Direct answer
A roofing AI receptionist answers the published company number when the crew is on a steep, the shop is closed, or the phone is ringing faster than one person can pick up. It separates an active interior leak from a hail-estimate request, collects the address and occupancy, and either books a look, builds the morning queue, or transfers you. The caller should never be told to dial a different company number.
Roofing intents that should not share one script
If every inbound call is labeled “roof lead,” the estimator still has to redo the intake, and the emergency leak waits behind a quote. Encode the jobs you actually run.
Where is the water, can they contain it, is a ceiling down, is the home occupied? Escalate when your written rule says so. Do not diagnose the decking on the phone.
When did it happen, photos already taken, adjuster scheduled or not, tarp requested. This is not a generic “new roof” script.
Age if known, stories, material if they know it, repair vs replace. Book an inspection. Do not invent a square price.
Warranty and “you were just here” paths should route to the original crew, not open a new-lead form.
Call examples from a real roofing line
“Water is coming through the bedroom ceiling and it is still raining.”
Leak + storm. Get the address, occupancy, and whether they can move belongings. Transfer if interior water during weather is on your escalate list. Do not quote drywall on the call.
“Hail last night. The insurance guy is coming Thursday.”
Storm / insurance intent. Ask for the claim number if they have one, whether they want you there with the adjuster, and whether a tarp is needed first.
“How much to replace a 30-square architectural shingle roof?”
Estimate intent. Collect stories, pitch if they know it, and city. Book a measurement. Give only an approved range or say a look is required.
“You patched a pipe jack last month and it is leaking again.”
Warranty / existing job. Get the address and last work, then route to the original crew or warranty owner.
“The HOA wants three bids by Friday.”
Bid / commercial-adjacent. Collect the property, due date, and whether drawings exist. Book a site visit. Transfer if HOA work is owner-priced.
“Can you just tarp it tonight?”
After-hours tarp request. Occupied + interior water usually follows your storm rule. A dry stain they noticed last week is a morning queue.
Intake fields that save a wasted climb
| Ask | Active leak | Storm / hail | Replacement quote |
|---|---|---|---|
| Address / city | Required | Required | Required |
| Water in living space | Required | If they mention a leak | Usually n/a |
| Occupied / kids / elderly | For escalate rules | For tarp / after-hours | Rarely |
| When the weather hit | If storm-related | Required | If they mention damage |
| Adjuster / claim started | If they bring it up | Required when relevant | If insurance-funded |
| Stories / access / HOA | Helps dispatch | Helps tarp crew | Helps the estimator |
| Wanted next step | Emergency vs morning | Tarp vs inspect vs meet adjuster | Measure vs owner call |
Do not let the model invent a scope (“you definitely need a full tear-off”). Collect facts, apply your rules, and leave the judgment to the roofer who will stand on the roof.
Storm weeks are a rules problem, not a personality problem
At 2:00 p.m. in May, a soft quote can wait. At 9:00 p.m. after hail, an occupied house with water in a bedroom usually cannot. The receptionist needs your list, not a generic sense of drama.
A practical after-hours policy for many roofing shops: transfer for active interior leaking or a commercial shutdown you cover. Book or queue estimates, HOA bids, and “how much for a new roof.” The morning list should already have addresses and whether a tarp was promised so the first crew is not starting from voicemail.
Pair this with the after-hours answering guide for the broader night-queue pattern, and with 24/7 coverage if you want overflow plus nights as one always-on layer. This page is the roofing logic those setups should run.
Insurance calls without becoming the carrier
Homeowners will name carriers. Treat those names as the caller’s insurer, not as a partnership. The receptionist should not claim Fix9 or your company is affiliated with any insurer. Collect the claim number if they have one, the adjuster appointment if one exists, and whether they want a contractor present. Do not promise the claim will be approved or that depreciation will be recovered.
If you meet adjusters, write when that is bookable. If only the owner attends those meetings, transfer after intake. The record should say “insurance inspection, Thursday 10 a.m., claim number if provided” — not “new roof lead.”
