I assumed as much and that’s why I would never have booked the premium membership.
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You are way smarter and experienced than me 
But I’ve got my case, now I know to never pay extra for fake insurances in my life
Thank you so much for commenting!
Copy - paisting THS official answer:
"As the owner is cancelling due to Covid, I am afraid your sit cancellation insurance would not cover you in this situation.
Please take a look at the terms :
Sit Cancellation Terms - sitter | TrustedHousesitters.com"
+
They said it’s not covered due to: '11. When the sit is cancelled due to regulations set by the government of any country. (such as travel restrictions, enforced quarantining, area lockdowns)."
COVID cases aren’t covered, which is a total joke since we are living in that time that this is pretty the only reason someone can cancel. And even that in my case the sit wasn’t canceled because of any of these, it’s still isn’t covered somehow.
Unfortunately, if I only knew that they aren’t covered I wouldn’t pay for the premium subscription.
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Hi @Vered , thanks for posting.
I’m sorry that the sit cancellation insurance wasn’t able to help you in this instance. There is a clause under the “What’s Not Covered” section of the policy terms that states -
When the sit is cancelled due to regulations set by the government of any country. (such as travel restrictions, enforced quarantining, area lockdowns).
This clause includes cases where an owner is unable to travel due to contracting Covid-19.
I understand your frustration but we are bound by the policy terms set out by our insurance partners.
Although there are limitations, the policy has already helped many members who have found themselves with a sit cancelled at short notice. Thankfully these cancellations aren’t too common but when they do happen, the policy is able to step in and support in most cases.
Here’s a link to the Sit Cancellation Terms & Conditions for Sitters Terms
Thank you again for your feedback
Paul
So if I am interpreting this correctly, HO’s don’t have to give a reason and it sounds like it’s best that they don’t? I realize that each individual case is different but broadly speaking, what is considered a good reason for a HO to cancel a sitter?
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Good question. An official THS answer “I fully appreciate what you are saying, in that it is not actually the Owner who has contracted Covid, however this is ultimately the reason as to why the sit has been cancelled”
I think the only way to use that insurance it’s if the owner disappears or rudely canceling without explanations.
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And of course, THS deleted my comments here
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Oops I didn’t mean to heart that but can’t seem to undo it!
@Vered we understand your frustrations but to be clear, the comment you are referring to was removed and a DM sent to you explaining why. We do not delete any comments without a valid reason.
The Admin team reserve the right to remove any comments which are of an inflammatory nature, misleading or clearly untrue and in this case all three applied.
If you wish to discuss further please reply by DM to our Membership Services Manager.
Hi There.
Yes, we have had several sits cancelled, none due to Covid, and it is frustrating. We travel by car in the US and I plan our trip according to confirmed sits. When one cancels, it can leave a big gap and it could mean going out of our way 100’s of miles to get another sit. For our upcoming trip we have sits in Louisiana, New Mexico and Arizona. New Mexico cancelled (2 canceled sits) and we are now looking for an alternative sit.
I am looking into the cancellation insurance but not sure if it would be beneficial. Would love to hear if other sitters have the cancellation insurance and their experience with it.
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I’m sorry to hear that you’ve had so many cancellations!
We’ve not been able to use the cancellation insurance with our premium membership because of the fine print that states that your alternative accommodation must be in the same location as the cancelled house sit.
Our New Mexico house sit cancelled 4 days before our Tucson house sit ended. To take advantage of the insurance we would have had to fly to New Mexico as planned and book into a hotel while hoping we would find another sit nearby (slim chance of that given the house sit was in a remote area of NM) and then fly out again.
So basically useless insurance in my experience - we are almost never doing back to back house sits in the same city.
I seem to recall seeing somewhere that ALL TH hosts are automatically insured for up to X number of dollars (it may have been $10,000 or something…I forget) for any theft or damage that may occur to their home or property by a TH sitter. Yet, I can’t remember where I saw that, in order to verify it. Are there any ‘horror stories’ out there of TH sitters who did damage or committed theft? Mind you, I’m not all that worried… the TH system of checks and balances seems good, and I DO check out any sitter’s profiles, reviews, would plan to have a Zoom call with them beforehand, etc. But still, I’m curious for any thoughts on this.
Thanks.
I know this is a conversation that happened a while back, but I have a question. My family often does way more than 3 sits per year. Does this mean that the protection is only valid during the first 3 sits and that if something happened during the 4th or 5th sit of the year that we wouldn’t have the cancellation protection even if we didn’t have to use it on prior sits? @Therese
I’m not sure how these conversation threads work…in what order new comments/questions appear…but some of these threads are super long and so I’ve no idea if my comment/question will ever be seen, but here goes:
I seem to recall seeing somewhere that ALL TH hosts are automatically insured for up to X number of dollars (it may have been $10,000 or something…I forget) for any theft or damage that may occur to their home or property by a TH sitter. Yet, I can’t remember where I saw that, in order to verify it.
If meaningful, I RENT an apartment in NYC, and I do not have renter’s insurance. So, I personally am not insured for any damage or theft that occurs in my home. So my question is whether, in this instance, as a TH HOST who allows sitters into my home, if TH provides automatic insurance coverage to me.
Are there any ‘horror stories’ out there of TH sitters who did damage or committed theft? Mind you, I’m not all that worried… the TH system of checks and balances seems good, and I DO check out any sitter’s profiles, reviews, would plan to have a Zoom call with them beforehand, etc. But still, I’m curious for any thoughts on this.
The last answer is always shown at the bottom of the thread. If someone answers directly to another post it’s possible to see by a pop up window.
Concerning insurance, i for myself wouldn’t rely at all on these insurances covered supposedly by THS. There simply can’t be good coverage for an insurance that should work worldwide for all countries and all members from any country.
In Germany you should have a personal insurance which covers for things that belong to someone else and which you damage or get lost in your care.
If the sitter, who breaks something in my home, either he/she is personally insured and then the insurance pays for it, if not he/she pays him/herself. Of course one can try to file a claim with the THS insurance but I wouldn’t count on it.
Thanks very much. Yeah, the problem is that some of these threads are pages long, and I had a hard time ‘getting’ to the end of the thread, for some reason.
Anyway, thanks for your insights. You pretty much confirmed what I suspected. Most such claims of people ‘being insured by the site’ are just ‘nice talk’. We all know how insurance companies operate (or DON’T operate). It’s like pulling teeth to get any money out of them.
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Some insurance info here.
"What’s covered?
If you have an existing home insurance policy and an active Standard or Premium owner membership, you’re covered for:
-
Property damage — This covers accidental and malicious damage to your property during a sit. It protects your household goods and your valuable belongings too.
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Theft — If something goes missing, you’re covered.
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Public liability — This covers you in case the sitter has an accident in and around your property."
If you are a home owner and you plan to have a sitter, I would advise you to get home or renter’s insurance, regardless.
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Just wondering if any THS Sitters out there have ever made a claim against THS HO insurance, if so what for and was it successful ?
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Just as an FYI Renters insurance is Much more affordable than homeowner’s insurance. You can likely get a policy for around $25/month. It’s a good thing to have.
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