An AI receptionist for plumbers that picks up when you are under a sink
Burst pipes do not wait for you to finish the job you are on. OptiFlow answers every call to your plumbing business, works out how urgent it is, books it in and sends you the details, from £49 a month.
The plumbing calls you lose without noticing
Plumbing is an emergency trade. A leak, a blocked drain or no hot water means the customer is ringing every plumber in the area until someone picks up. If you are mid job, driving or simply covered in whatever came out of the pipe, that call goes to the next name on the list. Most plumbers never find out how many jobs they lose this way, because the customer does not leave a message, they just move on.
An AI receptionist answers in a couple of rings with your business name. It asks what has happened, whether the water is off, where the property is and when someone will be in. Emergencies get flagged to you immediately. Routine work such as a dripping tap, a new bathroom or a boiler service gets booked into a slot you have made available. Either way the customer has spoken to someone and knows what happens next.
OptiFlow Lite is built for sole traders and small plumbing firms. It starts at £49 a month with unlimited calls answered around the clock, and set up is a short conversation rather than a project. Plumbing and heating companies with a parts counter or a sales office can step up to the OptiFlow Voice Agent, which quotes, takes orders and takes payment by phone.
What it handles for a plumbing business
Leaks and burst pipes
It tells the customer how to turn the water off at the stopcock while they wait, gathers the address and details and alerts you immediately so you can call back within minutes.
Blocked drains and toilets
It establishes whether the problem is a single fixture or the whole house, which changes the job, and books the right length of slot.
Bathroom and kitchen installs
Bigger jobs need a survey. It explains your process, asks for photos or measurements by email and books the site visit for you.
Boiler services and repairs
If you are Gas Safe registered it books annual services and breakdowns, and it can tell customers what to check before you arrive.
Landlord and letting agent work
Agents ring with lists of properties. It takes every address and access detail accurately and books them in order.
Your diary and your messages
Everything booked goes into your calendar, and every call ends with a message to you with the name, number, address and the problem described in the customer’s own words.
Why plumbers choose an AI receptionist over an answering service
A human answering service takes a message. That is all it can do, because the person answering does not know your diary, your prices or your area. An AI receptionist is set up with all three. It knows you cover certain postcodes, that you do not do gas work on a Friday afternoon and that a bathroom survey needs an hour. So it books rather than passes on, and the customer ends the call with a confirmed appointment.
It also never puts someone on hold, never has a queue and never goes home. Most plumbing emergencies happen in the evening or at the weekend, which is exactly when an answering service is at its thinnest and when your competitors’ phones are going to voicemail.
Set up starts with a short call where we learn how you talk about your work. You forward your number, or divert only the calls you miss, and your customers keep ringing the number they already have.
Calls it answers for plumbers every week
No hot water on a Sunday morning
A family has woken to a cold shower. The receptionist asks whether the boiler is showing an error code, notes it, confirms the address and sends you the details so you can decide whether it waits until Monday.
The letting agent with five properties
An agent needs five boiler services before the heating season. It takes every address, tenant contact and access note and books them across your available days.
The customer comparing quotes
Someone wants a new bathroom priced. It explains that you survey first, takes their rough measurements and books a visit, so they stop ringing round.
Questions people ask
Does it understand plumbing terms?
Yes. It is set up with how your customers describe problems, from stopcocks and immersion heaters to combi boilers and macerators, and it knows which questions to ask for each type of job.
Can it tell an emergency from a routine call?
It asks the questions you would ask. Is water still coming in, is the heating off, is anyone vulnerable in the property. Based on your rules it either alerts you straight away or books a normal slot.
What does it cost?
OptiFlow Lite starts at £49 a month with unlimited calls answered. The Voice Agent for firms with a sales desk starts at £1,500 a month and adds quoting, order taking and payment.
Do I need to change my phone number?
No. You keep your number and forward it, either all the time or only when you cannot answer. Customers notice nothing except that someone picks up.
Hear it take a plumbing call
Book a ten minute demo and we will ring your phone with the receptionist live, so you can hear how it handles a leak, a service booking and a quote request.
Related reading: AI receptionist UK, AI receptionist for electricians, AI receptionist for heating engineers, AI receptionist use cases by industry.