Would it be possible to have something to say “if you have any issues about sit please discuss first with sitter before giving a negative review”?
I am asking because I have just received a four star review because of what a neighbour said to the home owner. Due to circumstance beyond my control, I was out for more time than intended, however the dog I was sitting was not completely alone as there were workmen at the property. The dog would start barking as soon as I went out, but I did follow instructions from home owners about what to do if I had to go out. It was a long and challenging sit as there was not a suitable place for online working and the house was have major work done - making a lot of work for me in house and garden. I left the place very clean and washed throws bedding etc that the dog had soiled. I communicated well. Yet in each category they have four stars, which I felt was very unfair. If they would have spoken to me I could have given the explanation and stopped them making the wrong assumption that I had planned to leave the dog for five hours, which I would never do. Incidentally, the neighbour who I met and sympathised with as she had just lost her dog and was grieving, was angry I hadn’t left the dog with her - but I did not know she was WFH.
Has anyone else experienced this?
@Moss So many issues here…workmen in the house - not allowed. No workspace. Difficult pet. Difficult neighbour. It really sounds like a tough sit and one that wasn’t suitable for your circumstances, or a good fit overall.
Any chance you could just accept the 4 stars and move on? Call it experience and look for better sits in future? The reason I say this, is that there are so many issues, that once you reply to their review, it will become confusing for readers and future home owners might think you’re rattling on and being argumentative due to the sheer number of points you are raising, although it’s within your rights. Maybe just keep it short and say the circumstances of the sit was very difficult to manage, due to ongoing construction work during the sit. Then future sitters will know there were 3rd party in the house during a sit, and future home owners will feel sorry for you to have had to deal with that.
That sounds tough. Are they new members who don’t know that a missing star in any category is bad news? Or people who think that 4 stars is better than average so a good score?
All you can do is leave a factual response detailing that there were workmen in the house and you went over and above to cope with that and a dog who had separation anxiety. Future homeowners will be able to read between the lines.
It doesn’t matter what the cirucmstances are, someone’s review is their opinion as they see it, but from what you have said she had reason to mark you lower on this occasion because you were out of the house longer than intended, regardless of the reason, sorry if that sounds harsh, it’s just the facts, I’m sure you are a great sitter.
So dust yourself down and make sure you get some 5* reviews for the next few sits to flood out the 4* one. Just make sure in your reply to her review you put things in a factual way and not in a resentful way, as that’s really what HO’s want to see, someone who accepts that whether the reason was beyond your control or not, you are saddened you couldn’t meet their expectations, nor did you get a chance to explain what had happened, or words to that effect, and then at least future HO’s can see how you truly are as a person, so they can see the full picture.
I left the homeowner 5* and had a private word about things. I have let it go and moved on, as I don’t hold grudges and live in the present.
However, if I can make a difference I will, as I believe things happen fora reason and can detach myself enough to learn what I need to.
I have communicated with support services about this and they are in agreement that there needs to be something to ask people to discuss any issues they may have directly with the person involved before giving a negative or unfair review - and they were grateful I had flagged it up. So some good has come from this experience.
On the day that you were gone for a long time, knowing that the workmen or the neighbor may have noticed, you could have communicated with the Owner via text, to tell the Owner what happened that caused your delay.
The update for that day, with a photo of the happy dog, would say something like this: “Scruffy is doing really well, eating normally and loves his walks. The workmen were here again today, and I had to leave the house for an important meeting. I was a bit delayed getting back due to XX. Sorry this happened, but Scruffy was not alone, as the workmen were here.”
If you had done this, proactively, what could the Owner say? Life happens, and it is not perfect.
@Moss Curious about some of what you and the HO agreed to prior:
•Did the HO’s know you were a remote worker? I’m assuming so since many HO/PP prefer this.
•Did they tell you prior how long the dog could be left? And if under 6-8 hours if needed, why? Does the dog have anxiety or is not fully house-trained?
•Did you know about the renovation workers prior? Did either party understand that this is a violation of the 3rd party policy?
•And did you complain to the HO about anything prior to the review? Such as noise from the workers.
@Moss I’m also curious to know whether this was disclosed before you agreed to do the sit. If so, why sign up to living on a building site? And if not, why on earth leave the homeowners a 5-star review? I’d be seriously annoyed if I turned up to do a sit and had to deal with loads of noise and dust on a daily basis. People go away on holiday to escape these things, as demonstrated by the homeowners, and I would consider it extremely unfair of them to put me in that situation without prior warning.
Funnily enough we also got a 4 star review the other day. I was so shocked I actually reached out to the owner, privately, and asked why. Here is the list -
Didn’t iron the bed linen.
Didn’t clean the filter in the washing machine or dish washer
Left some crumbs in the kitchen sink.
Guilty as charged. I haven’t used an iron for over ten years. What they didn’t mention was the inch thick layer of dust I cleaned of most of the furniture, the two bathrooms I scrubbed so we could use them, the floors I scrubbed so it didn’t feel like we were walking on egg shells. We did take over from another sitter, something we have never done before and will never do again.
It is there opinion and i accept it as that. It’s a bit annoying because we had over 100 five star reviews but hopefully potential pet owners can look beyond that one review. Maybe I should mention in my application/profile I don’t iron for no one. Life’s too short.
Do you think it would be worth it to answer their review accepting that you didn’t iron? That would give other owners I and sitters a clear idea of the sharpness of this rating.
100% with you @Hallt64 life is too short to iron most things in our book, especially bed linen! (& I have a Mum who irons underwear ) We feel for you @ElsieDownie - we will also never do a split sit again. #sendinghugsandaniron
I can’t believe they docked a star for those petty issues!
Unfortunately you don’t make any mention in your review of what you found on arrival and gave them 5 stars in all categories.
It would appear they didn’t review the previous sitters because they missed the 14 day window but said they were worth 5 stars. How could they know that if they didn’t return to the house between sitters?
I also don’t iron bedding and will be definitely be avoiding that sit in future.
Oh dear, the underwear ironer. I had an aunt who did that as well. Growing up on a farm, we were lucky to have ironed school shirts. Parents were too busy outside to bother about that!
Last time I ironed something, I had to borrow my neighbour’s iron. It literally fell apart in my hands! Irons and me are not meant to be.
It’s a shame that the home owner has given an overall 4 star rating, despite the 5 stars that you received in most categories. Another example of why the star system doesn’t really work. Seeing written responses that are the result of prompts/questions would be far more helpful and revealing. And good luck to the home owner in finding a sitter next time around if there’s any mention of ironing requirements or crumb removal! As for filters, well…
You could craft a suitable response, or just move on and be proud of your great review record.
Get this, we also grew up on a farm on the South Coast & she still ironed everything Caught her ironing bed sheets as we headed out to a Robbie Williams concert one day, now that story became family folklore! #lifestooshorttoiron
As I understand it the reviewer chooses the overall rating (it isn’t an average of the categories).
Also I don’t think there is a time limit on responding to a review.
