UPDATE as 3 of my questions were not answered in the first response that I received from Member services - I went back and asked for answers to the following questions and I have Copied and pasted the answers from member services below .
Q. What action would be taken against a sitter who did not pay vet fees ?
A.” I cannot say what action will be taken against a sitter who does not pay the vet fees as disciplinary action is given by our resolutions team after investigation and can range from a warning or suspension from the site.”
Q. What assistance will member services provide a sitter if the Pet Owner doesn’t reimburse the sitter ?
A, “if a Pet Parent does not want to reimburse the sitter for any vet fees that have been incurred, both parties will have to work through this issue themselves in order to come to some sort of agreement, or if necessary they can take whatever legal action they deem to be reasonable in order to be reimbursed. We unfortunately cannot demand either party to pay one another as we do not have the authorization to do so.”
Q. Would a sitter who doesn’t have sufficient funds ( to pay emergency vet fees upfront) be considered in breach of the THS T&Cs ?
A. “It is understood that once you are entrusted the care of a pet, you are to be their guardian until the owners return and you are officially responsible for that pet. We have not yet had a situation where a sitter has had insufficient funds and cannot pay for vet care, due to this we unfortunately do not have an answer at this time about whether this would be a breach. Every case is different and if those issues were to arise we would do everything within our power to assist both parties involved. “
Thank you @Silversitters - the response from THS is absolutely unbelievable. I assume from this that any damage to property is also the sitter’s responsibility as per the T&Cs.
How can anything so important be treated in such a naive and flippant way.
I certainly don’t have the funds or desire to pay vet bills up front in the hope that I get reimbursed at some point.
5.3.6. immediately contact the Pet Parent in the event of any damage to property and get their approval for repair. If, in the event of an emergency, you are unable to contact the Pet Parent , you will pay for the repair of any damage caused, and request the Pet Parent reimburse you for all costs incurred (provided you have not caused the damage yourself);
So the home gets damaged in a storm and a pet gets injured ; if the home owner cannot be contacted according to these clauses the unpaid sitter must fund all the emergency repairs and vet fees !!!
Then if Home owner does not reimburse the unpaidsitter, the sitter will have to take legal action at their own expense to get the money back
Yes and even if it is a one in a million occurrence it is still one too many. As a paying member I expect more support. Such an experience would be stressful enough without worrying where the money is coming from.
@Silversitters This stance from THS is truly unbelievable!!! If we ever find ourselves in such a situation on a sit we would refuse- absolutely- to be held responsible for Vet fees or damage costs. I’d better get cracking with screen-shotting all our reviews should we get kicked off the platform!!
I am sorry but this is ridiculous. THS can hold the sitter responsible but doesn’t have the authority, unfortunately, to demand the home owner to pay? Suddenly the parties have to work it out by themselves? This clause is a joke and nobody should take it seriously, because they don’t have any authorization, no matter in which country, to hold the sitter responsible.
It’s a private company and they don’t have the means to force anybody to pay for anything.
The worst thing that could happen is that they cancel a sitter’s membership but they could do so anyway, because it’s only a private company.
It would seem that the wisest course of action would be to not pay and leave it for the HO to cover the costs. I have had many an expensive trip to the vet for my own pets in multiple countries and I was never asked to pay upfront. Some wanted payment on collection and I guess if I could not pay the animal would stay and they would charge some sort of kenneling fee until a payment was received or a payment plan was agreed. I’ve also never encountered a vet who would refuse to treat an animal for a non-routine visit if money was not immediately forthcoming.
At the start of my house-sitting journey I would have trusted the HO to dutifully cover the costs but having seen how some now behave (daily charges for their property taxes, sleep on an air mattress and bring your own pillow and sheets etc) I’m wondering if I have been a little naive.
I suppose in this age now you should be able to reach anyone just about anywhere and send money instantly so if as a sitter you can’t or don’t want to pay it shouldn’t cause any delay to treatment.
I, too, have difficulty coming to terms with THS’s stance on this yet it doesn’t really surprise me.
Just for clarification for those who have not read the relevant sections in the Terms of Service, I am posting them so that it includes the Owner/Pet Parent responsibilities.
