When a covered appliance or home system stops working, the homeowner calls their home warranty company and waits to hear when a technician will come out. The steps between that call and the appointment are dispatch work. Much of that work happens by phone, including after office hours, and request volume can rise quickly during hot or cold weather.
Dispatch at a home warranty company usually covers these tasks:
The U.S. Department of Labor’s O*NET database describes the dispatcher role in similar terms. Its listed tasks include scheduling workers to locations based on customer requests, preparing daily schedules, and relaying work orders between customers and field crews.
Some states regulate home warranty companies directly, and some spell out how quickly service has to begin.
In California, home warranties are called home protection contracts, and the companies that sell them are licensed by the California Department of Insurance. According to the department, each contract must state that service will be performed after a phone request with no claim form required beforehand, and that service will be started by or under the direction of the company within 48 hours of the request.
In Texas, home warranty companies are licensed as residential service companies. Oversight of these companies moved from the Texas Real Estate Commission to the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR) on September 1, 2021. TDLR also runs an ombudsman program that helps consumers communicate with residential service companies about issues such as claim delays and denials.
Requirements vary by state, and a dispatch process can be set up to follow the timelines that apply in each market where contracts are sold.
With outsourced dispatch, a trained team outside your company handles some or all of the tasks above, using your rules and your systems.
Service requests come in through your phone line, which can be forwarded to the outsourced team during the hours you choose. The dispatcher records the claim in your system, follows your plan and trade rules, and contacts contractors in the order you set, such as preferred contractors first. Once a contractor accepts, the dispatcher confirms the time with the homeowner and adds it to the claim notes.
If a contractor declines or does not reply within the window you set, the dispatcher moves to the next contractor on the list. Anything that needs a decision from your staff, such as a coverage question or a repair authorization above a set amount, is sent to the person you name, along with the claim notes.
Coverage decisions, contractor agreements, and approvals stay with your team. The outsourced team handles the calls, scheduling, and follow-up that keep each claim moving.
Home warranty companies outsource dispatch for different reasons, and some start with one area before adding others. Common starting points include:
Outsourced dispatch works best when the team has the same information your own staff use. Most setups include:
Avidus provides dispatch and call support for home warranty companies, property management companies, and repair contractors in the United States and Canada. Our team is based in the Philippines and is trained on your plans, contractor network, and escalation rules before taking calls. Dispatchers work inside the system you already use and follow the hours and response targets you set.
If you would like to see what outsourced dispatch could cost based on your call volume and coverage hours, the Avidus calculator gives you an estimate.