, and rug cleaning, and send soaked-carpet calls to your team. - [Window cleaning](https://insertchat.com/industries/window-cleaning): Book home and storefront window cleaning, count panes and stories, and catch route cancellations. - [Fencing](https://insertchat.com/industries/fencing): Book fence estimates with footage, material, and gates, and flag broken pool gates and downed fences. - [Home inspection](https://insertchat.com/industries/home-inspection): Book inspections and add-ons inside contract deadlines, and answer agents’ fee questions. - [Contractors](https://insertchat.com/industries/contractors): Book site visits for new remodels and take messages from clients and subs while you build.