Heating & gasSame-day request
Example job request · no engineer sent
No heating, fault code on the boiler
Within the example service area
- 1Office queue
- 2On-call engineer
For home service companies
On the tools.Ava on the phone.
Ava is the AI Employee that answers your calls, takes the job details and puts urgent call-outs through to whoever is on call, so you can finish the job in front of you.
- Heating & gas
- Electrical
- Roofing
- Cleaning
- Pest control
- Landscaping
- Handyman
- Garage doors
- Appliance repair
Incoming callToday’s board · Example00:00
“Our boiler stopped working this morning. Can someone come out today?”
Illustrative example. No real call, booking or dispatch.
Examples of everyday caller questions: Our boiler stopped working this morning. · Do you cover my postcode? · The fuse box keeps tripping. · Can someone look at a roof leak? · I need an end-of-tenancy clean on Friday. · We have ants in the kitchen. · Do you do free quotes? · My garage door won’t close. · The tumble dryer isn’t heating. · Can I move my appointment to Thursday?
See it work
Every enquiry, start to finish.
An example of how Ava handles a busy stretch for home services: answered, sorted, booked or handed off, logged and followed up.
ExampleExample: a cold Monday for a heating and maintenance firm
- Answered2 events
- Urgency check2 events
- Job details3 events
- Call-out order1 events
- Slot booked1 events
- Office review2 events
Activity
- Call
Early call answered
Example · 7:05 am · diverted from the engineer's mobile, greeting includes the recording notice
- Call
Priority household
Example · no heating or hot water, baby at home: matches your priority rule
- Call
Boiler details taken
Example · combi boiler, fault code read from the display, postcode in your area, tenant calling
- Call
Landlord noted
Example · letting agent's name and the tenant's access times recorded
- Call
On-call engineer accepted
Example · put through with the job read out, no arrival time promised by Ava
- Call
Gas smell reported
Example · approved safety script: ring 0800 111 999, open windows, avoid switches; on-call engineer alerted
- Call
Summaries filed
Example · recordings, transcripts and job summaries in the AssistCall inbox
- Chat
Website chat question
Example · 'Do you cover gutter clearing in my postcode?' answered from your approved area list
- Chat
Annual service booked
Example · boiler service placed in the tested diary, Thursday morning slot
- Web form
EICR request
Example · landlord request from the website form, current certificate expiry date noted
- Web form
Office queue ready
Example · 2 urgent calls handled, 1 service booked, 1 quote request and 1 message waiting
- 38Calls answeredExample
- 14Out-of-hours jobs takenExample
- 6Urgent call-outs put throughExample
- 9Slots bookedExample
- 7Quote requests loggedExample
Example only. Fictional business, people and numbers; not a recording or a live account.
What Ava does
Clear jobs, clearly labelled.
- Heating and gas engineers
- Electricians
- Roofers
- Domestic and commercial cleaners
- Pest control technicians
- Gardeners and landscapers
- Handymen and property maintenance firms
Answer every call
Evenings, weekends or while you're up a ladder. Calls you can't take get your approved greeting instead of voicemail.
Take the job details
Name, number, address and postcode, the fault in the caller's words, and who's calling: homeowner, tenant, landlord or agent.
Put urgent call-outs through
No heating, a leaking roof or a tripped board follows your on-call order: engineer, backup, then a clear callback request.
Fill routine slots
Boiler services, cleans and quote visits go into one tested diary. Without one, Ava records a booking request with the preferred slot.
Answer only what you approve
Areas covered, hours, the work you take on and your call-out policy. If Ava doesn't know, it says so and takes a message.
Check every call
Recording, transcript and summary for each call in your AssistCall account.
Planned
Job-management connections · Text updates to your customers Not live yet. Switched on only after it is built and tested on your account.
How it works
From first call to a clear next step.
- 01
Book a demo call
Tell us your trade, the area you cover and the calls you miss. We agree pricing for your business on the call.
- 02
Agree the script and call-out order
Choose the questions Ava asks, what counts as urgent and who it rings first.
- 03
Test, then divert
Try an out-of-area postcode, a missed transfer and a routine booking before any real call reaches Ava.
AI Employee vs AI receptionist
A basic AI receptionist takes a message. Ava gets the job sorted.
