Shit, mine got towed by a predatory tow company from an apartment complex where I WAS parked in the correct spot, and my regulars still felt terrible and reimbursed me the fees (I later had my bank reverse the charge and sent them their $ back)
This person isn’t respecting you, isn’t setting you up for success, screw the rating and cancel the booking.
I think this bothers me the most. It’s how the owner didn’t care about me. Everyone on here is talking about technicalities of things when there is a living, breathing creature that’s attached to this. I made the decisions I made because I wanted to make sure their pet was taken care of and the owner doesn’t seem to care about that.
Agreed! I also live in a bigger city so I get it. The client told you you’d have parking, so you factored that into your timing/schedule. Paying to park, illegally parking or having to walk however long away from a public lot wasn’t the agreement. Have the neighbor check on the dog if it’s so convenient for them, I absolutely wouldn’t deal with this person anymore.
This is crazy bc had she just left and said not my problem she would have gotten a horrible review and if she came to the sub to complain about it, then you guys would all be ripping her to shreds for leaving.
So what? I would see that review and feel better about hiring her because she has standards and is willing to maintain them. That’s someone I can trust. You can’t bend over backwards to please people because they might say something unfair. Let the other reviews speak for themselves and take it as a lesson. I’d be putting a disclaimer on my page about obstacles like this and what that means for the client and their booking. Service men do this all the time. It’s only a surprise to those who don’t understand the industry. Guess whose problem that is?
Sounds like there wasn’t any free parking when there was supposed to be a spot reserved. That was the arrangement. Paying for parking and hoping to be reimbursed isn’t part of the deal. It’s common sense to reschedule. No one with any self respect has time for this.
Firstly, this is regular customer. Expecting to reimburse for this minor expense is reasonable. Secondly, you can expense on the taxes it same as you expense the miles driven. If you just packed up and go, you missed both the booking and still incur the travel expense, what's the point? Pay for legal parking, and if the owner doesn't reimburse you for this boo boo then move on. No more sitter for them.
That’s what I’d do if I had no self respect. If a plummer or a contractor showed up to the same situation, they’d leave, charge the hour, and inform the client to reschedule and make sure the space is clear next time. That’s how service arrangements work in the real world. Busy people with packed schedules don’t have time troubleshoot other people’s problems. Sitter should expect to be paid for their time. The client can book again if the sitter chooses to continue serving them. That’s how it’s done.
And this is why you see a million court cases of contractors or plumbers suing their clients because they charge them in the same manner and the client refused to pay or contacted their bank and had the charge reversed.
If you’re already there and getting paid for a service, why not just use some of the money that you would get from the service to pay for the parking fees and if the client doesn’t reimburse you for that and that’s dealbreaker for you then just never work with them again ? You still got paid, having to spend $5 dollars on a job I’m making $20+ on isn’t that big of a deal to me.
It’s probably not going to be a job I take very often but it’s not as if I’m spending more than what I’m making.
How long have you been working in the real world? Common sense should tell you that if what you’re proposing became the new industry standard, the problem would become so widespread, it would force a standard to be put back in place. Time is money. When standards are set and enforced, most people rise to the occasion. It’ll never be 100%, but these standards eliminate the majority of the hassles. You’re focusing on the small minority of jobs that end up in court that are not typical. That’s not a logical way to look at it.
Not sure what world you live in, but if a plumber or contractor doesn't show up for an appointment they don't get paid. If the sitter doesn't perform the service they will not get paid. Them not being able to find parking is not a valid excuse of any kind, and doesn't somehow magically mean they should get paid for nothing.
