We used to be called “Classic Members” @Snowbird
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Maybe they didn’t get an alert but were just browsing when the listing was published.
Hello!
Just a quick update from me to confirm that basic members do get alerts for their save search/favourites. They get to save three favourites when using the website and ten using the app.
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I think @Snowbird was hoping for clarification on differences between classic and basic membership, not just on saved searches.
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Understood 
I’ve went back to the team and asked for clarification around that as well! Bear with me and I’ll report back
Jenny. I think your use of the term ‘favourites’ is misleading here. Its 3 and 10 ‘saved searches’ NOT ‘favourites’.
The Original question was regarding ‘favourites’ and I believe the answer was ‘yes. Basic members get alerts for them.’
My question now is ‘is there a limit on the number of favorites’ for each membership level?
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My profile just says ‘Sitter’ not classic or basic. Member since 2017. I know I can have 10 Saved searches (and frequently do) and i get notifications of new listings.
I’ve not yet reached a limit on Favourites.
On the Vet helpline it says I can call for help.
I honestly do not know how this compares with the basic sitter membership but I do pay less than basic (£89)
@Lokstar I think you pay less than Basic because I’m guessing you have kept auto renewal. I have kept auto renewal on since I joined in 2014. Otherwise, the Basic fee in Canada now is far higher than my annual renewal.
TrustedHousesitters has had my loyalty through the pandemic, when I didn’t do any sits, as well as this past year, when I haven’t been available. Given that type of loyalty, I find it disappointing that those who have been loyal for so many years haven’t been given the respect of at least membership benefits that match Basic. It’s not a big deal to me but does peeve me a little. 
I hope we’re wrong about being less than Basic, but if we are an exact match, I question why does my account show my membership level as Sitter, rather than Basic sitter. 
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Hi @Brightlight
I’m using the wording given to me by MS, apologies if you feel it’s misleading.
I’m happy to go back and ask the team but it might be quicker to jump on chat, ask to speak to a human, and ask any questions directly to Membership Services, as I don’t always get an immediate answer. Let me know what’s best for you.
Jenny
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Thanks Jenny. My original question was sorted. But the subsequent discussion clearly shows why I had to ask it in the first place. The available information on the site is not clear. And if thats the wording you got from official membership services sources, then they are not clear either.
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@Snowbird You are right we have been on autorenewal since the beginning, including during the pandemic (when we could not use it- i think they should have given us loyal members a few extra months then…))
I’ve just had a proper look at what is included in the current Basic and Standard levels and it does appear that my ‘Sitter’ level (for £89) includes everything from Standard except the 3rd Party liability (at least there is no mention of that coverage when I check my membership details). If that is the case it would seem the old ‘Sitter’ level includes more than Basic but a little less than Standard. It says on my profile I can call the Vet line but I don’t know if that’s video or audio but contact is definitely an option. I’m not sure what exactly is meant by ‘dedicated member support’ but I’ve always been able to contact MS and had a case manager allocated when needed.
I remember when the three Tiers were first introduced that the Premium seemed the only ‘improvement’ option worth considering at the time but it did not attract me. I’m not interested in Global lounge passes and it seems tricky to claim on the insurance. The only time- to date- that the insurance may have been helpful was last summer when we had a 2 week cancellation in Spain but due to the particular circumstances of that event I doubt our claim would have been successful.
So we’ve always stuck with our original Sitter plan. Since your plan is called ‘Sitter’ too I would assume it has the same conditions as mine which appears to be a mixture of the two lower tiers and therefore better than Basic. (I.e not an exact match) Maybe its called Sitter to distinguish it from Basic/Standard/Premium. Who knows!
Regardless of the pricing I think we all had it better and easier before the 5 app limit and the no overlap policy!
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@Lokstar thanks for taking the time to do this detailed response. I’m glad to see that we’re not lower than the lowest. 
I agree with all that you’ve shown here - about lack of acknowledgement of loyalty during the pandemic, and no interest in the higher tier levels for similar reasons.
My renewal is in April and I’ve told myself I’ll pay for one more year. Many of the changes since the pandemic and influx of borrowing funds are not to my liking. I’m also painfully aware that rapid growth from questionable marketing has diminished the win-win-win ideology of TrustedHousesitters. I could whine on more but there’s no point as I have yet to see anything reversed that was overwhelmingly disliked by members. 
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Hi @Lokstar , with the vet helpline.call is all we can do, to a UK number, no video, no online chat, which is better than nothing, but is my major gripe as it impacts my ability to care for the pets to the best of my ability
@JackieX I’ve never tried to call the Vet Helpline. I assume I’d only need it if not able to reach the pet parent in an emergancy. That has never been the case so far. We have had a couple of emergancies over the years and the PP was able to guide us what to do, going to the VET, meds etc. What has happened for you where you felt lack of video call impacted you?
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It’s not the video call I miss but the online chat. Making calls from Ecuador is very expensive. We have Skype, but obviously only with internet which we lost on new year’s Eve. In the excitement of the guys coming to fit a new fibre on January 2nd, one of the dogs swallowed three cherry stones. I had enough WiFi (connecting through the wall to next door) to use chat, but not enough to use Skype. I contacted the pet parents and we decided between what to do. I would like to have had a vets opinion too!
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@Snowbird I agree It is disheartening that member disastisfaction with changing policy is completely ignored and it is quite clear now that policies once impleted are never reversed.
I do not enjoy the site as much as in earlier years. It used to be fun to browse for sits but now its a race against time to get your foot in the door and many sits, especially in other time zones, are gone before we even see them. My hubby and I used to do overlap sits occasionally when it was convenient and saved a gap but we were never that keen on doing that so have not taken the step of buying a second account, to get around that, as some have done. But the reason behind the no overlap policy is very flimsy… the action of a tiny minority now affecting the majority negatively. What I also object to is that, as well as not being able to overlap, we are prevented from even seeing how many have applied for said overlap sit. There is no good reason for blocking that information.
We will continue our membership while it still serves us and while our price/benefits remain in our favour.
Unfortunately organisatons sometimes get too big for their boots and they lose the more friendly personal touch of earlier days.
C’est la vie…
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