Balancing speed and quality on no-heat calls

After last Tuesday’s cold snap we logged 27 no-heat calls between 6–10 pm, and I’m torn between quoting a 2-hour window or pushing a next-day waitlist to keep techs fresh while still keeping customers calm. What’s worked for you on expectation-setting and team rotation — callbacks every 45 minutes, dispatch triage, or something else that keeps CSAT up without driving overtime through the roof?

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We switched to a “restore-heat only” protocol after 8 pm in that 6–10 pm surge: techs aim to get heat safely running, then we push full diagnostics to the next-day waitlist. We still quote the “2-hour window,” but CSRs frame it as a stabilization visit, which kept CSAT steady and cut overtime. Caveat: first-visit resolution dips, so track it separately.

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