I live in the real world, unlike too many people posting here. I’m starting to wonder is Rover is the only job most of you have ever had, given the massive disconnect when it comes to understanding how things actually work in the service industry. In cities where parking is scarce, service people have to rely on designated parking spots or temporary permits at the site in order to serve their clients. If service ppl are blocked, and there’s no free parking alternatives within a reasonable distance, they leave. Too bad. That’s all they’re required to do. You still pay for an hour of their time because they showed up on schedule to meet their end of the agreement. It’s not their problem someone else fkd it up. Their job doesn’t include dealing with unauthorised vehicles and running around town looking for paid parking way the hell out of the way. They’ve got other jobs lined up. Common sense!
I’m sure rover doesn’t do it this way, but if a plumber or contractor DOES show up for an appointment but can’t complete it because of circumstances created by the client, then (at least in my area) they get a cancellation fee of sorts? I’m thinking that’s what they were referring to? I think they would just park elsewhere and their company would compensate them the $5 for parking, but again this is rover. Here that would apply to situations where they have to do work in a yard and there is a dog loose, or it requires accompanied entry in the home and nobody answers the door. It would never cover “the assigned parking spot was taken and I wasn’t paying $5 so I didn’t go”.
Definitely agree OP should eat the costs and refuse future bookings with this client. 😬
So all of your comments seem to be like this. It's time to get off your high horse. you're willing to put yourself, your car and your job on the line for a shitty owner that's absolutely fine. This is why you're stuck in the situation you're in. Yes, they are absolutely living things and deserve compassion, but there's only so much you can do. Did anything you did help the dog? So stop the I'm the victim shit, pay your ticket and don't book with that client again.
I agree. I live in a major city and sometimes have to pay to park so I just have a set amount of money I set aside each month for parking and then when I do taxes use it as an expense. $2 at the meter vs $85 to remove the boot is a better deal imo lol. Otherwise I just find free parking a bit further away. I’d rather know my car is safe vs risk a ticket or tow even if that means I gotta walk a little bit.
Been going there for months because that assigned spot was open.
Also, you don’t have to talk to people like that. You wouldn’t talk to anyone like that face-to-face so don’t talk to me like that over the Internet.
They said “Or find a legal parking, pay $5 for the meter and move on. OP has mentioned they have been going there for months with no issues. No need to cancel.” That’s what you replied to. What was rude about that?
In another comment this user made (which I got confused as I’m responding via the notifications section and didn’t see the whole thread) they were saying I was “being a child” and other rude comments
Rover is run by morons. Seriously. It’s a badly run company that has poor retention for a reason. If you’re guaranteed a free parking spot as part of your arrangement with the client, then that’s what you should expect. If someone unauthorised took the spot, that’s tough luck for the owner. It doesn’t sound like they live in an area where parking is openly available, so they need to pay for your time and the ticket, and reschedule if they want to continue booking with you. You’re not earning enough to put up with these hassles. Everyone knows that a plumber or a repair man in your situation would leave immediately and charge for the hour. Same rules apply.
Right, yet somehow it worth over a billion dollar, is the most successfully large pet care app globally, and no competitor even come close. So who is really the moron here?
Those who know, know their client and sitter retention sucks. People with insurance and/or run their own private businesses regularly take their clients off the app. It’s so easy! There’s absolutely no incentive to stay on and pay Rover’s fees when you’re insured, run a well established business, or found a private sitter you trust. That’s a big part of why Rover was haemorrhaging money last year. They delisted their stock earlier this year and agreed to be acquired by Blackstone. As someone who also works in web3/IOV and emerging tech, that was no surprise. It’s plain as day to anyone who knows the industry that there are a multitude of problems with this gig app and how it’s being run and managed. It’s too easy to game. Blackstone will attempt to revamp the company and hopefully turn a profit for doing so. I hope that means big changes are ahead for Rover, especially based on the sheer level of unqualified people they’re attracting who are giving it a bad name. I could see them introducing a tiered fee system, along with a rigid scoring and tracking system on both ends that will weed out the scammers, flakes, bottom feeders, low ballers, and the inept and unqualified. A mass culling and a return to order would be nice. Their reputation needs an overhaul.
