This is an excellent opportunity to demonstrate that by contacting the homeowner and apologizing for having asked them to reimburse you.
5 Likes
Hmmm. I am confused. You mentioned the insurance wouldnât have applied. So the cancellation must have happened more than 2-weeks before the sit. It sounds like you expected to be reimbursed for the cabin youâd rented for your half-way point. That was a decision you made â your responsibility. With terms you should have known â non refundable. Again your responsibility. Common sense would say sometimes sits donât happen for good reasons. Assuming the cancellation was legitmately made because of a real illness, I donât understand how the cabin deposit is the responsibility of the homeowner.
I get that you donât feel that way, but if homeowners are âresponsibleâ for sitter travel expenses or accomodation expenses when a sit is cancelled for a legitimate reason, no homeowner unless they were very wealthy would ever take a chance on sitters who had to travel and the entire model would fall apart.
Moving forward, it sounds like an expensive lesson for you, but you have the information now. I donât think youâll find many people â sitters, homeowners, or combined members who agree that homeowners should pay sitters expenses in the event of a legitimate cancellaton. Even if the cancellation had been frivolous, there is no obligation for the homeowner to pay expenses. If you feel it was frivolous, you could complain to THS about that but the most they would do is watch the hostâs account to see if there are more disputes for cancellations. They have no means to get you your deposit back.
4 Likes
One of the risks of using THS is that a sit will get cancelled, for good or bad reasons. I have been a member for 4 years and am about to do my 20th sit. Only one was cancelled, after I bought expensive plane tickets, because the pet died. I knew when I booked the flights that there was a (slim) chance that the sit would fall through, but I wanted to visit the area anyway. I was extremely lucky to find another sit (my most recent one) in that city for almost the exact same dates. I just had to pay for one hotel night. It never occurred to me to ask the first homeowner to cover that hotel cost. I think that would have been very cheeky, and insensitive.
10 Likes
@tortimom, THS does not publish data on sit cancellations ⌠number, cancelling party, cancel reason, etc. From THS Forum then sit cancellations do not seem common but they do happen. Some cancellations seem questionable but many simply reflect life stuff.
We have experienced two sit cancellations by Pet Parents on start date of housesit. Both were international sits and we were in-country. Sit Cancellation Insurance does have some quirks and limitations but it can be very helpful in some situations (one of our cancellations secured a successful claim under THS insurance ⌠US$1000+). If curious about THS Sit Cancellation Insurance then suggest that you carefully peruse terms and conditions so that you become aware of quirks. Or search THS Forum - thereâs plenty of related threads.
1 Like
When we first sign up, I was excited because we were able to confirm back to back sits for an entire summer. Then the host cancellations came through. One host couldnât afford her vacation and she offered $500 for the trouble. Another stated she broke her hip. Then a third host had to adjust dates. It was a pain in the butt and my premium membership didnât help as these cancellations were outside of the 14 day window. This is just the good and the bad of petsitting.
4 Likes
@IHeartAnimals, itâs not possible for community to gain sense of frequency of sit cancellations. But that seems like a lot! Yes, 14-day window is a material limitation of THS sit cancellation insurance. As is THS ability to obligate housesitter into any nearby available housesits - regardless of property, pets, responsibilities. As is 20-mile rule for alternative housesits, for context of international housesits. As perhaps is financial coverage cap for long-duration housesits. Can only presume significant coverage limitations reduce cost of insurance premium paid by THS. Shame that there is not better coverage, or even option for enhanced coverage.
Hello,
Just a quick note from me to confirm that OP is happy for us to close this discussion to new replies - theyâve received all the advice that they needed.
Thank you to those who popped on with some constructive advice! 
Jenny
1 Like