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OnCall for Emergency services · Water Damage Restoration

AI Receptionist for Water Damage Restoration.

Burst pipe at 2am, sewage backup on Sunday morning — every hour is a hour of mitigation revenue you can't recover. OnCall picks up in two rings, qualifies the loss, and dispatches the truck.

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Water damage is a clock-ticking business. The IICRC's S500 standard wants extraction inside 24-48 hours. Voicemail can cost you the whole job — and the entire insurance claim.

The phone problem

Why water damage restoration businesses lose calls.

Water damage is a clock-ticking business: the IICRC's S500 standard recommends extraction beginning within 24 to 48 hours to prevent secondary damage and mold growth. Every hour the homeowner spends on hold or in voicemail purgatory is a hour of mitigation revenue you're losing — and a hour of downstream insurance claim friction.

The calls don't come in at convenient times. Burst pipes happen overnight in winter. Storm flooding happens in the middle of a thunderstorm. Sewage backups happen on Sunday mornings. Most independent restoration shops are owner-operated and the owner is already onsite at another loss when the next call comes in.

The traditional answer is a 24/7 call center for $800-1,500 a month or hiring a dedicated dispatcher in the $40,000-50,000 a year range. The call center takes a message and doesn't capture insurance info; the dispatcher works one shift and the phone goes to voicemail the rest of the time.

OnCall picks up in two rings, captures water source (pipe, storm, sewage — Category 1, 2, or 3 in IICRC terms), affected square footage estimate, whether the homeowner has photographed the damage, and insurance carrier. It texts you the lead and either books a same-day mitigation visit or — if configured — transfers live to your on-call tech. Walk through the setup to see exactly how the IICRC-aligned intake script works.

How OnCall handles it

How OnCall handles water damage restoration calls.

Four call types that account for most of an inbound water damage restoration day. Here's exactly how Eva handles each one.

CALL TYPE 01

Active flooding (Category 1, clean water)

Burst pipe, supply-line failure, dishwasher leak. Eva captures source, room(s) affected, approximate water depth, whether the supply has been shut off (and walks the caller through finding the shutoff if not), and the homeowner's insurance carrier. She dispatches an emergency mitigation truck and texts the homeowner an ETA.

Caller

My basement is flooding from a burst pipe!

Eva

I'll dispatch a crew right now. Have you been able to turn off the main water valve?

CALL TYPE 02

Category 3 — sewage or contaminated water

Black water requires PPE, different containment, different paperwork. Eva flags Category 3 calls explicitly and routes them to your hazmat-trained crew. She doesn't try to triage the contamination level beyond confirming it's sewage or storm water.

CALL TYPE 03

Insurance claim coordination

Most water damage work runs through an insurance claim. Eva asks if a claim is open, captures the carrier and claim number if available, and books the mitigation visit. She tells the homeowner clearly that a deductible may apply but doesn't quote — that's between your project manager and the adjuster.

Caller

State Farm sent me to you.

Eva

We'll work directly with them. Is there a claim number assigned yet?

CALL TYPE 04

Mold testing or post-mitigation follow-up

Existing claims that need a moisture check or air-quality reading get scheduled differently — these are billable hours, not emergencies. Eva books them into your standard route.

Plug and play

Pre-configured for water damage restoration.

Pick Water Damage Restoration at signup. Voice, qualifying questions, after-hours behavior, and emergency keywords are set automatically. Customize anything later.

Default agent name
Devon

Curated voice + tone for water damage restoration. Swap any time.

After-hours behavior
Promise callback

AI promises a same-day callback for urgent matters.

Emergency detection
Enabled by default

7 emergency keywords pre-loaded.

Default qualifying questions
  • Damage active right now
  • Damage type
  • Rooms affected
  • Insurance contacted
  • Property address
  • Phone

All editable in your dashboard. Add or remove any.

14-day follow-up sequence
SMS + email, ready

Templates for water damage restoration pre-loaded. Channel: SMS, email, or both.

3-step setup

From signup to live AI on your line.

  1. 01

    Sign up + paste URL

    Pick Water Damage Restoration. AI auto-extracts your services, hours, pricing from your website.

  2. 02

    Pick a phone number

    $1 to activate your first number, then $10/mo from month 2. Activates in <5 min. Choose any area code.

  3. 03

    Forward your line

    A few digits in your carrier app. AI starts answering today.

Estimated monthly cost

For a water damage restoration business:

  • • Month 1 (free platform + $1 number + usage): ~$45–150
  • • Month 2+ (full pricing): ~$140–280

Use the calculator on the pricing page for your specific volume.

Real scenarios

Here's how Eva handles water damage restoration calls.

SCENARIO 01

Active basement flood

Eva walks through the supply-line shutoff, captures category and severity, and dispatches.

Caller

My basement is flooding from a burst pipe!

Eva

I'll dispatch a crew right now. Have you been able to turn off the main water valve?

SCENARIO 02

Sewage backup (Category 3)

Eva flags Category 3 explicitly and routes to the hazmat-trained crew.

Caller

There's sewage coming up through my basement drain.

Eva

That needs PPE — I'm flagging this as Category 3 and dispatching the right crew.

SCENARIO 03

Insurance-routed claim

Eva captures carrier, claim number, and books the mitigation visit.

Caller

State Farm sent me to you.

Eva

We'll work directly with them. Is there a claim number assigned yet?

Qualifying script

The questions Eva asks for water damage restoration.

Pulled directly from OnCall's industry template. You can edit, add, or remove questions any time — but these are what Eva ships with.

  • Damage active right now
    Required · boolean
  • Damage type
    Required · enum · flood / leak / storm / sewage / mold / other
  • Rooms affected
    Optional · string
  • Insurance contacted
    Optional · boolean
  • Property address
    Required · address
  • Phone
    Required · phone

Emergency detection — built in.

Eva listens for emergencies on every water damage restoration call. When she hears one of these phrases, she captures the location, urgency, and (if you've configured a transfer number) connects the caller to a human in seconds.

"flooding""active leak""sewage""water everywhere""ceiling leaking""basement flooded""electrical hazard"
Objection handling

What Eva says when callers push back.

"Will insurance cover this?"
Eva's response

Most policies cover sudden water damage; gradual leaks vary. We can document for the claim either way.

Common questions for water damage restoration

FAQ

Will Eva understand IICRC categories?
Yes — she captures whether water is clean, gray, or sewage and tags Category 1, 2, or 3 in the dispatch.
Does she handle insurance claims?
She captures carrier and claim info, but adjuster coordination is your project manager's job — Eva won't commit to numbers on the call.
After-hours dispatch?
Yes, 24/7. Configure a transfer number for live transfer to your on-call mitigation tech.
Mold testing / air quality?
Eva books these as scheduled appointments rather than emergencies — they're billable hours, not crises.
Commercial vs. residential?
Eva asks home-or-business early and routes commercial losses to your commercial line if configured.
Related industries

OnCall also works for these adjacent trades.

Ready to put your AI on your water damage restoration line?

Free to start. First phone number included. Pre-configured for your industry. Live in five minutes.

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