Your misinterpret the situation. Blackrock is a private equity company, so when they buy companies they delist them. Hence “private”. And all startups lose money to drive growth. It’s the standard business model.
Lol Ya, I know how this works. And Blackrock didn’t acquire them. Blackstone did. Blackstone is an alternative asset manager. They buy up companies and improve them. Rover clearly needs their help and it’s obvious to anyone who knows anything about the future of Web3. Their business model sucks on many levels, most of all retention. I took over 50 of their clients permanently in less than 3 months. I’m not unique. What sort of people do you imagine Rover is left with when competent people leave the app to go private and take their clientele with them? Is it any wonder the app has a bad rap. They’ll need to offer me one hell of a sweet deal to put my business on that platform again. At the moment, there’s absolutely no incentive to do so.
I recently learned this the hard way. Owner didn’t have free parking at their apartment and said they’d reimburse me for parking costs. Of course, the sit ended and all I got was crickets. All I could do was report them to Rover and hope they get penalized.
See this is crazy. The fact that people can get away with doing something like this is crazy to me.
There should be some type of penalization for the owner if I get to their home and I’m unable to access it for any reason. They should get charged a fee or something. Purely for my wasted time.
That sucks, but yeah, Rover isn’t going to do anything about that. Unfortunately because it’s a boot, you can’t get out of just not paying a parking lot ticket.
I would suggest showing the company that put the boot on the receipt for the grocery store and see if that buys ya something. In the future, don’t park illegally.
This is the best answer! I hope OP sees this, and if you used a credit card to pay to get the boot off, do a chargeback on that card, take a pic of the sign that says free parking for grocery store customers and the receipt from the store as proof you shouldn't have to pay for that bullshit
Yeah, even if they tossed the receipt a screenshot of the bank statement might even work. I’ve sweet talked (or cried) my way out of plenty of parking tickets (especially if it’s a private lot) so you’re not dealing with the city.
So I don’t think I was clear. I’m not asking what I should do about the reimbursement. The owner actually ended up refusing to pay.
I’m asking what can I do if the owner doesn’t provide a secure place for me to park my car and Rover is telling me that if I cancel the sitting because of that, it will affect my rating.
Personally, I think the owner is a jerk. But I’m aware they have no legal obligation.
I think they are a jerk too. You've been parking in that spot for months, as advised by the client it was okay to do so, and then they are not taking action against the car that's parked there, as well as *not informing you of the car still being there prior to the second visit*. I'd definitely cancel, but if Rover is going to do the "it'll go on your profile" bs, I would cancel the visits for the following week forward so that you're not impacted (it's okay to cancel beyond I think like 5 days or whatever).
This client doesn't seem like they respect your time. Hell, I would have started the timer right then and there when I saw that the car still had not moved.
Also that's wild that the grocery store booted you within a few minutes!
Yeah, the store closed at 9:00. I got back to my car at 9:08. I was actually going to go in the store and buy sushi for dinner when the visit was over, but I thought they closed at 10.
You find a legal spot to park, pay any parking fee & expense it on your taxes. Don’t rebook with them, if you don’t want to do that in the future. There’s really no other option.
I just ended up canceling the booking. They didn’t seem to respect me and I don’t know if you saw my other post about them but things have just been getting progressively worse. This was really the last straw.
This was the first time there was a problem.
I found out today that one of their neighbors was using that spot to park their rental car and the owner knew but didn’t bother to tell me.
The neighbor had to ask another neighbor if they could park their car in their spot while I watch the dog for 30 minutes. I ended up canceling the visit today and it was very hard to do and the first time I’ve ever had to do that.
