Any sitters that have the standard membership are covered, however they are covered for different things to what owners are. Or they can pay additional to get sit-cancellation insurance on top of it.
This gives the basic details:
Below are the full t&c’s of the SITTERS insurance and what it covers a sitter for.
Hope that helps
By the way, maybe it’s of interest for anyone. Personal liability insurances are pretty cheap and covers almost everything that can happen for a very low price. We had a family tariff for 60 Euros a year and covered also house/animal sitting issues.
I was referring to the HO insurance. But it only covers damage worth EUR 1000 and higher.
Do I understand the sitters insurance only covers damage caused to the sitters’ property by the pets they’re looking after?
Thank you!
I would’ve felt really bad about having to bill the sitter. As I said, she was lovely, and she’s young and most likely not exactly flush either. I am so glad that the vacuum cleaner was still under warranty!
I’m not petty or excessively demanding. I just don’t want to be left with having to pay hundreds of extra euros after a sit.
I’m not petty or excessively demanding. I just don’t want to be left with having to pay hundreds of extra euros after a sit.
Probably a Accidental Damage Cover or Contents Insurance would be good for you then?
We are sitters & home owners and always Google for instructions if we can’t work something out when on a sit. We’ve broken a few things on sits, mostly wine glasses and have always replaced them and fessed up to the owner. One time we singed a designer brand tea towel on the gas cooktop and spent £20 to replace it only for the owner to say we shouldn’t have bothered.
As owners, our welcome guide is very detailed with instructions on how to operate things, including our Dyson vac plus we include website links. We’d hate for our sitters to be inconvenienced amd we want to reduce the chance of our things being damaged.
Yes, that is why it is so great that you asked the question. We often make assumptions thinking others think like us, and there can be differences bort between countries, cultures and groups of people. So you made me reflect on what I would do. I think in my environment one wouldn’t want to ask others for a refund and I think we (in my environment) all feel that, especially if it happened during helping one out with tasks. Maybe it would have been different if one borrowed “thing” to do something for oneself. So I think because we wouldn’t charge ourselves, we think others are the same and therefore avoid the question to not put “lender” in a bad spot assuming they would want money.
Cultural differences can occur more often in THS community than we are used to in everyday life, so I think it is important to be open to others having another mindset that can be as reasonable, we just don’t know of it. I think it is great to discuss because when we get in other situations ourselves we might be able to be more open to others which in turn will make better conversations and solutions.
It’s the only insurance I have aside from health insurance. Accidental damage can become super-expensive.
I have a personal liability insurance, but it only covers damage that I cause myself. I’ve just checked a content insurance, but their terms are rather vague, I will have to do more digging.
You’re right though, if I find a cheap way to insure my home contents that covers damage from 3rd parties I will do that.
We always mention if something breaks/ gets damaged.
And we always offer to replace it.
Through our personal insurance or otherwise pay it ourselves.
(But untill now just little “almost insignificant” things)
As @Fatamorgana says, it is not expensive. We pay less then 5 euro’s a month.
Not sure what country you are in, but you might want to check with your insurance carrier, as I believe many policies might not cover unsupervised guests. In addition, to deductibles, the thing about insurance companies is that they don’t make it easy.
The alternatives would be to board your pets while you are away.
Another alternative as people have pointed out is to make sure the sitter knows how to operate anything they will need to operate, and to put away or prohibit using the things you don’t want them to touch because you are afraid of breakage.
You happen to have an expensive vaccuum, which luckily was under warranty, but it’s always possible for a stove, dishwasher, washing machine etc to break and it’s not necessarily the “fault” of the sitter. It could happen to you as well. Sometimes nobody is to blame. But if you think of this from a sitter’s point of view, they would be better off not sitting and staying at an Airbnb rather than risk having to buy someone a new washing machine. I don’t know what insurance is like in Europe, but I don’t know if personal liability would even cover this kind of thing in the US and if it would with less than a $1,000 deductible I’m sure it would be prohibitively expensive.
It does feel if this insurance is less expensive in some places than others, it might make sense for THS to offer this as a tier to sitters, so they are covered and homeowners have that assurance.
Im so glad it’s worked out ok in the end.
I have to say, though, as a couple who sit im a bit of a techno phobe, so anything that differs from the ordinary terrifies me, but my other half is in his element with anything new.
In retrospect, i imagine the sitter may regret not telling you and imagine they were trying to do more than was expected.
Just a thought, would it be worth you getting a super cheap mini hoover? For the purpose of others using and keeping the dyson out of reach. I always sort of think of incidents like this as a pre warning.
It’s just a thought. Accidents happen.
As HO we leave all user manuals to every appliance and equipment in our apartment in the office and tell the sitters where to find them. For specific things that may not be user friendly we also explain specific points about usage and things that we don’t allow (such as using the air fryer function on our range because we don’t have the accessory). Our Welcome Guide also provides information on specific items, such as the coffee machine and the range. And if all else fails they can communicate with us on WhatApp anytime and we answer quickly.
I don’t agree with blaming the OP. They could have left instructions, but it is still 100% the sitter’s fault if they broke the Dyson because they misused it. An accident, sure, but still not the HO’s “fault.”
I hope that sitters are self-sufficient enough to look up instuctions for appliances that are unfamiliar, not use force on them. Alternatively, the sitter could have asked the HO. I am independent to a fault and like to fix things, so looking up instructions online is very familiar to me.
I’m good at looking up stuff online, but I don’t think it’s a good idea for a host to rely on all sitters knowing that that sort of thing is available online. That assumes that everyone has similar life experiences.
Ultimately, if you’re the host, you should figure that it’s in your interest for someone to know how to use equipment if it’s needed to clean.
And for context, many hosts show people how to use a coffee maker, even though they could search such directions online as well.
I don’t disagree and I said much the same thing in my replies (that the HO could leave instructions). I do disagree with any suggestion that the HO is at fault because a sitter broke an unfamiliar appliance. If I break something because I misuse it, that’s my fault for not figuring out how it works. The HO could have prevented or mitigated the problem, but it is still my fault.
I see it as shared responsibility. It’s fine if we disagree.
We recently had to have a Dyson repaired. We contacted the best reviewed repair shop in our area and the shop owner told us that he refuses to sell or repair Dysons because the plastic parts break so easily. He said that even with repairs he’d had too many instances of fixing the vacuum with a brand new replacement part and then having the same part break again a few months later.
We are extremely conscientious 5 star sitters and have always told homeowners immediately about any items being broken and have offered to replace or repair. Thankfully, nothing major has broken.
At the same time, the thought of being expected to replace an expensive appliance that broke due to poor engineering (or being at the end of its lifespan, or not being well maintained, etc) is troubling. Especially something like a vacuum, which we use primarily to handle fur from the homeowner’s pet and to provide a homeowner a clean home to return to.
We have paused applying for future sits and aren’t sure if we’ll continue with THS. Financial risks are definitely part of our pro/con list.
When it happened that things broke, I did not offer to pay.
I am careful with things. Instead of using the fancy barista machines, I make instant coffee. When the HO leaves me the car keys, I don’t use it. I look up instructions on Youtube. But sometimes things break.
Maybe the dog did it. Absolutely not anything I would even consider paying for.
Or it is during final cleaning in a hopelessly overcluttered kitchen that something breaks.
I just tell them. And maybe say sorry. In cases where I felt that the responsibility was totally mine I have a “clumsiness insurance” where I might try to make a claim.