As a HO we would never have been “incredibly upset” over sheets, not even a little upset, however much they cost. It was a nice gesture to propose reimbursing them. We would have appreciated the sentiment but would have refused the money. Accidents happen and can and do happen when we are the ones at home and not sitters. It was not done on purpose. We would have left a review, possibly mentioning an incident occurred (no specifics) and mentioning you had proposed to reimburse, not to highlight carelessness but rather to highlight taking responsibility. Please keep on being there for owners and their pets. 
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Yeah, they weren’t. 
They seemed good quality, but not better than the Vera Wang set I bought for $60-70, and I thought those were nice haha.
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Hello.
Totally unrelated, but can you tell me how you linked your profile please? I’ve looked back at an old post, but when I copy my URL it doesn’t show my location, it just says ‘profile preview’.
Thanks
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Hi @MarieHuggins I just replied to you on another thread on here also but just to confirm your profile is now showing. The preview was just until the checks had been done but it’s all good now.
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Many thanks.
I was clicking on the wrong part of my profile… 
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Messed up? I don’t know about that but do accidents happen? Yes 
Two sitters in my home … who are now great friends. There is no reason to tell these stories other than to say there is usually an amicable solution to be found when everyone is open and honest.
First “mess” … The head a of loo brush came off and got stuck in the toilet outflow pipe, no one, not even a plumber could budge it … the only course of action was to replace the loo (it was a new home) $1,700 later my lovely sitters offered to pay the full amount rather than have me claim on the insurance and risk affecting the premium … we paid half each, after all it was my “wonky” loo brush.
Second “mess” … Sitters on a visit to a very popular ski resort in BC on backing out of an underground hotel parking lot wrapped my almost new SUV around a concrete pole, same amount of damage cost as the loo but this time they paid for the full amount, even though I said I would claim on the insurance if they settled the deductible again they did not want me to risk any increase to the ins premium.
Accidents happen … loos and cars can be mended.
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Don’t worry. Accidents happen and most HOs are understanding. I posted about my mess up story in a similar thread here:
On one sit the dog destroyed a super expensive carpet 
Worth a couple of thousand dollars. We were asleep when it happened so couldn’t have done any thing about it, but we were nervous to tell the owners as they might think we didn’t watch the dog carefully enough or that the dog was understimulated or home alone a lot (which wasn’t the case).
In the end they weren’t upset with us at all, they were super nice. The point is it sounds to me like the home owner with the expensive sheets was very easily upset and I have not yet come across a home owner who has that attitude. It was a mistake, could happen to anyone. I bet other home owners will be a lot more chill and that you will do an amazing job as a sitter, you sound like you’re very keen to do a good job.
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I absolutely feel for you! In all honesty I’m shocked that the homeowner accepted your offer of paying for them! and wow $350 sheets! I make sure our guest room has nice comfortable sheets. Sitters can choose from Egyptian cotton or bamboo both are very soft but no where near $350 for the set. I just can’t even think of asking a sitter to pay for ruined sheets, accidents happen to the best of us and so what if sheets got ruined it sounds like you still provided excellent pet care - and that’s WAY more important. We have had other sitters break or damage a few things but we have never asked them to compensate us in anyway. We just consider it a part of the arrangement that sometimes things happen. Life happens!
When we first started sitting I broke a glass pitcher. I had poured some slightly warm tea into the pitcher and it just exploded to bits, I think it must have already had a crack in it because I have never had that happen before and I make a ton of tea. I messaged right away and apologized and offered to give some compensation but they denied it and assured me it was no big deal. They still gave us a glowing review (thank goodness!) but I was worried too.
I sure hope if you do have another accident on a future sit (because accidents happen to all of us) you have more empathetic homeowners.
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Hi @snarrkie. So much positive support for you. Great. I agree. I didn’t see the below specifically mentioned, so here goes:
- You shouldn’t be afraid to mess up. In fact, mistakes are how we learn and grow.
- Consider learning about a “Growth Mindset.” Coined by Carol Dweck at Stanford.
I’m not sold on that term, but that’s what Dweck chose, so I tentatively respect that. I’ve also heard “Improve Mindset,” etc.
- Personally, I started with a fixed mindset, read the book in my 30s, then have slowly tried to adopt a growth/improve mindset more and more. It really helps! Wish I had learned about it when I was your age. =)
- Expecting that a sitter be perfect is like expecting a parent to be perfect. I’d even say the PP was wrong here; if they will be happy with only a perfect sitter, they should pay for a sitter. You made a mistake, and you did your best to make up for it. A mature PP would acknowledge that and encourage your growth.