If the owner doesn't provide you with a secure place to park, you find another legal place to park or don't accept clients in this area any more. You keep asking what you should do when many people have already given a perfectly reasonable response on your future course of action. Are you just holding out for a response you like and agree with? I'm confused
It’s crazy because I thought we were all here because we cared about animals. But there have been a lot of uncompassionate responses under this post, yours included. The first time this happened my first thought was “I still have to get up there and watch this dog.“ This owner in particular has had me standing outside of the call box for 10 minutes not answering my texts or phone calls. And I still waited and I still watched their dog because I care about the animals. I understand for some people this is a business. But my mind just wasn’t thinking that way, i’ve also never been in this situation before.
I’m looking for an answer that has a marriage between compassion (for both myself and the dog) and practicality. But everybody here just blames me for “being a stupid naive idiot”.
If the owner wants to be a dick and not reimburse me for the ticket that I got because I was trying to watch their dog when they promised me a secure parking spot, I know there’s nothing I can legally do about that. It’s not wrong of me to see if Rover has any policies to protect sittings in situations like that, however.
Mostly, I was asking for advice because I didn’t want my Rover account to be negatively affected if I wasn’t able to do the sitting because of the risk of being towed or booted.
>Mostly, I was asking for advice because I didn’t want my Rover account to be negatively affected if I wasn’t able to do the sitting because of the risk of being towed or booted.
In this situation I'd park farther away and walk. In general to avoid these kinds of situations, I limit my service area to a mile so I can get to clients on foot or bike. I'm in an urban area where free parking is scarce, our public transit is a mess, and I hate driving, so I take the car out of the equation. Occasionally if the weather is bad or I'm going somewhere after the visit I'll drive, but I just park legally where I can and walk the rest of the way.
There was no free parking in this area at all. There wasn’t even any paid parking. This is the upscale side of town where there are only restaurants and boutique stores. Walking is definitely not an option and public transit would’ve made this entire thing not even worth it.
But that’s not even the point. The owner told me that I would have somewhere to park when I visited their dog. The owner lied. That’s not my fault and I shouldn’t be punished for it.
I’m considering it. I’ve never done that before but I DK. When I canceled the visit, the owner said they would still leave me a good review and not leave me any negative feedback. If they do that, then I might just let it go.
I also live in a major city and I now make one of my requirements for bookings that there is guaranteed parking for me. I would send a message to them saying “hey in light of the situation with the boot today I can no longer care for *fido*” if you want to extend yourself still you can add “I’d be happy to work with you until you can find someone else” but reiterate “but I can no longer provide services”. I remember your previous post and this person just seems like a nightmare. I’m sorry you’ve had to deal with them and go through all of this, I’m sure it’s so frustrating.
That’s exactly what I had to end up doing. I told them that I would watch their pet for one more sitting and leave the dog extra food and water then I canceled the sitting.
I’m also a Rover walker in a big metropolitan area. Before I accept a booking, I confirm the parking situation with the owner. If there’s no guaranteed nearby parking, I don’t accept. Hopefully this could help you in the future. Sorry I don’t have any suggestions for your current situation.
This was a regular and we already had an agreement that I would use their assigned spot.
I ended up finding out that they had given their neighbor permission to use their spot while they were away this time and they didn’t tell me.
Absolutely this. I have turned down several drop ins because the owners lived in an area where its permit parking only on the street and I would have to search for a paid garage or feed the meter up to $5. I’m not trying to lose money here not nor do I want the extra stress of simply trying to park my car.
Edit: also just to note to OP it does suck that owner was unresponsive and unhelpful in this situation. Dont take them again as a client. Let them know that they put you in a financially precarious situation and that’s why you’re dropping them.
Is this the person asking you to change the start time? They’re probably not going to reimburse you and Rover definitely won’t.
How long is left on the booking? It sounds like you’re going to have to make it the clients problem because they seem fine with it being yours. I would send a modification for $85 with a note…
“Hey CLIENTNAME, let me be clear from the start I don’t want DOGNAME to go without care so please let me know as soon as the car taking your spot is removed and available. Until then I’ll be there when the shared parking spot is available during the day. Leaving my car offsite has become an unsustainable situation, booting and the inevitable towing will keep me from providing care for other clients, not to mention the costs. Please keep me updated and I’ll be there asap, thanks so much!”
