Undisclosed Landscaping Project Disclosed the Night Before My Sit

Sitter Questions, Advice & Chat
41

Thank you for providing the additional details. Your first post didn’t include all these facts, so it was difficult to understand exactly how serious the situation was. With this added context, it’s clear that this was much more than a minor inconvenience.

The undisclosed construction, lack of privacy, failure to address your concerns, being given only 13 hours to leave and, especially, the threat of legal action are all deeply concerning. Threatening a sitter with legal action simply for raising legitimate concerns is absolutely not okay.

The fact that TrustedHousesitters reportedly found the homeowner to be in breach of the rules but has not removed him from the platform also raises questions about how well sitters are protected. It may be wise for sitters to have some additional protection of their own, such as suitable liability or legal-expenses insurance. Naturally, the coverage and limitations will depend on the policy and the country involved.

In a situation like this, I would take screenshots of all conversations and save the listing, photographs, receipts and all communication with both the homeowner and TrustedHousesitters. If anything is discussed by telephone, I would confirm it afterwards in writing so there is a record.

A Welcome Guide is certainly important, but I don’t think its absence automatically means that a sit will go badly. I’ve had wonderful sits for homeowners who were completely new to the platform and didn’t have a proper Welcome Guide yet. Sometimes they only left a few notes about feeding the pets, or showed me in person how to feed the chickens, and those turned out to be genuinely lovely experiences with lovely people.

So yes, a Welcome Guide is useful, but it mainly tells you when Fifi needs feeding and how to turn on the heating. It doesn’t protect you from ending up in a complete “why on earth did I agree to this?” situation with a difficult person.

A video call cannot guarantee anything either, but it can reduce the risk. You can ask questions, see how someone responds and usually get at least some sense of the general vibe. If someone becomes evasive, irritated by perfectly reasonable questions or seems interested only in their own needs, I would consider that a warning sign. It won’t completely eliminate the risk of encountering a jerk, but it may help you spot one before you’re living in their house.

You did the right thing by leaving an honest and factual review. Please keep us updated on whether it is actually published. Reviews are one of the few ways future sitters can make an informed decision. I would also open a formal member dispute like @silversitters suggested, if you haven’t already, and ask TrustedHousesitters for a written explanation of the outcome.

No precaution offers complete protection. However, asking detailed questions, having a video call, documenting agreements and paying close attention to how someone communicates can considerably reduce the chance of ending up in this kind of situation. And to be very clear: this isn’t your fault! This is one of the ‘&%@@!!’ trying to get away with it.

42

So sorry this happened to you @KellyK, particularly how you were treated by the homeowners.

I had a very similar experience around 6 years ago. I asked about third parties etc but the homeowners assured me there would be no one around during the sit. The home was on its own land and quite remote, so I felt it necessary to ask. Well, this turned out to be quite untrue, and there were workmen round almost every day, including early on Sunday mornings. When I broached it with the homeowners, they claimed not to be aware of this as the workmen were on their own schedule. I think they decided to take the opportunity to have some remodelling done when they were away, and left me to deal with it all.

The workers erected scaffolding so I felt vulnerable even taking a shower as their scaffolding looked directly into the bathroom. They also damaged my car taking the scaffolding down but denied this completely. I stayed the duration of the sit but I wouldn’t do that nowadays. It was a stressful situation, especially taking work meetings from home with all the noise and interruptions.

As for reporting them, it seems THS are very reluctant to remove paying members from the platform. I have reported a few homeowners in my time, including one who disclosed during a pre-sit visit that I would be running their B+B in their absence and the staff would have access to the home kitchen at all times. Their profile mentioned none of this and I declined the sit, making it very clear to them that third parties weren’t allowed. Their profile remains on the site to this day.

I hope you go on to have much more positive experiences.

43

I’ve decided not to renew my TrustedHousesitters membership when it expires. After over two years of sitting and more than 50 sits with overwhelmingly positive reviews, my two most recent experiences have made me seriously question whether the platform adequately protects sitters when problems arise.

In my sit with Ron, I raised concerns about undisclosed third parties and ongoing landscaping and construction. After I complained, I received the worst review I have ever received as a sitter. I strongly dispute the allegations in that review and provided TrustedHousesitters with information about what actually occurred, including my regular updates and photos showing the excellent care I provided for his dog. What has been particularly frustrating is that TrustedHousesitters continues to focus on its “tamperproof” review policy rather than addressing whether the homeowner followed the platform’s policies in the first place.

I have another recent experience that has also been extremely disappointing, which I will address separately. At this point, I no longer feel confident that TrustedHousesitters adequately protects sitters or consistently enforces its policies when homeowners fail to follow them. I’ve enjoyed caring for pets and have worked very hard to be a responsible and reliable sitter, so it is disappointing to reach the point where I have decided that I will not continue my membership

44

If we were to discover - even just the day before arrival - that major landscaping works were taking place during a sit, we’d cancel.

They are required to do that: https://support.trustedhousesitters.com/hc/en-gb/articles/360001881117-Guest-third-party-policy

You clearly took the decision not to cancel. It’s understandable, with just 24 hours to go until arrival, but nevertheless it was your choice, so probably best if you own it, then you may not feel so disempowered.

It sounds intrusive and inconvenient, but raising concerns (with THS or with the host?) afterwards is a bit like trying to shut the stable door after the horse has bolted, unless the reality was entirely at odds with what was disclosed in the Welcome Guide?

I think most of us have probably experienced a less than stellar sit at some time or another, but two in a row is unusual, and has clearly - and understandably - impacted on you, and you’re feeling the injustice of it.

It sounds like you still do know your own worth, despite these two recent setbacks. Hold on to that and don’t let these unfair reviews diminish you.

I hear you when you say:

I suspect that’s the pain talking. It makes me think of the words to an old song: “pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and start all over again”. A more popular phrase is: The phrase “don’t let the b*****ds grind you down”. I recommend a couple of short, undemanding, possibly repeat sits, to restore your faith in housesitting, and maybe in yourself too.

As an experienced sitter, you’ll know that when things go well, this is a great thing to do. I hope that when you’ve had time to let things settle, you can reconnect with that.

Chin up!