Hello! I’ve been a bit of a lurker on this forum and have been a part of THS for over 3 years, completing many sits (upwards of 30). I recently completed a repeat sit and am now experiencing some accusations from the pet parent. The TLDR below:
My partner sat on a chair during the sit and it broke, just collapsed beneath him. There was another chair that was also broken that the homeowners left at the table. We assumed the chairs were not well made and let the sitter know we broke one by sitting in it(!). We have not yet offered to pay given that it was not broken due to misuse.
The pet parent has come back to say their monitor is no longer working and the drying rack is sunken now. We did use both these things but only normally and didn’t notice any real issue with them.
They say they will raise the issue with THS insurance, but my understanding is the policy only covers 1,000 Euros and above. Even combined, these three items would be below.
As mentioned, I’ve completed many sits and of course have always replaced things I’ve broken or finished (including a colander and any food items). I always offer to pick up food items as well, or any items the pet parent would like in addition. On top of this, I do a full deep clean of the home including areas that I may not have even used or touched - I understand many sitters do this, but it is very time consuming and stressful.
I feel very saddened by this interaction and also unsure of how to respond or what the best course of action is. In putting myself in their place, I understand it is frustrating to find things working differently or not working after a sit, but if the person who took care of my pets, etc, is saying they did not misuse anything and everything is otherwise in good condition, I’m not sure I would expect them to pay.
Looking for any advice, guidance, or similar experiences to understand what to do about all this. Thank you all in advance!
Asking for insurance money because a drying rack that probably doesn’t cost more than $20 is sunken sounds quite silly. The chair however - that sounds horrible FOR YOUR PARTNER! Hope he’s ok. They should have apologized for it and not discuss any type of compensation, that’s assuming that your partner didn’t get hurt.
I believe THS insurance can only be used secondary, and the host must use their own home insurance first.
The things you mention seem minor and not necessarily covered by insurance (?)
I don’t think one should reimburse stuff that has reached the end of their expected life span, but ofc things that were misused. I wouldn’t expect a guest to pay for a chair that broke sitting in it in a normal way - I would be quite embarassed and made my apologies.
So I would say it is up to you, based on what you have told. It seems though that this forum is much quicker to say that a sitter should reimburse than saying the same for a host. Just my impression. My opinion is based on how I would handled it towards my guest. We are different.
Shame on them. Unless the two of you were wrestling and purposely jumped on that chair and broke it, they should be apologizing and asking if your partner was okay or not. Entitled hosts. I would not offer to pay anything.
Having witnessed one of my favourite deckchairs turn to a pile of canvas and sticks whilst a friend was sitting in it, all I can say is ‘these things happen’. The vision still makes me chuckle now, and I certainly wouldn’t have expected him to pay for my entertainment!
Exactly this! Would/could an Owner actually pre-determine a few items that they want to replace, and put the blame on the Sitter, and make the Sitter feel responsible to pay for these “broken” items? Sounds very petty to me.
How can Sitters protect themselves from this sort of behavior?