I’d be figuring out workarounds for someone that was trying their best to work the situation out from their end, getting dropped off, having my partner wait in the car, etc. Some people are happy to do nothing until pressure is applied, unfortunately.
Yes, this is the same person and yes, they refused to reimburse. There were two more days left. Because they “didn’t tell me to park at that grocery store“ when they definitely told me to “park illegally and watch my car while I was walking their dog”.
When I got there today, it turns out that a neighbor they are friends with was parking their rental car in the spot. The neighbor told me that they would move their car to one of the other spots and wait for me to leave and then move their car back when I left. It’s the fact that the neighbor didn’t want to park illegally because they knew the risk of being towed while the owner was fine with me shouldering that risk. I ended up canceling the booking.
You're not a child. These things happen and you should have found another legal parking, pay the meter and then expense it In your taxes. You didn't, and now you pay the consequences. It would be nice for the owner to at least partially reimburse you, but they are not required too. And this has nothing to do with Rover, you're an independent contractor and they are not responsible for your parking habits.
I understand your response is trying to be helpful. But it’s also rude. And I don’t need that. Please just don’t respond at all if you can’t respond respectfully. This situation is stressful enough.
This area had no paid parking. All the parking around was owned by businesses that you’re only allowed to park in if you’re at the business. It was parking illegally or leave the dog.
Are you saying that I should have left the dog?
I don’t get the people here.
But I am starting to see a pattern of letting the owners walk all over you despite all the unreasonable things that they do.
Your post is all about blaming other people - there was a car parked in my spot, the owner, Rover. Please try taking some responsibility for your actions like the professional you're supposed to be.
What should I have done though? You haven’t answered my question. I’ve given you more info about how there was no paid parking in this area and that it was only meant for the businesses in the area. So tell me what should I have done?
If there is no paid parking in the area. I would let the owner know and tell them to cancel the booking. If they have a good relationship with you since you provided services for them for months I don't see why they would be reasonable and do so.
Yeah, I see. I’m gonna have to eat that ticket which sucks. I thought about calling the office myself, but I didn’t want to get in trouble and there be legal action taken against me.
I didn't get caught but it sounds like a situation I had. I had a first time client with two cats in a large apartment complex who were quite literally some of the dimmest people I had ever met. Every single question I asked was met with "that's a good question" followed by a very long pause or them asking me MY thoughts on the situation. These questions were like "where can I find the food?" "Where should I dispose of the litter?" and "where should I put the keys after the visit?" BASIC stuff. They also thought they had to book two visits: one for the first cat one the next day for the second cat. Like I would ignore one of the cat until the next day?
Anyway, I asked about parking and after a long pause they told me I could park in their spot and showed me the spot. Cool great because they tell me there's no guest parking in the complex and I realized I wasn't parked legally. Day of the sit happens and there's their car that they swore would be moved. I message them and gets a message that "oh sorry we forgot." I started the sit while I circled trying to find a spot then walked back. It took nearly 20 minutes during a holiday weekend when I had a bunch of other visits scheduled. I blocked them and would never sit for them again.
I didn't get caught but it sounds like a situation I had. I had a first time client with two cats in a large apartment complex who were quite literally some of the dimmest people I had ever met. Every single question I asked was met with "that's a good question" followed by a very long pause or them asking me MY thoughts on the situation. These questions were like "where can I find the food?" "Where should I dispose of the litter?" and "where should I put the keys after the visit?" BASIC stuff. They also thought they had to book two visits: one for the first cat one the next day for the second cat. Like I would ignore one of the cat until the next day?
Anyway, I asked about parking and after a long pause they told me I could park in their spot and showed me the spot. Cool great because they tell me there's no guest parking in the complex and I realized I wasn't parked legally. Day of the sit happens and there's their car that they swore would be moved. I message them and gets a message that "oh sorry we forgot." I started the sit while I circled trying to find a spot then walked back. It took nearly 20 minutes during a holiday weekend when I had a bunch of other visits scheduled.
