Every time we have a sitter, 6th time now, something breaks. It’s not always the sitters fault per se other than them being more careless with stuff than we would be.
A Patagonia jacket was ripped without notification (or ask to borrow it) and a very poor fix.
The dishwasher stopped running hot water.
The washing machine stopped spinning.
Expensive espresso machine stopped working after the sit.
Broken dishes - which I personally don’t even care about anymore.
The washing machine is currently happening and this might end being the most costly repair so far.
Any advice what to do about the washing machine? Would it be covered by some THS insurance?
The sitter was great, house looks pretty clean and dogs were happy but it could be that there was an overuse of laundry…
My washing machine has started skipping the spinning cycle on and off. It seems to be more likely after washing a full machine, but not quite sure. I’m able to just run a spin cycle when I find it wet when finished. Think it is just due to age for my machine. Haven’t bothered to call repair, it is well off the warranty years ago. Stuff don’t last forever.
Re. the dishwasher - it isn’t a handle somewhere that has accidently been switched off? When we did home exchange one family couldn’t get it to pump water. They had switched over the little water handle and turned it off…
You are used to the appliances etc that you own. I don’t dare touch the space-age expresso machines (on sits, I use instant coffee).
Once I could not find the On-button on the laundry machine. With time the symbols and lettering had gotten completely erased. When I asked the HO, they thought that I deserved a star deducted for self-sufficiency. That may be one reason why sitters don’t ask.
Are you sure the sitter is responsible for the dishwasher or washer? Appliances run down. I have had things stop working when on a sit the first time I try to use it. Sometimes it is bad timing.
Washers stop spinning often times because the motor goes out or the door gets messed up. Is the plug in for the washer accessible without moving the unit?
Are your appliances at an age where they’d typically start having problems?
I’ve done 19 sits and not had a single appliance malfunction on me. There was one home where the microwave malfunctioned while a host was using it while we overlapped — all of their appliances were old. If any had crapped out while I was using it, it would’ve just been bad timing.
As a sitter, I’m not agreeing to replace old appliances or such. It would be different if I misused them, in which case I’d chip in for current value, not original purchase price, considering use / age.
I’ve had the same experience, but I figure anytime someone lives here (including us) things are bound to get damaged. We even do it ourselves! I’m only frustrated when the sitter fails to mention it and it affects their stay, because it’s often not a big deal or there’s an easy fix. I don’t think THS insurance covers until after you run it through your own homeowners insurance, and I’ve never bothered. I think the best you can do is leave clear instructions for appliances and hope your sitter uses things responsibly. And while it’s a bit annoying they borrowed and tore your jacket without telling you, Patagonia has an excellent product repair process.
We’ve also had sitters repair things without mentioning it, so I figure as long as things are generally okay and my pets are happy and healthy I don’t sweat these things. Granted no one has crashed my car or done major damage so maybe I’ll feel differently if that happens, but appliances, dishes, etc I consider the risk I accept having anyone stay here.
The dishwasher needed a new heater thingy. We diy it… was in the end a day of work and around $50. Not too bad.
The Patagonia jacket was old. I diy repaired it also.
The washing machine not sure yet what’s going on. Doing further testing. It’s not super old but also not new. It’s new enough to send a text to my phone and the TV when the cycle is done. ¯_(ツ)_/¯
It’s difficult. Nobody wants to break things and nobody wants broken things.
But one is definitely more careful with one own stuff. Same with pets. Never not come home to smelly pets. It’s fine as long as they are happy and healthy. I just wash them.
With expensive things like cars, fridge, washing machines etc it becomes tricky.
It’s mostly just wear and tear but strangers always seem to put an unusual amount of wear and tear on items.
I think the appliances are about 5 years old… the washing machine maybe more, maybe less. Unknown.
It’s like insulting family, I can do it but a stranger cannot.
Nothing is straight up broken but just works worse and sitters don’t even seem to notice it, or at least don’t say anything.
The jacket was done by sitters that had a myriad of issues so that’s almost a different category.
The dishwasher was just young people who probably don’t understand that ER on a machine means error. It’s impossible to know if there was anything done wrong if it the heater thingy just stopped working.
The washing machine is still being tested. Wish me luck.
In no case have I ever asked a sitter to pay but I would like to ask THS insurance to pay.
THS insurance is secondary, meaning you have to claim against your homeowner’s or renter’s policy first. I don’t think it covers you if you don’t have primary coverage.
