Weatherization Answering Service FAQ
Quick answers on what an answering service for weatherization contractors is, what it costs, how a call gets flagged urgent, how rebate and program questions are handled, what happens after the call, and how it compares with voicemail and a live receptionist.
What is an answering service for weatherization contractors?+
An answering service for weatherization contractors answers your business line when nobody can pick up, so a homeowner asking about insulation, air sealing or an energy audit reaches a conversation instead of voicemail. OnCrew is the AI receptionist version: Sarah answers 24/7 in your company name, takes the caller's name, callback number, service address and what they need in their own words, flags the call urgent when the caller says it cannot wait, and sends your team the details by text and email with the transcript and recording.
Is there an AI answering service for weatherization contractors?+
Yes. OnCrew is an AI receptionist built for the calls a weatherization contractor gets: the homeowner with a drafty house comparing insulation quotes, the caller asking whether a utility rebate or an assistance program applies, the customer who wants to know when the crew arrives. It answers 24/7 in your business name, runs the same intake on a Saturday morning as on a Tuesday afternoon, flags urgent calls on the caller's own word, and texts your team the caller's name, number, address and need, with the transcript and recording by email. It does not quote the job, promise a rebate or commit to an arrival time; a person on your team still makes those decisions. Starter is $49 a month for 100 included calls, $0.99 per call after, with a 14-day free trial and no card to start.
How much does an answering service for weatherization contractors cost?+
OnCrew is $49 per month for 100 included calls, $149 for 400, and $349 for 1,000, then $0.99 per call. At full use that is $0.49 a call on Starter, $0.37 on Pro and $0.35 on Multi-Truck. Live answering services price by the minute or by the call. Their own pricing pages list PATLive at $49/mo plus $2.99 per minute, Ruby at $250/mo for 50 minutes and Smith.ai at $300/mo for 30 calls (PATLive and Smith.ai checked October 16, 2026; Ruby checked October 2, 2026).
How does the AI decide a weatherization call is urgent?+
On the caller's own word. Sarah treats a call as urgent when the caller says the matter is urgent or an emergency, or describes something that clearly cannot wait for a routine callback. There is no fixed weatherization emergency list making that call for them. If anyone is in immediate danger (fire, smoke, a medical emergency), she tells the caller to call 911 first. On an urgent call she takes only the name, the callback number, the address and what is happening, and the request is flagged so your team sees it first. Your notes can tell her what happens after hours, for example whether anyone goes out the same day, and she says that in your words.
Can Sarah answer questions about rebates, tax credits or assistance programs?+
From your notes, yes. Under Teach your receptionist you write what you want her to know: the utility rebate programs you work with, whether you take part in a weatherization assistance program, and what an energy audit involves. She answers from those notes plainly, in her own words. She does not quote prices; the team confirms them on the callback. When a caller asks something the notes do not cover, a program rule, an eligibility question, a price, she does not guess: she says the team will get them the answer, takes the caller's details, and you see every question she could not answer so it can go in your notes next time.
Can Sarah take the details I need before an estimate, like square footage or the age of the home?+
On a routine call, yes, if your notes ask for them. Under Teach your receptionist you list the details you want collected, for example the rooms that feel cold, the home's approximate square footage, the year it was built, the type of heating, or whether an energy audit has already been done, and Sarah asks for each one, one short question at a time, skipping anything the caller already said. On an urgent call she takes only the name, the callback number, the address and what is happening, so the estimate details wait for your callback. Everything she collects lands in the transcript and summary your team gets when the call ends.
What happens after the call?+
While your office is open, Sarah tells the caller the details are going to the team right away and someone should call back shortly. After hours, a routine caller hears that the office opens again at the next opening and the team will have everything first thing; an urgent caller hears that the team is alerted the moment the call ends and someone calls back as soon as they can. If your notes say there is no after-hours service, she marks the call urgent for when the office opens instead. She never promises an exact callback time unless your notes give one. You or your on-call contact gets a text with the caller's name, number, address and need, and the email with the transcript and recording goes to every address on your alert list.
What happens when a caller insists on a real person?+
With live transfer off, the default, Sarah says the team is out on jobs (or, after hours, that the office is closed). She asks what the call is about and takes the details, with a note that the caller asked for a live person. If you switch live transfer on, she offers to connect the caller to the people you list. In the default handoff, if nobody picks up within about 25 seconds, or the ring time you choose, Sarah comes back on the line and takes a message; with the direct handoff the caller stays on that phone, voicemail included.
Does it answer Spanish-speaking callers?+
Calls are handled in English by default. Spanish (Latin American) is a setting you switch on in your dashboard at no extra charge. English and Spanish are the languages Sarah speaks today. If many of your callers speak Spanish, test it on your own line before you forward everything.
Can Sarah book appointments, or only take the request?+
Both, depending on a setting. By default Sarah takes the request: the caller's name, callback number, service address and the problem, sent to you by text and email when the call ends, and your team sets the time. If you connect Google Calendar and switch on booking, then for routine jobs she offers the next open times inside your business hours and puts the one the caller picks on your calendar, telling them your team will confirm before then. Emergencies are never booked; they go to your team right away.
Will callers know they are talking to an AI?+
Sarah answers in your company name and takes the call the way a receptionist would. If a caller asks whether she is a person, a recording, or an AI, she answers honestly in one breath: she is the automated assistant that takes down what they need, and a live person from your company calls them back. Then she asks what she can pass along. She never claims to be a person.
Does it work for insulation, air sealing and energy audit companies alike?+
Yes. OnCrew does not carry a weatherization-specific emergency list, so the line runs the same way for attic and wall insulation, air sealing, duct sealing, window and door work, and home energy audits: Sarah takes the same details on every call, the urgent flag follows the caller's own word, and your notes carry what makes your company different, such as the services you offer, the areas you serve and the programs you work with. When a caller asks something your notes do not cover, she says the team will get them the answer rather than guessing, and you see every question she could not answer.
Does it work for a one-crew weatherization company?+
Yes. Starter is $49 a month for 100 included calls and was built for the owner who also runs the crew: forward the line when you are on a job, and Sarah takes the call in your company name. There is no minimum team size, and the same plan covers nights, weekends and holidays with no surcharge. As the company grows, Pro ($149 for 400 calls) and Multi-Truck ($349 for 1,000 calls) add phone numbers, alert recipients and live transfer destinations.