What to tell the receptionist on day one
Give it the company name callers should hear, the cities or ZIPs you serve, and the work you refuse — tile if you do not do tile, commercial if you do not bid it, steep if you need a specialty crew. Then write the three emergencies you actually roll on after dark. For most shops that list is some mix of active interior leaking, a tarp you already promised, and an existing-job problem on a roof you just left.
Write the warranty rule. “If they say we were there in the last 12 months, collect the address and last work, then route to warranty — do not sell a new storm package.” Write the HOA rule. Write the “do not diagnose” rule. The model should not say a stain is a flashing failure or that the decking is gone.
If you offer financing or a manufacturer-backed warranty, put the approved one-sentence description in the file. If you do not work with a particular material or municipality, say that before the receptionist books a drive.
Two conversations worth rehearsing
Leak, occupied, still raining. Greeting that someone can help. “Where is the water right now? Can you contain it with a bucket or by moving furniture? Is anyone in the home? What is the address?” If the answers match your interior-leak rule, transfer the on-call person and keep the notes. If it is a stain they noticed last week and the sky is clear, book the first inspection window and say so clearly. The caller should know whether a human is coming tonight.
Hail estimate, Tuesday afternoon. “When was the storm? Have you started a claim? Is an adjuster scheduled? Do you have photos?” If they want a look before the adjuster, book that window. If they ask “what will insurance pay,” say that depends on the inspection and the carrier — not on a phone guess. Transfer only if they ask for the owner or if insurance strategy is owner-only.
Objections roofers actually raise
“Storm callers will know it is a robot.”
The Fix9 receptionist answers as a person and does not disclose that they are AI in the spoken persona. Transfer remains available when the caller wants the owner.
“I do not want every hail call dumped on me.”
That is the point of qualify-then-transfer. Shopping and “how much for a new roof” should not page the owner. Named requests and active interior leaks can.
“Insurance is too nuanced for AI.”
Then write insurance as owner-only after the fields are captured. The receptionist’s job is a clean file, not a scope of loss.
“We already have a person at the desk.”
Use AI for overflow, job-site days, and nights. A human receptionist and an AI receptionist can share one published number.
Setup, limits, and what Fix9 will not do
Keep the published number. Forward misses to a Fix9 line. Write service area, hours, materials you will not touch, and the escalate list. Human transfer is available when they ask for you by name or when the rule fires.
Limitations: the AI cannot see the ridge, cannot legally decide habitability, and should not promise arrival times you have not configured. It should not write an insurance estimate. If your current carrier cannot forward unanswered calls, that is a provider limit, not something to paper over in marketing copy.
Pair roofing intake with plumbing leak logic when the caller has water in the house and is not sure whether the roof or a pipe is at fault. Collect both locations. Do not pick a trade for them unless you only do roofs.
Related AI receptionist guides
Frequently asked questions
Can I keep the number on the truck and yard signs?
Yes. Keep Your Number is the model. Forward unanswered or after-hours calls to a Fix9 line. Customers keep dialing the published roofing number.
How should AI treat an active roof leak?
Collect where water is entering the living space, whether they can contain it, occupancy, and the address. If your rules say interior water during a storm is an escalate, transfer after those fields. Do not have the model decide if the decking is ruined.
What about storm and hail estimate calls?
Treat them as their own intent. Ask when the storm hit, whether an adjuster is scheduled, and whether they already have photos. Book a tarp or inspection window if you offer one. Do not invent an insurance payout.
Can it book a full replacement quote instead of transferring?
Often yes. Collect roof age if they know it, stories, and whether they want repair or replacement. Transfer if they ask for you by name or if insurance negotiations are owner-only.
Will it wake me for every after-hours storm call?
It should not. Write the escalate list: active interior leaking, commercial shutdowns you cover, existing-job emergencies. Shopping and “how much for a new roof” become a morning queue.
Keep the number people already call.
Add Fix9 as the answering layer: AI answers first, qualifies the request, books or routes the work, and transfers to you when the caller needs the owner.