Plumbing night calls are different
Plumbing has the widest spread of urgency of any trade. A slow drain and a burst supply line both arrive as "I have a water problem." The first can wait a week; the second is doing damage every minute.
That spread is why voicemail and generic answering services cost plumbers so much. 85% of callers who can't reach a business won't call back (BIA/Kelsey). A homeowner watching water come through a ceiling calls down the Google list until a person answers.
Emergency or next day: a starting list
| Call | Decision | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Burst or leaking pipe that won't shut off | Emergency | Active damage |
| Water through a ceiling | Emergency | Structural and electrical risk |
| Sewage backing up | Emergency | Health risk, home unusable |
| No water to the house | Emergency | Home unusable |
| Water heater leaking heavily | Emergency | Active damage |
| Dripping faucet, running toilet | Next day | No damage if left overnight |
| Slow drain (one fixture) | Next day | Other fixtures still work |
| Water heater noise, still heating | Next day | Safe to wait |
Adjust it to your business. Some plumbers treat "no hot water" as an emergency in winter; some only roll trucks for active leaks. The full script is in what counts as a plumbing emergency.
Shut-off first, then the fee
The most useful thing anyone can say to a caller with a leak is "can you shut off the main valve?" It stops the damage, calms the caller, and makes the job smaller. A good after-hours line asks it before anything else.
Then the fee. Quoting it on the phone, before you dispatch, is what separates a profitable night call from a wasted trip. See the emergency service fee script for wording.
Sewage is coming up in the basement shower.
That needs someone tonight. Please stop running water anywhere in the house. What's the address?
Rule matched: "Sewage backup" → Emergency
Our after-hours emergency visit is $189, credited toward the repair. Shall I send a plumber tonight?
Yes, please.
Fee agreed · paging on-call plumber… accepted
Freeze nights and surges
The first hard freeze of the year can produce more burst-pipe calls in a morning than a normal week. A human answering service queues them; voicemail fills up. An AI line answers every call at once and puts the active leaks at the top of the list. More in winter freeze and burst pipes.
What Josie does
- 24/7 Emergency Line: Answers every after-hours call and sorts real emergencies from routine jobs with your rules.
- Emergency Fee Consent + Payment Link: States your after-hours fee and gets a clear yes before anyone is woken. Can text a payment link.
- On-Call Paging + Schedules: Calls your on-call tech with the details. Press 1 to accept. No answer? Next person, then you.
- For your trade: After-Hours Answering Service for Emergency Plumbers
Common questions
What should a plumber's answering service ask?
Is water actively leaking? Can you shut off the main? Is it near anything electrical? What's the address? Is sewage involved? Then your fee, and a clear yes before dispatch.
Can I keep my plumbing company number?
Yes. Forward your existing number to HireJosie after hours, on no-answer, or all day. Customers keep calling the number on your trucks.
What happens if my on-call plumber doesn't answer?
Josie waits the time you choose (5 minutes by default), then calls the next person on the rotation, then the owner.
What does HireJosie cost?
HireJosie is $29/month for 200 AI minutes, starting with a 7-day free trial — cancel before day 7 and you pay nothing. Pro is $79/month for 500 minutes, with $0.25/minute overage after that. Every feature is on every plan, and every plan starts with a 7-day free trial.