I was just accepted for my first stay. I am curious what is expected when a home owner makes requests that are considered unacceptable. I had some questionable communications with the owner leading up to my stay, but chalked it up to a worried pet parent. I read through the Welcome Guide and it is mentioned that they keep the thermostat at 64 degrees (house location is the lower midwest) but it is acceptable to increase it to 68 degrees, but explicitly stated not to go higher. I feel that is a comfort issue and something that should be divulged in the house facts before accepting a stay. I know I was the only applicant, and the stay starts in 2 days and donāt wish to put the owner out, but curious how others would handle this? Would you mention this in the stay review afterwards. I donāt want the owner to get upset and give me a bad review, given this is my first stay. Appreciate your thoughts!!
Congrats on booking your first sit! Good post; itās proactive of you to ask for thoughts here re:how to handle it.
I run cold, so this requirement would make the sit a misery for me; Iād pass on even applying if it were in their listing description.
Upon finding the info in the guide, this is what Iād personally do:
Gently reach out to the homeowners and ask for a quick call āto go over a few questions from the WG.ā Make sure I have one of two other questions to start with (hopefully minor), then earnestly but regretfully bring up the thermostat issue. Mention that I do run cold, & that I usually keep my home at XXd in daytime & XXd at night. Iād ask if thereās flexibility on their part, while mentioning that of course Iāll bring a sweater, slippers etc. Iād also offer to contribute a set $$ amount to cover the extra fuel costs, assuming thereās no technical reason to keep the temp at 68 or below. Then Iād see how they respond.
If theyāre completely inflexible, Iād then consider (regretfully) asking them to cancel the sit ā depending on how locked-in I was or how miserable Iād likely be. Not least of my reasoning being that inflexibility in one area can be a red flag for other issues elsewhere.
Great advice from @MerryPuppins, otherwise youāll have to grizz it with hot water bottles and then note it in their review and mark them down for hospitality. Depends how strong youāre feeling. You also need a plan b if you call their bluff and cancel as itās not comfortable living conditions for you. When did you get the WG and did you read it straightaway? What was questionable in the pre comms with the HO? #yourcall
A previous host mentioned not setting the temp beyond X in their welcome guide, so I messaged back that Iād read it and everything seemed straightforward, but I was afraid Iād be cold. They immediately replied and backtracked on that, said I should set the temp as I needed to stay warm. And as it turned out, it was a good thing I had mentioned it, because it snowed during the sit.
I kept my message light, but if they had replied and stuck with the temperature limit, I would have simply cancelled our sit ā sitters donāt have the technical feature to cancel a sit, but no one can ever force us to show up if hosts surprise us with dealbreakers. To me, a reasonable temperature is a dealbreaker.
I always get the welcome guide well ahead of a sit, though. During our video chat, I let hosts know that Iāll make travel arrangements only after receiving the WG. Thatās not been an issue.
Good advice given from @MerryPuppins .
64-68 F / 18-20 C is what is recommended by the World Health Organization (18 in bedroom and 20 in livingroom) so I donāt think it is unreasonable. Iāve seen on forum that some hosts have expectations considerable below that, which I find unreasonable, as it is below what is adviced health-wise.
Ofc some could prefer higher for comfort, then I think asking and offering to pay the excess is a great solution. Glad it worked out.
When I arrive at their house and do a walkthrough I always ask what the thermostat is set at. They always say it is set at so and so but feel free to adjust it to your liking. Iāve never had any other response. Please donāt be afraid to ask for what you want because of reviews. I find it passive aggressive if you donāt change the thermostat and then write in the review, the house was cold. I would never invite you back as passive aggressive turns me off as all you had to do was ask to set it differently or just go to the thermostat when you are there and do it yourself.
But these people have already explicitly stated not to turn it to above 68 degrees so if @tduffydvm doesnāt want to have the confrontation/discussion with them at this late stage then theyāve already set their stall out. Mentioning it was cold in the review would simply be factual & not passive aggressive at all?! #oddviewpoint
She still has to ask for what she wants no matter if the WG says donāt set over such and such. You want it discussed before you arrive. If they say no and I donāt like their reasoning I would cancel. Not asking because of being afraid of a bad review will results in not the most pleasant experiences moving forward. We say here in the US, if you donāt ask then you donāt get!
I need 22Ā° minimum as this is what makes me comfortable at home however it is only in the evening lounging as Iām busy during the day. I sleep in a 16Ā° bedroom. 68Ā° would make me miserable- Iād offer to cancel.
I would not offer that.
And I would be more direct/blunt about this elementary comfort being essential for me doing this. So I would write something like: āI looked up that 68 would be 20 C, and that is why I am not going. I am not a homeless person, I have a warm home here in Sweden.ā
Remember, you accepted it too; both parties can cancel if deal-breakers were not disclosed at the time of acceptance.
