We’re really careful with the homeowner’s items, too. We also skip using fancy, unnecessary appliances and cars due to not wanting to be responsible for breakage.
Unfortunately things really aren’t made like they’re used to and don’t last as many years. As careful as we are, it feels inevitable that something big will break.
Bigger picture, we’re also considering other financial risks like
- huge medical expenses in the US if we’re bit or injured, especially after sitting for some pets with undisclosed significant behavioral problems (like many in the US, our health insurance deductible is over $8,000 per year, per person)
- unexpected hotel costs if an owner cancels on us at the last minute and THS insurance doesn’t reimburse or isn’t enough to cover the cost in the area
- having to decide in an emergency situation if we are going to pay for vet care or home repairs if we can’t reach the homeowner and their emergency financial arrangements aren’t sufficient
We absolutely love animals and have enjoyed many aspects of our sitting adventures, but like anything in life, it only makes sense if the pros are greater than the cons.
The cons list is a little longer right now not only due to financial risks, but also several other things that are often brought up in this forum, some of which could be easily fixed by THS if they had greater respect for their sitters. After we complete the sits we’ve already committed to, we’ll be taking at least a 4-6 month break before reassessing.
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The sitter probably either panicked and didn’t know what to say or didn’t realize the vacuum cleaner was broken.
A few years ago I was accused of breaking an expensive family item. Things got ugly. I denied responsibility and it turns out that said item was way behind on scheduled maintenance and simply needed service and was fine. The bad energy from that instance still lingers. So no, I would not offer to pay for damages for anything that could have suffered from neglect, lack of maintenance or simple failure due to design or age of the item.
We previously were on THS as homeowners. Some sitters broke a small bowl and bought a whole new set. I never would have wanted that. Accidents happen, a glass breaks, a plate is dropped, I don’t care. Now if the sitters broke a whole set of dishes that would be different. But let’s face it, we all break things in our own homes, let’s not get punitive with house sitters.
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On one of my sits the newish stick Dyson was near on full on my arrival. I went to empty it and obviously did it incorrectly as then I could not put it back together again. I tried and tried, watched videos online etc to help me, no that was it, not broken, but not useable.
I’m not stupid but it stumped me!
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Totally feel your pain @Louise7 - we’ve used tonnes of Dysons and some of them still baffle me entirely when I want to empty them. Ironically Mustafa is fab at fixing the broken ones, just don’t let me near them too often 
#andalsonotstupidbutstumped
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@Cuttlefish @Louise7 . . . This is my experience too, with the Dreaded Dyson! 
Watched online and still had a difficult time figuring the whole thing out. (Fortunately, this was a sit for a friend.) #anothernotstupidbutstumped
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