I’d guess that that would mean red tape for not so much money, even if you had primary coverage and THS secondary also paid out after your primary’s deductible. And your primary insurer might ding you for claiming. (Personally, I wouldn’t claim anything but major damage, because of the risk of premiums going up.)
I am not sure this helps my understanding of this situation.
I don’t know if they would but, as @Shafofo said, you would have to run it through your own insurance first and I guess there will be some time window to report it so that it can be established that it happened during a sit. I don’t think the damage you describe would be easy to claim.
IMO the jacket is the worst because wearing the owner’s clothes without them being offered is quite invasive.
I’m a sitter and I break something like a mug quite often on sits, usually at the end when I’m cleaning and more stressed than usual. I’m clumsy by nature and I’m not in my own environment where I have chosen chunky crockery and forgiving surfaces. I own up and offer to replace the item. I do get asked back more often than not because the pet is happy and the home is otherwise cared for (I have mechanical sympathy for appliances). If it matters to the OP then I guess they have to ask appropriate questions of potential sitters and/or do a run through of equipment/put optional equipment out of bounds.
This has happened to me too, invariably towards the end of the sit. In my last sit, I broke a bowl and had 48 hours to replace it before the home owners returned. They were grateful and said I shouldn’t have bothered.
Breaking things on sits isn’t unheard of, as sitters find their way in a new home and navigate the use of unfamiliar appliances. I think as long as the sitter owns up to it, and doesn’t leave it for the home owner to uncover themselves, it works out fine. I do think sitters should have at least a basic understanding of how washing machines, dish washers etc. work so they can alert the home owner to any errors and get it sorted as soon as possible.
I’m definitely more careful with other peoples’ belongings than I am my own. And the same goes for pets – very conscious of keeping them safe and well, and not letting them overdo it despite how much fun they appear to be having!
However, there seems to be this unwritten law, (‘Sod’s’ or ‘Murphy’s’, depending on where you’re from) that has reared its ugly head a few times with me over the years. A neighbour’s iron literally fell apart in my hands whilst I was ironing the ONE item that I have ironed within the last 5 years. Dad’s lawn mower worked fine for the hour or so it took me to mow his grass, and on the final green stripe, something went slack and it stopped driving itself forward. (And no, Dad, I didn’t mow over any sticks.) Pilot lights blow out on boilers, washing machine doors jam, fuse boxes randomly explode. On two separate occasions, driverless cars have rolled backwards down the hill that I live on, to the utter disbelief of the drivers who returned to find their cars parked very badly and not where they left them!
I know that people can be heavy-handed, and I have several ‘snags’ in my own home that are as a direct result of friends/family being a bit clumsy with things. But my point is that even when people are careful, things can still go wrong.
I would be annoyed about the jacket, because borrowing it without asking oversteps a boundary, and returning it ripped just rubs salt into the wound. But I’m not sure how anyone could ‘misuse’ a dishwasher or washing machine even if they tried. Even if sitters used them more than you would have over the same duration, surely it was only a matter of time/number of uses before the same would have happened to you?
Definitely agree! I don’t mind so much if something I own breaks and tend to own inexpensive things (I still handle them with care, but am not attached to material items). I’m more mindful in handling other peoples’ possessions and for this reason, I travel with my own small appliances, bedding etc.
I think most sitters (at least, the good ones) will be similarly conscientious. Perhaps the OP has had lax sitters in the past who don’t give care and attention to the homes of others, which is a real shame. Hopefully the next sitters will be more mindful.
I’m far more careful with other people’s stuff. I take good care of my own stuff too, but in someone else’s home I’m extremely careful with everything. Housesitting isn’t like being in your own home. There are typically many things I don’t touch at all - like fancy coffee machines.
I definitely don’t care about dishes and anything below $100. It’s not great but things happen. It’s ok.
The big ticket items hurt though. That’s why I ended up removing my car from our listing. It’s just too much headache if something happens.
It’s true, what could someone have done to a dishwasher or washing machine to break it? Overuse? Idk. So far I never blamed anyone because how would I? It’s still frustrating though.
The jacket situation was rude, but that whole sit wasn’t a positive experience. There was a lot wrong with that specific sit and the jacket was the cherry on top. Every other sit was either great or good even if things broke.
As someone whose been using washing machines and dishwashers for decades, I can’t think of anything I could do that would make them stop working. Appliances, even newer appliances, sometimes need repair and not from being used improperly. How would one use a washing machine improperly such that it would require extensive repair?