- I have a high opinion about having a proper mindset/attitude. So my advice would be to take a break, read a little about the mindsets, get some practice in, then try sitting again. You don’t have to read the book itself—I feel the writing could’ve been better—but it’s thin and cheap. You could probably find a similar blog article, presentation, etc.
- I originally heard about a proper “mindset” from Jo Boaler, also at Stanford. I felt the way she described it resonated a bit more with me.
So, keep messing up! Eventually, you’ll become an experienced sitter who’s seen everything!
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Holy sheets! $350? Really? We accidentally broke some exterior string lights while playing backyard catch with our home owner’s dog. We immediately went online and ordered them a new set of lights.
How does the THS Home and contents Protection work ?
What does it cover?
Could the HO have claimed for the expensive sheets ?
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I own my own house and wish you could house sit for my cat!
Honesty is the best policy. I am a strong believer in people learning from their mistakes.
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@Silversitters Thanks for thinking of this to help out! This article should answer your question 
There is a minimum amount that the claim needs to be over to be able to claim, plus the owner needs to have the correct membership type etc so read the T&C and support@trustedhousesitters.com can answer further questions.
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Every one messes up, literally everyone. I understand the host being a bit frustrated, but they also surely saved money by having you sit for them. It sounds like you took good care of their pet, which is really all that should matter- and the fact that they didn’t leave you a bad review tells me they know that on some level. I think rather than you not being right for house sitting, people who have ridiculous expectations should not be hosts…
Anyhoo, as other posters said, it might make you less stressed if you’re able to screen potential sits- look at what they prioritize in their listing, check out the reviews they post for others, chat with them if possible. Go with your gut if it doesn’t feel right for you.
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I’ve been doing nomadic pet sitting via TH for 6 years. And only a couple of months ago, I had my first “accident” The picture was hung on a wall just inches from the toilet. When I was standing up and had my elbows bent, it came down, shattering glass into hundreds of pieces, and piercing my foot in several places, with blood gushing all over. I survived and thankfully, the art print itself as well. It was hung on a tiny nail that was about to come off the wall so I felt it wasn’t totally my fault. It happened on my last day so didn’t have the time to go find a replacement. I told the owner exactly what happened and offered to reimburse. She was totally understanding and was happy for my effort and the condition of her home and pet overall. I did look up online and looked like the frame was about $50. I cant believe the sheets are $350?! Did they live in a mansion/ luxury place?
Anyhow, letting you know, accidents can happen to even the seasoned sitter.
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Best to fess up and apologise. I broke a vase once at a lovely house sit and did just that. There was no problem and they invited me back. I would always put breakable expensive things out of the way while at someone’s house…just in case:)
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I agree with this. Material things are replaceable, especially sheets. It’s not like you broke an heirloom glass or anything with sentimental value. Even then, mistakes happen. The only mistake I would be truly upset about is if my pet wasn’t well-taken care of.
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If that had been me, and they accepted my reimbursement, I would have considered they had now sold me their “ruined” sheets and gone home with pink sheets.
If the hosts had kept the sheets, well, obviously, they weren’t
“ruined” enough.
At home, I would then have tried some heavy duty laundry products, accidental dye run strippers, bleach, etc.
If they didn’t work, well, I’ve now got pink sheets … shrug.
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I had a sit where I accidentally “disassembled” a drawer. It was one of those not so quality Ikea pieces but at the end of the day had I been a bit more gentle handling it then it probably wouldn’t have fallen off. It was my fault and I felt truly terrible that they might come home and see it in that state.
I was incredibly anxious trying to fix it and not being able to and trying to figure out a way to tell the homeowners. A day later the electricity went out and a repairman had to come over and I was able to kill two birds with one stone and get it quickly fixed at no cost. I never ended up telling the HO but it was a good life lesson and I’m now SUPER careful with anything of an owners that use.
Also quick note about your experience you changed the color but the product was still usable right?? Idk that seems like a fairly common accident and something that the HO could have given a little more grace about. As sitters it’s important we do everything in our power to leave the home as we found it or better but we are humans which means we are not perfect beings! I’m so sorry that the HO made you feel this way. Really I’m sure you’re a very competent and caring sitter that would be a great match for lots of HO’s!!!
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