Hi everyone,
I’m currently away while a sitter is staying in my home, and something has made me quite uneasy. I’ve been alerted to some unusual activity suggesting that someone who is not the sitter may have been inside the property.
I haven’t given any permission for visitors or additional people, and this would clearly go against the TrustedHousesitters guidelines. I want to handle this properly, calmly, and in line with the platform rules — but I’m not sure what the best next step is while the sit is still ongoing.
So far, I have politely asked the sitter to confirm that no one else has been in the home, but the response didn’t fully reassure me. At this point, I’m unsure whether I should escalate the situation to Member Support immediately, wait to gather more clarity, or try another approach with the sitter first.
Has anyone been in a similar situation, or does anyone have advice on how to address this during an active sit?
what are the reasons of me doubting:
robot vacuum has reported errors uppon its path to go clean rooms
very few pictures (just 1) have been provided
very poor communication
neigbors seing mutliple people coming in and out
I’d be grateful for any guidance on how to proceed to keep things safe and respectful for everyone involved. has anyone been through this before?
If your neighbours are seeing multiple people coming and going (into the property, not just delivering something) then I would be very concerned. I’m not sure what action to take, but I don’t think you would be wise to ignore it.
That does sound unsettling, and you’re right to pause and check things calmly — especially when neighbours have reported extra people and you’re seeing signs inside the home that don’t quite add up.
At this point, you’ve already taken the right first step by asking the sitter directly. If the reply didn’t give you clear reassurance, the next sensible move is to contact Member Support. You don’t need to make an accusation — just let them know the situation, the signs you’re seeing, and that communication has been limited. They can guide you on what to do while the sit is still active and can step in if needed.
You’re not overreacting. Unauthorised visitors are a breach of the guidelines, and it’s better to get support early than wait and feel more uneasy. Keep your message to the sitter polite and factual, and let THS handle the heavier part.
You’re doing the right thing by staying calm, clear, and focused on keeping your home and pets safe.
You could casually mention that a neighbour has told you they’ve seen other people in the house, and see what their reaction is. Remind them that this is against THS rules. I would be concerned if it was me.
Having experienced similar, it is very unsettling. I would say that only your neighbor’s observations support your unknown visitors suspicion but just that is enough to directly ask the sitter. If the sitter does not provided strong assurances there are none, the presumption has to be that they are having strangers unknown to you coming and going and that the sitter fully realizes what they are doing is very sketchy.
Unfortunately, you only have a few options once you are traveling. You confront the situation from afar in hopes that there is a credible explanation for “surprise” visitors (which you have already done here). You can hold your tongue and hope for the best. Or you can get Member Services involved in terminating the sit if you are able to make alternate arrangements for the care of your pets.
We went the hope route and am pretty sure that would be fine most of the time. But since that experience, we no longer give much consideration to local applicants. Sitters who travel some distance to stay in our home do not usually have friends and family coming and going.
Sorry you’re experiencing this. Being far from home facing an unpleasant fait accompli is stressful and infuriating.
If this sitter wanted to have visitors or guests during the sit, this should absolutely have been discussed - this is permissible - with you having the right to accept or decline.
Only the 4th of these points suggests undeclared guests. I’d suggest contacting your sitter and let him/her know that your neighbours have contacted you about numerous people visiting your property, so you’d appreciate some clarification about who they are and why they’ve visited. If the sitter has nothing to hide - if they were delivery people, for example - he/she surely won’t take umbrage. If they’ve been sussed out for having unapproved visitors, then at least you’ll now and you both will then need to decide next steps.
Regarding the poor communication and lack of photos, did you specify how often you wanted updates? It’s best to make this clear in the welcome guide, as well as verbally, to avoid misunderstandings.
Sitters primarily provide HOs with stress-free away-times, knowing their pets and home are being cared for by someone who is responsible and transparent, so I can fully understand what stress this is causing you. Going forwards, good communications should (hopefully) help to put your mind at ease.
With pictures, message them to tell them you’d like an image with an update of things every day. We typically get asked for every 2-3 days, but your scenario is more concerning.
Tell your sitter that your neighbours mentioned they have seen multiple people going into your home, and ask if there is a problem at all with your home or pets, ask the direct question followed by “BECAUSE you have never asked my permission to have guests, and I prefer no guests anyway”. You just need an answer as to what is going on, then you can decide what to do next.
Do you have a back up plan? Can your family or neighbours look after your pets instead or is that not an option? You are quite within your rights to have them leave for breaching the rules.
Firstly, contact customer services and make them aware of what is going on. There is only the neighbours seeing other people enter your property that is a real issue to get them out.
