The Restoration Answering Service That Dispatches Before Your Competitor Answers
A burst pipe at 2 AM, a house fire on Sunday — homeowners call multiple restoration companies and hire whoever responds first. Marlie answers every call instantly, triages the loss, collects insurance details, and dispatches your on-call crew via SMS — so you're always first on scene.
What is a restoration answering service?
A restoration answering service — also called a virtual receptionist for restoration companies — is a dedicated phone answering solution that captures emergency loss calls, triages damage type and severity, collects insurance information, and dispatches mitigation crews for water damage, fire and smoke, mold remediation, and biohazard restoration businesses 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The best answering services for restoration companies use AI to collect the details that matter upfront: loss type, affected areas, water source or cause, insurance carrier and claim status, and whether the situation requires immediate dispatch or can be scheduled.
Restoration emergencies don't follow business hours. A flooded basement at 3 AM, a kitchen fire on a Saturday night — these calls come in when your office is closed, your crew is asleep, and your competitor is waiting for the same lead. Every missed call is a job worth thousands of dollars that someone else is driving to right now. Marlie answers every call in under 2 seconds, around the clock, and gets your crew moving before the damage gets worse.
Beyond emergency dispatch, Marlie manages your full call volume: handling routine estimate requests, qualifying insurance versus out-of-pocket jobs, managing reschedules for ongoing restoration projects, and capturing after-hours calls from property managers and adjusters who work outside normal hours.
Answer Time
Every call answered in under 2 seconds — no hold music, no voicemail on a $20k loss
Coverage
Emergency losses happen at night and on weekends — Marlie answers every one
Per Minute
Billed per second — you only pay for actual call time, not rounded-up minutes
What can a restoration answering service handle for your business?
From active flooding at 2 AM to routine mold assessments, Marlie manages every scenario your phone line faces — so no emergency goes unanswered and no job goes to a competitor.
Active emergency dispatch
Water intrusion, structural fire damage, and sewage backups are time-critical — the faster your crew arrives, the less damage occurs and the stronger your relationship with the insurer and homeowner. Marlie identifies emergency keywords in real time, collects the loss details and address, and immediately dispatches your on-call project manager via SMS. Your crew is moving while the homeowner is still on the phone.
Insurance claim qualification and intake
Not every restoration call is equal — an insured water loss is worth $15,000–$50,000+, while an uninsured call requires a different conversation. Marlie screens each caller for insurance status, collects carrier information, policy number, and claim status, and routes the call accordingly. Your estimator arrives at the loss site with documentation already started.
Storm surge and mass casualty call handling
After a major weather event, hundreds of homeowners in your market call simultaneously. Shared answering services buckle under that volume — callers get busy signals or long hold times and move on to the next restoration company on the list. Marlie handles unlimited concurrent calls with no degradation in response quality, capturing every lead when demand is at its peak.
Routine estimate and inspection scheduling
Mold assessments, post-drying inspections, and non-emergency estimate requests don't require immediate dispatch — but they do require a professional response. Marlie books these calls directly into your calendar, collects the relevant scope details (affected area, square footage, moisture readings if available), and sends callers a confirmation so they stay committed to the appointment.
Quick, Easy Setup
How to set up a restoration answering service with Marlie
Get Marlie capturing loss leads and dispatching your crew in minutes — no office staff or IT team required.
Setup
Create your Marlie account and forward your existing business number — works with any phone system including Grasshopper, Verizon, Google Voice, or your current provider. Setup takes less than 10 minutes and callers won't notice any difference.
Customize
Configure your emergency triage keywords, loss intake questions, insurance collection script, and on-call dispatch rules. Tell Marlie how to handle active flooding differently from a mold inquiry — and which words trigger immediate crew dispatch.
Integrate
Connect Marlie to ServiceTitan, JobNimbus, or your restoration management software so loss details and job bookings flow directly into your system. Set up on-call SMS notifications so your crew is alerted instantly when an emergency comes in after hours.
Go Live
Activate your service before storm season hits. Monitor performance through your dashboard, review call recordings, and update your triage rules or dispatch contacts anytime as your on-call rotation changes.
What does an AI receptionist for restoration companies do?