When red flags are already evident and presented to you beforehand, they tend to be merely the appetiser for whatās to come.
The odds of a good experience, or a good review, for that matter, hardly improve. More often, it exposes someone who sees neither you as a guest nor themselves as a host. Which leaves the real question: why do it at all? Itās voluntary, nothing more.
There may be more than one reason you were the only applicant.
I agree with Buttercup. Someone that rigid will be picky with other things as well. Minor infractions to most as we are all human after all, may be a big deal to her and not give you the 5 stars you are looking for on your first sit. Are there other reviews or is this her first time with THS as well? If you do the sit please drop back to the forum and let us know how it went. Good luck.
I received it late Wednesday and reviewed first think Thursday morning and noticed the temperature request. I sent the owner a text to make a connection before the stay and they havenāt responded 24 hours later. This is an example of the kind of small red flags I have been observing. The other, since you asked, is that I am an emergency veterinarian, which I am guessing the host did not see in my description. Since I live the unexpecteds of owning a pet, I had asked if should could explain how she would like me to handle things if one of the pets becomes ill, as she will be unreachable and on a cruise for 5 days. She first mentions that she prefers holistic, which I understand, but in real emergencies, that approach is commonly not an option. She then goes on to say that she prefers to avoid seeing emergency docs (as most people would), and gives me her vets info. No real clarity on how to handle a real emergency - how far to go if something catastrophic happens, etc. This being my first stay magnifies some of my concerns.
For us coming from scandinavia it tends to be a surprise how cold some other places in Europe are. People donāt have good insulation, and heating costs much more than for us. I expect that in UK, it is soooo cold there every time. In Germany and Belgium heating is very expensive so many hosts tell that beforehand.
I do carry Very warm clothes. And use tricks like heating up one room and closing it so that there is a warm place for me. But usually I skip sits like that, I got all the cold I need at home landā¦
For the OP, how long is the sit? If it is just few days, I would tolerate cold, but I would also expect the HO to tolerate a bit higher heating bill. If it is long, I would probably cancel, unless the HO is super accommodating as I bring it up. Strict rules that affect my comfort are a thing that rubs me the wrong way.
It wouldnāt hurt to ask if you could keep things a little warmer, particularly if you are coming from a warmer climate or an area where this is not the norm and mention that. If they are good hosts they will want you to be comfortable! I am from the midwest and 68 is fairly standard (we keep our home at 68/69). But I think many would find 64 is quite cold! On the flip side, I had a sit in Arizona where I was asked to keep the summer thermostat at 80 (and raise it to 83 when i was out). That was a shocker (but I discovered that was fairly normal for the area) and, like you, I do wish it had been in the welcome guide! Its definitely no fun to be either too cold or too hot!
My approach with all HOs is to ask for a friend/family to be their ādecision makerā in the case of vet visits or worse. Their contact details to be included in the WG.
You do need clarity about this before the sit starts .The terms of service , that all members have agreed to , say that if the host is uncontactable a sitter must pay any emergency vet fees upfront. So if an emergency arose - where you paid Ā£1000s to a vet for emergency treatment and then the host says that they wouldnāt have gone down that route ( preferring the holistic approach ) they may not reimburse you .
Whilst pet medical emergencies are rare, when they happen they can be expensive - This thread discusses this topic -
https://forum.trustedhousesitters.com/t/sitter-has-to-pay-veterinary-expenses-up-front
It depends how long the sit is. Weāve sat in homes for 2 months where they wanted the temp kept low. It was an issue so the next time we sat for them they provided small space heaters (price of gas was more the issue than electricity).
68 is comfortable for me, but not my husband who is always cold, but below 68 would not work for me either for sure.
Iād suggest bringing an electric blanket and let them know youāll be bringing it, or ask if you can bring a small space heater (if youāre driving there).
Okay. I asked for a trusted individual and the owner stated that she does not anticipate any issues while being unreachable. I am going to cancel, but canāt find how to do this and am all flustered now. Guidance on cancelling?
Once a sit is confirmed itās only the host who can can select ācancel,ā but participation in the sit is voluntary and no one can force you to go ahead with a sit . A sitter can request that the sit is cancelled where there are previously undisclosed requirements that they are not comfortable with.
You can send a message to the host along the lines of
āAfter reviewing the welcome guide, I am not willing to proceed with this sit. You have stated that you will be uncontactable for 5 days whilst on the cruise and that no emergency contact will be provided in the event of an issue while I am caring for your home and pet. Had this been disclosed earlier, I would not have accepted the sit. Please unconfirm the sitā
If the host has not cancelled the sit within 24 hours , you can involve member services .
Some other forum members can probably suggest improvements to this wording .