Both answer the phone. The difference shows on a freezing morning, when a no-heating call needs your on-call engineer and a boiler service needs a slot.
| Task | Basic AI receptionist | Ava for Home Services · AI Employee |
|---|---|---|
| Answering | Reads a greeting and offers to take a message. | Answers when you can't, with your approved greeting, and asks the questions you'd ask. |
| Job details | Name, number and a short note. | Address and postcode, the fault in the caller's words, boiler make and fault code, and access arrangements, in one summary. |
| Urgent call-outs | The message waits until you check your phone. | Follows your call-out order: on-call engineer, backup, then an honest callback request. |
| Area covered | Takes every caller, wherever they live. | Checks the postcodes and work you cover and turns away out-of-area jobs politely, without promising a visit. |
| Who's calling | Doesn't ask. | Notes whether it's a homeowner, tenant, landlord or letting agent, and who to contact for access. |
| Routine bookings | Says someone will ring back to arrange it. | Books into one tested diary, or records a booking request with the preferred day. |
| Gas smell calls | Treats it like any other message. | Gives your approved safety script, including the National Gas Emergency Service number, then alerts your on-call engineer. |
| Checking the work | A message in an inbox. | Recording, transcript and summary for every call in your AssistCall account. |
Ava does the office work that gets a job booked, inside rules you approve. It never sends an engineer on its own, prices work you haven't priced or takes card details.
Home services · research and data
Home services in numbers
Public figures from government and industry sources. Each one links to where it comes from.
- 458,290
Specialised trade businesses: electrical, plumbing and heating, roofing and finishing (2026)
Department for Business and Trade (GOV.UK), 2026 (source: Business population estimates 2026: detailed tables (Table 6), opens in a new tab) - 260,655
Cleaning, pest control and landscaping businesses (2026)
Department for Business and Trade (GOV.UK), 2026 (source: Business population estimates 2026: detailed tables (Table 6), opens in a new tab) - 25.0m
Households in England (2024-25)
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (GOV.UK), 2025 (source: English Housing Survey 2024 to 2025: headline report, opens in a new tab) - 4.0m
Homes in England failing the Decent Homes Standard (2024)
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (GOV.UK), 2024 (source: English Housing Survey 2024 to 2025: housing quality and energy efficiency, chapter 1, opens in a new tab)
Meet Ava
Call as a homeowner whose boiler has just stopped working.
Demonstration only. Please use fictional details and do not give real customer or payment details.
Try Ava in your browser
Chat or browser voice, using fictional details.
Read a fictional call example
Caller: “Our boiler stopped working this morning. Can someone come out today?”
Ava: “I can take the details and pass a same-day request to the team on call. This demonstration will not send an engineer.”
Script illustration, not a recording of a live call.
Insights
Research and practical guides.
phones and enquiriesWhat missed calls really cost a home services firmWork out what unanswered calls cost your trade business in lost jobs, callback time and repeat work, with a worked example and a two-week tracking method.phones and enquiriesAnswering calls when you're up a ladder or on a roofSimple rules, phone settings and call routing so nobody on your team answers a customer call from a ladder, scaffold or roof edge.phones and enquiriesTaking customer calls while driving the van: the lawWhat the law and the Highway Code allow when a customer rings while you are driving the van, the penalties, and a safer way to keep enquiries moving.
Will callers know they're speaking to an AI?
Yes. Ava introduces itself as an AI assistant for your business in a greeting you approve. If a caller would rather speak to a person, Ava puts them through to your approved number or takes a callback request.
What happens if someone rings to say they can smell gas?
Ava doesn't assess the situation or give technical advice. Your approved script tells the caller to ring the National Gas Emergency Service on 0800 111 999 (Northern Ireland has its own gas emergency line), open windows, avoid switches and naked flames, and leave the property if it isn't safe. Ava then alerts your on-call engineer. Ava is not an emergency service and doesn't replace 999.
Can Ava cope with the winter breakdown rush?
With busy and no-answer diverts set up, the calls you can't take go to Ava instead of voicemail. Every caller gets the same questions and their own summary, and your urgency rules decide which go to the on-call engineer first. We agree how many calls at once your setup covers, and what happens beyond that, before the cold weather arrives.
What details does Ava take for a boiler breakdown?
Whatever you need to turn up prepared: name, number, address and postcode, the boiler make, any fault code on the display, whether there is heating, hot water or neither, whether the caller is the homeowner, tenant or landlord, and access notes. You approve every question.
Can Ava prioritise vulnerable customers?
Yes. Your rules can move a call up the queue when, for example, there's no heating and an elderly person or a baby is at home. We suggest recording a simple 'priority household' flag rather than health details, because health information is special category data under UK GDPR and needs extra care.
Does Ava work with Commusoft, Tradify, ServiceM8, Fergus or Jobber?
Not as a standard feature yet. Those connections are Planned and need account access and a feasibility test. Today Ava sends a complete job request to your AssistCall inbox, or books routine visits into one tested diary.
Your workflow, first
See Ava on your calls.
Book a short demo. We walk through your calls, agree what Ava handles and when it hands over.