Marlie acts as your restoration virtual receptionist — triaging losses, collecting insurance details, dispatching crews, and handling every call so your team can focus on the work.
Emergency loss triage — answered instantly
Marlie picks up in under 2 seconds with no hold music — then identifies loss type (water, fire, mold, biohazard) and severity on the spot, distinguishing an active flood requiring immediate dispatch from a mold assessment that can be scheduled for next week.
Emergency routing with live transfer and on-call dispatch
For high-severity losses, Marlie can live-transfer the caller directly to your on-call manager — or immediately SMS your entire on-call team with the caller's name, address, and loss details. Run multiple service lines (water damage hotline, general line) through one Marlie number with separate routing rules for each.
Insurance intake and claim qualification
Marlie collects insurance carrier, policy number, claim status, and adjuster contact details during the call — so your estimator arrives at the loss site with the information needed to start the documentation process.
Concurrent call handling during storm events
After a major storm, dozens of homeowners call at once. Marlie handles unlimited simultaneous calls — every caller gets an instant answer regardless of call volume, with no busy signals and no lost jobs.
SMS notifications to your entire team on every call
Every call generates an automatic SMS to your whole team — not just the on-call manager. Project managers, estimators, and crew leads stay informed in real time without anyone needing to forward messages or make follow-up calls.
ServiceTitan, JobNimbus, and Zapier integration
Loss details, insurance information, and job bookings sync directly into ServiceTitan, JobNimbus, or any restoration management software via Zapier — no manual entry after every call. Emergency dispatch calls are often brief; Marlie's per-second billing means you're never paying a full minute for a 30-second handoff.
Stop Losing Restoration Jobs to Competitors Who Answer Faster
Get 24/7 restoration call coverage that triages losses, dispatches crews, and captures every emergency lead — starting at $49/month.
Always First to Answer
Every emergency caller gets a response in under 2 seconds — day, night, or during a storm surge.
Crew Dispatched Instantly
On-call project managers get an SMS with loss details before the caller hangs up.
Insurance Details Collected
Carrier, policy number, and claim status captured on every call — documentation starts at arrival.
How a restoration answering service grows your revenue
In restoration, the job goes to whoever responds first. Marlie makes sure that's always you — at 3 AM, on a Sunday, or during the middle of a storm surge.
First to respond wins the job
Homeowners with active damage call multiple restoration companies and hire whoever answers and dispatches first. Marlie answers in under 2 seconds and gets your crew moving before the homeowner finishes the call.
Arrive with insurance details ready
Marlie collects insurance carrier, policy number, claim status, and adjuster information before your estimator leaves the office — so the documentation process starts at arrival, not discovery.
Never miss an emergency after hours
Most high-value restoration losses happen evenings, nights, and weekends. Marlie covers your phones 24/7 and dispatches your on-call crew immediately — so a $30,000 water loss at 2 AM doesn't become a competitor's job.
Fraction of the cost of a live answering service
Traditional answering services charge $2–3 per call and still miss calls during storm surges. Marlie starts at $49/month billed per second — you only pay for actual call time, with no busy signals even when 50 calls come in at once.
Handle storm surges without dropping calls
When a major weather event hits your market, every restoration company's phones light up at once. Marlie handles unlimited concurrent calls simultaneously — so you capture every storm lead your competitors miss while their shared service is overwhelmed.
Scale your dispatch capacity without adding staff
Whether you run two crews or twenty, Marlie scales with your call volume automatically. Expand your service area, add technicians, or run into an unexpected storm season — your answering capacity grows without hiring.
"To anyone who is looking for an AI answering service, I think Marlie.ai is the best"
Restoration Answering Service — FAQs
What is a restoration answering service?
What is the best answering service for restoration companies?
How does an AI receptionist for restoration handle emergency calls?
Can a restoration answering service collect insurance information?
How does Marlie handle storm surge call volume?
How quickly does a restoration answering service answer calls?
How much does an answering service for restoration companies cost?
Does Marlie integrate with ServiceTitan or JobNimbus?
Does Marlie work with my existing phone system?
Can Marlie distinguish between a water damage emergency and a routine mold assessment?
Get set up in minutes
Create your receptionist in 15 minutes and start receiving calls immediately. Try it for 2 weeks risk-free with our money-back guarantee.
