I have a long 3-week international trip coming up - first work and then I myself am confirmed to petsit at two places.
I had confirmed with a sitter in March after doing a video call and checking in once again that she was on-board before confirming. Then this month when I checked in to ask if she had her visa sorted out, she started telling me about vaccine requirements that she wasn’t sure of. There was plenty of time to get a vaccine, which I suggested she do just in case. Then a few days ago she said that she was unwell after taking the vaccine and might not be able to travel. She had first said she had bought her tickets to my country, then she changed to saying she had insurance that would make it possible for her to change her travel dates, and now she seems to be saying she hadn’t bought tickets.
I saw on her profile that she just got left a review by someone she petsat for saying that she had agreed to stay on after the official dates were over. So at this point I am assuming she wants to cancel on me because she has found a more attractive situation.
I travel in 13 days. I tried contacting the support chat but it said no one was available to talk and the would get back to me. I don’t know whether to cancel the sit myself or wait for her to do it. I can’t imagine anyone would take the sit this last-minute, since there are very few sitters already in my country.
If anyone has suggestions for how to negotiate support from Trusted Housesitters, I would appreciate the advice, thanks!
So sorry to hear of this, it is completely unacceptable behavior on sitters part. Have a read through the link above and get the sit cancelled asap. If you wanted to talk to THS, their email is support@trustedhousesitters.com * hope you can find a replacement, I really feel for you
Just 10 seconds ago I commented on the new post that said they are now making it easier for sitters to cancel by giving them a simple “click here” to cancel button. I commented that both hosts and sitters should have displayed on their profile the dates they confirmed the sit and the date they cancelled as I believe there would be less cancellations. I wouldn’t even mind if people are removed from the platform if cancellations exceeds a certain number. That being said it does not help your current situation. I am sorry this happened to you and can understand the stress you are now experiencing. You can only repost and hope for the best. Time to put in a plan B if you don’t already have one. I wish you luck in finding another sitter.
I just saw that! I guess it hasn’t rolled out yet because otherwise the sitter would have just cancelled herself? Anyway, I will send an email to THS, thank you for sharing it, since I couldn’t find it on their support page. Appreciate the response!
@Billiwaali
Are you a Premium member? As this is within 14 days of the start of the sit - BEFORE you cancel the sit , I recommend that you talk to member services and ask if you are covered by the Sit Cancellation Plan if the sitter cancels it?
There is an Urgent Support Phone Number that you can call 24/7 - it’s shown on your dashboard . It’s the fastest way to speak to member services about Urgent issues .
You can also raise a member dispute if you have reason to believe that the sitter is not cancelling for exceptional circumstances. It won’t force the sitter to honour their commitment to you but it will trigger a THS investigation.
You’re right, I think a public list of cancellations would make things much more accountable. As a sitter a place I really wanted got back to me with an offer, but since I had already accepted another one there was no question of taking it. It’s unfortunate that this experience has happened like this. Thanks for the good luck wishes!
Thank you! Yes, I am a premium member and that was why I was trying to figure out what to do. I will attempt to call the helpline, and also send an email. I appreciate the help!
Thanks for the welcome! I am afraid she does seem unreliable because now she is arguing that I have to be the one to cancel. I’m waiting to hear back from member services so my dates aren’t alive which means I can’t link my listing to my forum profile yet, sadly. Going to start making some beseeching calls to friends for help now!
@Billiwaali prior to today’s announcement which she probably wasn’t aware of, yes, you as the homeowner has/had to be the one to cancel. A sitter can’t/couldn’t do it.
Yes that’s what I thought. But today after I told her that she needed to cancel she continued to tell me that I should cancel and leave the reasons for cancellation blank. So at this point I feel fairly manipulated and not inclined to give benefit of any doubt.
I don’t understand why you don’t want to cancel the sit. Don’t muck around with this type of person, it’s not healthy for you and gets you nowhere. There are no red flags against your name and zero is noted, the sit just never happens so don’t worry about cancelling. Where are you located may I ask? If you cancel now and it’s immediately relisted, there’s always a chance. But don’t waste any more of your time on this sitter, focus on plan B and good luck
They’re a premium member. It’s the sitter who’s cancelling so I think it the HO cancels they might find it harder to claim the cancellation compensation.
But isn’t that just for a premium sitter to claim, not the homeowners??? This sitter won’t be claiming. I was under the assumption that the cancellation policy is for a premium sitter, not homeowners.
Homeowners can also claim money for alternative pet care.
> For Premium Pet Parents
In the unlikely event of your sitter canceling, this plan provides up to $150 USD compensation per night to cover the cost of alternative pet care, up to $1500 USD per sit. Terms and Conditions apply
Please be aware that any x1 day/night sit cancellation alternative pet care claims will be declined, due to the contribution fee of $150 USD.
Yes, this is the reason I’m not cancelling, because I’m already stressed out about having to figure out paid alternatives last-minute, and I don’t want any claims to be invalidated. Which is why them dragging out the cancellation process is additionally stressful, because it means no one here can even apply to my listing! I did hear back from Member Services and have sent them the info they asked for, so lets see what happens.
Oh I totally understand now mate. Glad support is onto it and I really hope it works out in your favor before too long. Best wishes to you going forward
This is certainly a dicey one and an awful lot of hoops to jump