5.2. The following applies only to Pet Parents. You will:
5.2.2. ensure you have adequate provisions in place for veterinary care of your pet (such as pet insurance); and you hereby authorise the Sitter to obtain veterinary care for your pet(s) during a Sit if you cannot be reached;
5.2.3. remain responsible at all times for any veterinary treatment that your pet(s) may require, including all costs and expenses incurred by the Sitter in relation to the same; and you will reimburse the Sitter for any such costs within 14 days of completion of a Sit;
5.3. The following applies only to Sitters. You will:
5.3.3. contact the Pet Parent if the pet(s) requires veterinary care;
5.3.4. get approval to take the pet(s) to the vet for treatment and get the Pet Parent’s agreement to pay for any costs incurred. If you can’t reach the Pet Parent and the pet’s health is at risk, you will contact the vet specified in the Welcome Guide and or use the Vet Advice Helpline provided and seek treatment ASAP;
5.3.5. pay any veterinary expenses up front and request the Pet Parent to reimburse you for all costs incurred;
In my time as a pet sitter, I have taken pets to the vet six times, two for injuries sustained on the sit and four for follow-up treatment of a pre-existing condition. I was not required to pay for any of these visits as an account was set up plus one owner had left a credit card for this very purpose. I always raise the issue of vet payment with owners should there be an emergency and so far have not had any issues. But that could easily change. We are not the pets’ owners and should not be expected to incur expenses on behalf of owners.
It occurs to me that (certainly in the UK) there is such as thing as unfair terms and conditions. I wonder if the expectation by THS that sitters pay vets bills upfront would be considered “unfair”, at least in the UK or whether this only applies to actual contractual arrangements.
However there seems to be a very easy solution to this issue - THS simply rewrite the T&C regarding vets bills to make pet owners responsible for making a suitable arrangement with their veterinary practice to make the payment direct themselves.
It really isn’t good enough to say “this has never happened so we don’t know what we’d do”. As a business taking money from owners and sitters THS has a responsibility to have thought through scenarios and have policies to meet eventualities however unlikely they might be. This sounds to me a bit like making it up as you go along which really isn’t fair on sitters who may find themselves in a difficult situation if faced with a vets bill they can’t pay or can’t recover from an owner.
We can continue to ask and demand it. Meantime, those of us who know whether we are sitters or homeowners or both, can make sure that when we speak to the other party about a sit, this is all discussed, AND planned for.
We will protect ourselves by always having this discussion with pet owners ahead of the sit - but there will be many THS sitters ( not on the forum) totally unaware of this clause and it’s implications ; until an emergency arises.
Silversitters . Thank you.
Id also like to add that I see comments that a serious vet issue is unlikely whilst housesitting. Having had many pets over the years and vets in the family, I disagree.
A tick or snake (common here) can be Several thousands of dollars upfront as quickly as possible with no time to make calls and ask about costs etx. The animal.WILL die without immediate treament. Apart from that scenario, bowel blockage, poisons, accidents causing broken bones, hemangiosarcoma (also treatment within a couple.of hours costing many thousands) are all very real and common occurrences. Even abscesses are deadly and can cost several thousands to treat. I’ve been a member of THS for about 12 years, never used it yet, but was planning housesitting over the next few years and have been waiting for years to be able to do so. This clause has me re assessing the whole thing as i could never watch an animal.pass away due to lack of treatment and also do not have funds to cover huge expenses like that. I am.so disappointed but also very glad this was brought to my attention
@Deborah I am very surprised to hear you’ve been a member of THS for 12 years and never used it! Did I read that correctly?- you’ve never done a sit but have paid 12 years if membership?! If that’s the case I hope you’ve remained on autopay- i.e still paying whatever the price was 12 years ago!
I am intrigued as to where you might do your first housesit!
Hello, no I’ve just paid as each year is due. Originally I joined because I had 4 dogs, 5 cats, 9 aquariums and 2 birds…and was hoping to go on a holiday… well, it did happen in 2011 and 2012 but my children were back in the country so looked after things. Then when the animals.slowly popped off, and I didn’t get more due to wanting to travel, I thought, I will petsit. So I’ve been waiting for all to pass, which they have , sadly, so I can do so. And now it looks like THS is not as good as it was. One of my dogs cost me $65,000 over 15 years, so I’m really not prepared to take any risks about vet bills for HO as anything can happen.
Thank you xx
Such a shame @Deborah - It sounds like you have so much empathy and experience to bring to the world of pet sitting.
Such attributes would be a credit to THS.
