Fire Damage Lead Phone Script
Tape it to the dashboard. Memorize it in a week. Phone scripts for reaching fire-damaged property owners — insured homeowner, absentee owner, and commercial scenarios, plus the top 10 objections with responses.
The call, top to bottom
- 1
Opening — 5 seconds
“Hi, is this [Name]? I’m [You] with [Company] — I saw the incident at [Address] earlier today and wanted to reach out directly.”
- 2
Permission
“Do you have thirty seconds? I know this is a terrible time.”
- 3
Empathy — no pitch yet
Acknowledge it. One or two sentences. No solutions, no scope, no price. Just: I see you, this is hard.
- 4
Value
“We specialize in fire damage restoration — boardup, smoke removal, contents pack-out. We work directly with your insurance adjuster so you don’t have to.”
- 5
Close — the specific ask
“Can I come by tomorrow at 10 or 2 to walk the property with you? No obligation either way.”
Timing: total call under 90 seconds. If you're over 2 minutes, you've moved past empathy into sales. Back up.
Same call, different owner
The five-step structure above is the insured-homeowner version. When the owner is remote or the property is a business, the words change — the structure doesn't.
Rental / absentee owner
The owner is remote, probably at work, and thinks in cash flow and ARV — not living rooms. Skip the soft tone: absentee owners want information and photos, fast.
- Opening
- “Hi [Name], this is [You] with [Company]. I’m calling about your property at [Address] — there was a fire there this morning. Do you have a minute?”
- Reframe — investor mindset
- “I know you’re not there, and I figured a call beats an email for something like this. Your tenant is safe — the fire department cleared the scene at [time]. I’m going to send you photos right after this call.”
- ARV preservation angle
- “Here’s the thing most investors don’t realize: the damage doubles in the first 72 hours if nobody tarps it. Smoke odor embeds in drywall, mold starts in wet framing, and your ARV drops every day the property sits open.”
- Insurance timing
- “Most landlord policies have a 48 or 72 hour notification clause and they want a mitigation contractor on site fast. We’re already in your ZIP code today — boardup done before sundown, full scope to your adjuster by tomorrow morning.”
- The ask + close
- “I can send you a one-page scope, photos, and a direct line to your adjuster coordinator. If it makes sense, we start; if not, you’ve got documentation for your own files. What’s the best number for the text? I’ll call you back at 4 PM your time to walk through it.”
Commercial property
Decision-maker routing is everything — reach the ops or facilities manager first. Commercial deals close on speed of return to operations, not price. Lead with “days closed,” never line items.
- Opening — route the call
- “Hi, I’m [You] with [Company]. I’m calling about the fire at your [Address] location this morning. Who’s handling the restoration decision — is that you, or should I be talking to the facilities or operations manager?”
- Business continuity angle
- “Every day you’re closed is revenue you can’t get back. What we do in the first 24 hours is emergency boardup, smoke and soot containment, and a full scope to your insurance carrier — in parallel, not sequentially. That’s typically what cuts two to three weeks off your reopening.”
- Adjuster coordination
- “We work directly with commercial adjusters — the paperwork, the daily progress reports, the Xactimate line items — so your ops team doesn’t have to. Your role is: approve the scope, unlock the door, and get back to running the business.”
- The ask + close
- “Can we send a project manager to walk the site with you tomorrow morning? Preliminary scope, insurance coordination, and a 72-hour milestone plan — no commitment required for the walk-through. 8 AM or 10 AM better for you?”
Top 10 objections — and the comeback for each
Keep every response to two sentences or fewer. Any longer and you're arguing.
“We already have a contractor.”
“Totally fair — can I ask who? If it’s someone I know, I’ll step out of your way; if not, I’ll leave my card in case you want a second scope to pressure-test theirs.”
“My insurance handles everything.”
“They handle the money, not the contractor choice — that’s still yours. We just make it easy by sending the scope directly to your adjuster so you don’t have to.”
“Not interested right now.”
“Understood. The only thing that can’t wait is the boardup — if that’s not scheduled in the next 24 hours, insurance will flag it. Want me to at least send you a referral?”
“How did you find us?”
“Public incident reports — same information your insurance company sees. We specialize in getting to owners early so we can actually help before small problems become big ones.”
“Are you ambulance-chasing?”
“I get that. The honest answer is: yes, I’m reaching out because of the fire — because the first 48 hours matter. I’d rather be upfront than pretend I was in the neighborhood.”
“Just send me an email.”
“Happy to. What’s the best email — and can I also text you my cell, in case your adjuster needs to reach someone tonight?”
“I need to talk to my spouse/partner.”
“Of course. When would be a good time for me to come by and walk both of you through the scope together? That way you only have one conversation.”
“Your price is too high.”
“I’d rather not compete on price — but I’ll compete on Xactimate line items any day. Do you have the other scope? I can walk through it with you line by line.”
“Call me back in a few days.”
“I will — but do me one favor. Take a photo of the worst room and text it to me. If nothing else, you’ll have documentation for insurance either way.”
“I don’t trust contractors.”
“Most people don’t — and after a fire, for good reason. Here’s the deal: no deposit, we bill your carrier directly, and you can fire us any day. Does that change the math?”
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