I believe that the team was aware of the negative response that would come as a result of this decision. Let’s review the possible ramifications:
A significant amount of intelligent and commercially beneficial feedback has been consistently provided by the community, that, if acted on, would significantly reduce the need for any customer service related to sitter/owner misconduct. This would potentially eliminate the need to increase prices altogether. The tech is not user-friendly or responsive to the issues brought to THS’s attention over many years. This includes everything from i) a check-list you must actively tick-off prior to the start of the sit ensuring cleanliness and behavioural standards are adhered to (clean house, no cameras on, no additional chores not mentioned prior to confirming, no guests not approved, no broken amenities not addressed prior, no 3rd-party contractors or visitors, pick-up and drop-off agreements, vet details, frequency of updates agreement, cleaning and toilet paper supplies provided etc. ii) No financial outlays for vet or house related bills iii) Clear agreements on car use with driver’s license and insurance. Iv) Financial compensation for owner or sitters changing dates mid-sit. v) Ability for sitters to block owners vi) The ability to correct issues without risking a bad review. The party proven to be at fault (photo/video evidence) should not be able to post a review. vii) A tip jar that allows sitters to receive voluntary tips. Let great sitters make some money, especially where extra services are required beyond pet-care, if owner’s choose to reward them. etc.
Pet-sitting is a vocation. For example, I get paid $80/day (plus food and tips) for sitting one dog who only needs a walk every two days. Why would I pay anyone (unless I was desperate for accommodation, which is not the ideal person you want in your private home) when I am already providing free labor worth hundreds, perhaps thousands in savings to them? And no, your home is not rentable if your belongings are in it.
Following on from point 2)… psychologically… payment means expectations (even crazy ones we have seen reported) are going to now increase. This may mean: a) More pressure on sitters by entitled owners b) Less generosity from owners who are now paying THS instead of paying forward their savings to sitters. c) Less generosity from sitters in accepting sits that aren’t Airbnb-quality. Personally, I’m not paying anything to work at a place that isn’t travel-worthy now that I’m paying for each sit. Now, my choices are going to be exclusively based on the high-end sits. My dignity won’t allow anything else. d) Therefore, less owners will be successful in securing sitters. We’ll be watching our wallets and reserving our money and time to book high-value sits, not the average-looking ones of which there are many.
There are more and more platforms for pet-sitting being started. This decision risks opening space for new competitors. And, know that, wealthy people can be super stingy. I’ve had some of my most luxury experiences on platforms where owners do not pay. They know of and won’t use THS bc they believe they shouldn’t have to pay when their property is so stunning.
On principle, I personally will not pay to work for someone else without a really good reason. I’ll be choosing only luxury-level or airbnb-standard sits. Otherwise, I will prioritise other platforms.
Ps. I’m a sitter with over 40 sits altogether and only 5-star reviews.
I agree that this situation has been damaging to the company. Whether there will truly be a mass exodus and it will go into a downward spiral and be “finished” as some proclaim remains to be seen and as I’ve said, it’s my opinion that’s not going to happen and the overall effect on the profitability of the company will be minor in the long term.
I’ve double checked and can confirm that the booking fee won’t apply to any sits that are confirmed before the renewal date (even if they take place after the renewal date).
As an aside, periodically FAQ’s are being added to this page.
If you tally up the comments from people across all the social and review platforms saying they are leaving, including this thread, it is in the thousands now.
I don’t believe that everyone who says they’re going to leave is really going to leave. Even if they believe it when they say it.
And if a few thousand do leave, that’s a very small percentage of the almost 300,000 THS customer base. THS will more than recoup those lost membership fees with what they’re billing the ones who stay.
I’ve had a look at ALL of the sites, the Facebook groups are hot with this topic right now so a lot of people have been mentioning alternatives and none of those sites have even close to the traffic THS does, unfortunately, and their platforms are SUPER rudimentary, something you’d see 20 years ago. One has more than 40,000 sitters and only 150 sits listed for the next 6 months, another has maybe 75 sits listed - the grass is always greener, do keep that in mind!
Doing this extra sit fee, specially to the sitters is wrong. They spend money to get to the sit, whether it’s flights, gas, car rentals. etc.
My favorite sitter, with rave reviews from all sits she has done, will be leaving the site. I have canceled a month sit I had scheduled for June/ July because of this (other arrangements have been made)and I cancelled my auto renew. I will give myself time to think about whether I am going to cancel my membership completely.
Trusted House Sitters is cutting off its nose despite its face. Not very well thought out.
I’m under the impression that those numbers represent current paid memberships.
There’s really no way to gauge the “fees” and “Terms” effects in the short term. Any effect would be seen as memberships become due over the next year.
So 1 year we can look back at these posts and either say “wow that was a devastating move by THS look at the ghost town it’s become” or a year from now it will be forgotten and things will be humming along pretty much like they were before, sans a small percentage of members.
Very true! I just invited the CEO on LinkedIn to talk to me about his bad sales strategy ;-). I posted under his article and mentioned him. We will see if he has the courage to reach out to me…. I am quite active on LinkedIn and we have to raise our voices. This is the 3rd bad change in the last year!!
A forum is for opinions, but it seems you don’t let people give opinions? I put in a post yesterday about how i had been lied to by THS a few years ago. Also has been deleted even though it is the truth!!
see 5.3.1 in the terms and conditions. you’re not required to use THS to run your business and the rest of us are very much providing a “valuable service” without requiring payment.
you, like the rest of us, have a choice - use THS and pay the fees, or don’t. i don’t support the fee introduction, but as a company, this is a decision they have made. as an individual, i know that my experience is extensive, reviews and references glowing, and i do not need THS to continue sitting. they owe me nothing, so i will simply seek opportunities elsewhere. i suggest, if you feel so “bullied” (as you put it) you use some agency and do the same.
Another excellent post written in a calm, non-emotional and reasonable fashion that makes all the right points, the most important one being (in my opinion) that no one is forcing anyone to be here, a company has the ability and the right to make these sorts of decisions and their customers have the right to stay or to leave.
To post misleading and even dishonest 1 star reviews in an attempt to severely damage the company’s reputation and try to ‘change its mind’ is way, way out of line.
