I shall do my best to be brief. I am on day 4 of a 1 week sit that is in a 6th floor apartment. On day 2 a pipe burst in the unit above causing flooding down all the units below right down to the lobby. Nobody’s fault and the building staff are the ones responsible for the repair work. But it has resulted in some extra work for me such as discussing with the HOs including calls and videochats, lots of picture sending, monitoring for signs of damage (ie a bunch of the baseboards have pulled away from the walls this morning), moving furniture, moving the industrial fans around, some extra cleaning in areas that I wouldn’t usually have to do, liaising with staff re repairs. I am not seeking accolades here and totally understand that this is part of sitting. But I kind of want the HOs to touch on my ability to handle this emergency in the review as I believe I did well here. I am tempted to simply ask ‘How shall we handle this in the reviews?’
What are your thoughts?
I suggest being more specific if you want a certain outcome. Like you could share a bulleted list of highlights of what you’ve done and ask that it be included in their review, under a specific category. They could of course decline or do something else, but if you’ve been significantly helpful, it seems natural that reasonable folks would want to mention your resourcefulness. You could highlight that it’s a request, not a demand, by saying something like, “For your consideration.”
Keep it simple @MaggieUU, something along the lines of “Because of the flooding and the additional coordination involved, it would be helpful for future homeowners to understand how the situation was managed when you write the review.”
If I were in this situation and the host didn’t mention any of this in the review I would be surprised. Perhaps the ‘ego’ me would feel a bit miffed that my efforts were not acknowledged. But I wouldn’t care enough about it to request ahead of time that the review explicitly touches on the situation. I don’t think there would be that much to be gained as far as benefiting my chances of landing subsequent sits, and that would seem to be the primary reason to want it included in a public review.
But given the importance of reviews, requesting they be sure to mention that the sitter went above and beyond in a particularly challenging circumstance, is certainly understandable.
@KC1102 I love your profile description of being ‘location-independent’!
This is very good advice.
I’m sure they appreciate your efforts and would be happy to highlight them in a review.
Yes I prefer that term to ‘digital nomad’!
Great advice from all and I thank you.
I would love if some HOs would weigh in. Would you include this in your review of a sitter? Would it have any impact if you saw this in a sitter’s review that you were considering? Cheers
As a HO in the past for 20+ years who had sitters before joining THS ourselves as sitters I would write
“Our sitters took self sufficiency to the Nth degree, handling an emergency efficiently and with grace. They went above and beyond what could be expected working closely with the professional maintenance team to resolve multiple issues all a consequence of a major water leak from a neighbour and we are incredibly grateful”.
I’d send this as a suggestion to cut and paste into their review of you. At the same time ask if there is anything they’d like you to cut and paste into your review of them.
Good thought @BonnyinBrighton. Their communication was amazing.
It sounds as though you’re doing a great job of handling a tricky situation @MaggieUU but personally it would rub me up the wrong way if someone hinted about how they would like to be reviewed, or asked in a more direct way. It’s just not the point of reviews in general, let alone blind ones.
Yes, the homeowners should recognise the fact that you’ve gone above and beyond, and hopefully they will acknowledge that in their review. You could mention what’s happened in your own review of the sit, and respond to the review you receive if you end up feeling hard done by.
Point taken under consideration @Becca. I do plan to address it in my review. Its just that I wonder if it looks weird if I mention an emergency situation and then the HO doesn’t. I think most of us are really good conscientious sitters. I have more than 30 reviews that virtually all mention that I am organized, a good communicator, provide wonderful pet care and leave the homes spotless. But this would really be the only one that could address how I respond in an emergency situation. I guess it is a ‘special’ sit in that way. Thanks again for your input.
My thoughts are similar to @Becca’s. You have said your hosts’ communication has been amazing so I would be trusting them to acknowledge what you have done in this emergency situation in their review. I would mention it in your review but not all the details.
Thanks @temba. I am fairly confident that they will mention it but I also am aware that this HO completes his reviews FAST as I have sat for them numerous times. The sit ends Sunday and dollars to donuts (that is for you @Newpetlover) his review will be finished before I finish my breakfast on Monday.
Will you see him at the end of the sit? If so, that’s a perfect time to chat about the emergency. As you have received reviews from him before, although he is fast with writing them, are they personal or very general?
I will not see them at the end of the sit. Can I say that his reviews are both personal AND general? 
That’s only because all the previous sits have been smooth and uneventful
I’m an HO: I would ABSOLUTELY mention this is a review - first of all to acknowledge that the sitter had something extraordinary and unpleasant to deal with, but if they went the extra mile as it sounds like you did, I’d be singing their praises up down and sideways.
And if I see a sitter who has dealt with exceptional circumstances with grace (even if they were probably gritting their teeth) and skill, I’m likely to see them as highly responsible, flexible, and a total gem.
@BonnyinBrighton ‘s sample is spot on 
Thanks for the kind words @belluca. I just was so glad it was a clean water leak
Thanks a lot. I hadn’t heard that one before. I guess it means: “I bet”.
If he doesn’t mention the way you handled the situation, you’ll never sit for him again, I hope.