Did the neighbours actually see them enter your home? Or could they have just been on the doorstep, for example if they are meeting up with their family/friends who knocked on the door before they all went out together. I’m just trying to think of rational reasons.
If you are going to raise the unauthorized visitors with THS, you will need evidence and just saying your neighbours said so has not had much success by other owners in a similar situation. If, on the other hand, your neighbours were to photograph these visitors, you would then have proof. Just a thought!
well i just got the excuse as after writing the post the situation escalated: strange sounds have been reported coming from my house, and by strange i mean intercourse sounds which is utterly disturbing and disrespectfull
Of the factors you mentioned, the neighbor’s reports are the most disturbing. I’m assuming you don’t have a ring camera or outdoor cameras to check on activity and confirm the neighbor’s reports. It’s entirely possible there is an innocent explaination – eg they saw people come to pick up the sitters. They are friends or family of the sitter who came by for a brief visit which is against the rules and violation of trust, but not a disaster.
This is clearly a violation. But there is also a scale to how bad it is. EG A sitter might “sneak in” a partner or have an authorized dinner party in your home. Both are bad, but neither is a worst case scenario. If there is an explanation that somewhat satisfies you and they provide live video of your home and pets so that you are satisfied there is no disaster, you might choose to continue things.
I woud make clear that you need to speak to the sitter right away. If you hear back try to straighten it out. If you aren’t satisfied with the answer, don’t immediately say anything to the sitter, but contact THS about ending the sit and contact a friend, relative, helpful neighbor etc about coming over to the house to make sure the sitters leave – possibly with police backup if they refuse to go or you have reason to believe there are unauthorized people in your home. Of course you will need to make other arrangements for the pets.
How did someone hear noise from inside the house? Are there adjoining walls with neighbors? One person alone could be making these sounds, but if your neighbors saw people go into the house and then heard “intercourse sounds”, it is likely something much more than self-pleasure!
Given all the information, I would make other arrangements for pet care and let the sitter know they need to leave within 12 or 24 hours. If possible, ask a neighbor or friend or family member to collect the keys and do a video walk through with the sitter before they leave.
You have received enough information to feel sure there are others entering the house without permission. The sitter did not reply when asked about this. That is enough to want them gone.
When I asked the sitter for clarification, her responses were unclear, and she avoided giving a direct answer to my question about whether anyone else had been in the apartment.
This lack of transparency made me increasingly uneasy, so I contacted TrustedHousesitters Member Support, who are now actively involved and following up with the sitter. I’ve kept my communication calm and factual, but I’m still not reassured, and I’m now discussing next steps with THS to ensure my home and my pets are fully safe.
Has anyone else gone through something similar where THS had to intervene during the sit?
How did the situation resolve for you?
Just wait, any day now there will be an “Unauthorized Guest” fee imposed, allowing unlimited guests during sits, unless the HO has paid for the “No Guests” rider.
THS has made an intervention, which was limited, and at this point having the certainty that some one else was in my home and being lied to by the sitter i do want her to leave. I have asked THS my options but the only one they have is to continue the sit ! has anyone else been through this kind of answer - situation ?
So at this point, THS has done some sort of minor intervention and it is confirmed beyond a doubt that someone else has been invited into your apartment by the sitter, is that right?
You’re probably going to have to just suck it up and let the sit finish. I’m not minimizing the feeling of betrayal here, but there are worse things that can happen during a sit than the sitter sneaking in an extra person. I definitely wouldn’t do anything to antagonize them further given that they’re in complete control of your home and your pets.
About the only other recourse is to end your trip early, get home and tell them to leave.
But put on your happy face, regardless of how you feel about this person, keep it civil and even friendly if possible to avoid the dreaded “undeserved negative review” as well as any other problems this sitter could cause before she’s relieved of duty.
I’m confused by that. You have every right to end the sit early. The issue is that there really isn’t anything THS is going to do to help you. If you have premium they would probably pay out for remaining pet care as the sitter violated the terms you set. Sitters aren’t employees so they won’t send someone over to escort the sitter out or get you a new sitter. But they can’t force you to keep the someone in your home who blatantly violated the terms of your agreement. There is now or was an unauthroized person there.
If you want to end the sit, make the arrangements you need which could incldude a plan for someone such as a neighbor going to your home possibly with police if there are safety concerns and asking the sitter to hand over keys and leave. Make THS aware that you are making the decision to end the sit because the sitter has violated the terms. This is your call not theirs!
What you can do AFTER this is over: Because the sit existed, you will be able to write a review. You can also dispute the sitter’s behavior. While you can’t “demand” that THS suspend the sitter, you can ask what action they will be taking and you can go public with your experience on a site like TrustPilot.
