I use logic: Why would a sitter be required to come up with a solution for a host who violates THS terms? Then any jackass or jerk host could lie for instance and trap a sitter into a crap sit. Does that seem logical to you — why would any sitters continue to sit and renew their memberships if so?
And BTW, for my part, if THS did try to force me to stay on a sit that broke terms, there’s zero chance I would. It wouldn’t matter to me if they kicked me off the platform if the only way to stay on was to let creepy hosts trap you into bad sits. To me, that would be idiotic, to pay to be exploited.
Are you asking for specific words to use during the video chat?
I prepare for a video chat by reading the entire listing again, so it is fresh in my mind. I read all the reviews too, by previous sitters, and reviews that the owner has left for previous sitters.
I write down any specific questions that I have.
If new information is presented in the video chat, you can say something like, “Oh, I was not aware of X, Y, or Z. Please tell me more about X.” Practice this before the video chat.
Or, “Oh, I was not aware of X. I need time to think about this new information.”
Be ready to say “Sorry, if that is the case, I am not a good fit for you.”
None of these should be difficult to say. Be assertive. Practice saying them. A bit of awkwardness is ok.
@Rainaire, what constitutes stressful conversation probably varies significantly by person. As we have gained experience then we try to have friendly, structured, proactive video call conversations. We read listing. We ask simple questions about property, pets and travel. Most of the time, any omissions in listing have been accidental. We have not found that pet parents to have been stressed or offended by such questions. Recent related post.
@Rainaire
If a sitter abandons pets then yes they can be banned from the platform .
Abandoning pets would be leaving the sit and pets early without notifying the hosts .
If there are good reasons for a sitter needs to leave a sit early and where possible they give the host at least 24 hours notice ( so that host can arrange a back up plan ) and keeps THS informed then they won’t be banned .
Absolutely a sitter can be removed from THS for abandoning a sit.
But the post I wrote to which you replied was to the effect of “No way that would happen” and that post was in reply to another member who said there is an automatic permanent ban if a sitter leaves a sit.