The first cold Monday
Overnight the temperature drops, heating systems that have sat idle all summer come on, and on Monday morning the phones don't stop. 'No heating.' 'Boiler showing a fault.' 'Radiators cold upstairs.' The office takes each call, writes a note, and tries to fit them in. Engineers arrive at some to find the pressure was low and just needed topping up, which the customer could have done with guidance.
Meanwhile an elderly customer with no heating waits because her call came in later.
By lunchtime, the office has a long list of handwritten notes, some with a fault code, most without, and no clear way to decide who should be seen first.
Why every call becomes a visit
Phone calls are slow for triage. The customer doesn't know what to look for, the office doesn't have time to ask the right questions, and the fault code is described as 'a red light'. Without clear information, every call gets a visit, and priority is first come, first served.
| Common cause | Often resolved by |
|---|---|
| Low system pressure | Customer repressurises with guidance |
| Thermostat or programmer | Customer checks settings |
| Prepayment meter | Customer tops up |
| Fault code needing an engineer | Visit |
| Condensate frozen | Varies, depends on your engineers' advice |
Which checks are safe to suggest to customers is for your engineers to decide. We don't write that advice.
The office is also under pressure. On the busiest mornings, the person answering the phone is also booking engineers, taking payments and dealing with suppliers. Asking the right diagnostic questions on every call is not realistic, however well trained they are.
What untriaged calls cost
Engineer visits wasted on things the customer could have fixed. Vulnerable customers waiting behind simple jobs. Office staff overwhelmed. And engineers arrive without knowing the boiler model or fault, so they may not have the right part.
It also affects engineers' morale. Driving across town in the dark to top up a boiler's pressure, while a customer with a real fault waits, is frustrating for everyone involved.
Missed information also costs repeat visits. An engineer who arrives not knowing the model or fault code may not have the likely part, and has to come back.
The triage step we build
- First contact: callers are offered a text link to a short triage form, and website visitors see it directly. Anyone who'd rather speak to someone still can.
- Details: the customer enters or photographs the boiler badge, the fault code or display, and the pressure gauge.
- Approved checks: for common causes, the customer sees checks your engineers have written and approved, with pictures.
- Priority: customers who say they're elderly, have young children or health conditions, or have no hot water at all are flagged for priority, using rules you set.
- Office queue: the office sees each case with boiler model, fault, photos and priority, and books engineers accordingly.
- Parts hint: fault code and model are shown to the engineer, so they can think about likely parts before arriving.
Your engineers write and approve every check the customer sees, and can change or remove them at any time. The form never suggests anything they have not signed off.
Engineers where they're needed
Simple issues are resolved without a visit where your engineers say that's safe. Vulnerable customers are seen first. Engineers arrive knowing the boiler and the fault. And the office handles a winter rush without drowning.
It also gives you useful information after the winter. You can see which fault codes and boiler models generated the most calls, which helps with stocking parts and planning training before the next cold spell.
Is your winter like this?
- The first cold week brings a flood of no heating calls.
- Engineers arrive to find low pressure or thermostat settings.
- Vulnerable customers wait behind simple calls.
- Fault codes are described vaguely on the phone.
- Engineers don't know the boiler model before arriving.