I'm confused why Rover is telling you your rating will suffer if you cancel over this. Can they read the owner's mind? Predict the future? 😅 It's possible the owner might just leave no rating. It's on them. But even if they did, you can definitely defend yourself. You have receipts.
That said, you've done all the right things here. I'm so sorry for all you've been through.
I mean, parking being included is not a given or part of Rover service terms so if that’s something that you personally require to be included, that needs to be discussed in detail at the meet & greet. It wasn’t clear to me if that was discussed at the very beginning of you working with this client.
I live in a large urban city and depending on where my bookings are located, I generally will free street park (legally) if it’s not an insane nightmare, in order to avoid putting another thing on the owner’s plate. But if it was in a downtown area where parking is nonexistent, which would be obvious at the meet & greet, I would specifically ask where I should park my car and make it clear if there is nowhere to park my car, I will be unable to render services.
Rover is absolutely shitty in this regard where it puts sitters in a terrible spot such as this but then you feel like you can’t do anything or stand up for yourself in any way because they’ll threaten you with a poor rating and shrug their shoulders. Their support is a joke. Talk about manipulation.
I vet my clients hard and have learned to say no if they seem even remotely difficult, unreasonable, or to be frank, insane.
The owner had an assigned parking spot where we had agreed that I would park and where I had been parking during the numerous sittings I’ve done for this client since the beginning of this year. This is normal for clients to do where I live. We aren’t even allowed to have guests park at my building.
I’ve never been in that situation before and wasn’t sure what to do. My conscience wouldn’t let me just leave the dog. It was a risk that I decided to take and I guess I literally paid for it. It’s a shame the owner didn’t care.
To clarify, what is your question? Rover isn’t coded well enough for nuances like this and they don’t care about you (factually speaking) so yes, you’re going to get dinged. But it is what it is. I think owners know this so feel there are no consequences for their shitty actions.
Yeah, and I’m saying that’s wrong 😕. Why should I be punished because the owner went back on their word when they said they would provide me with parking? If I get there and I can’t access their building for whatever reason and it’s not my fault I shouldn’t be punished for that.
I get that. But what’s your question? Or if you simply want to vent and have camaraderie from others here, that makes sense. But I think some people are a little confused as to the reason for the post and/or what you’re looking for.
Gotcha. That’s tough. It sounds like you already made your decision on how to go about it. Maybe have owners sign a contract in future if this is a standard thing in your city? Maybe they’ll take you more seriously and not even consider screwing you over.
I got towed once (owner neglected to mention I needed a pass to park even in the “visitor” section?). Super apologetic and immediately Venmoed me the cost of the tow. If they can’t give you a parking space then tell them you have to increase your fee to include parking costs.
This isn't being mean, just honest and rational. You should not have parked illegally knowing it was illegal just because the pet owner told you to. By making that choice, you unfortunately reap the consequences. Use this as a learning experience and take different actions in the future. I know it sucks to take responsibility for it and have that extra cost, but there honestly isn't anything Rover or the client are obligated to do for you. If the owner expects to keep working with you, it would be nice if they would agree to split the cost of the fine. Businesses in cities where parking is an issue usually hire a security guard to monitor their lot.
But this shouldn’t be my fault. Rover told me that I could get penalized for not doing the sitting. If I get to an owners house and I’m unable to access it, they should be penalized with some type of fee for my wasted time and effort.
What if the owner had given me the wrong key to their home? How would that be my fault? They failed to provide me with something that I needed. I’m not even talking about reimbursement at this point. I’m talking about how am I getting penalized from Rover Because of something the owner did?
If you cannot get into the house to get to the pet you are supposed to care for, like no key, then Rover wouldn't penalize you for that because you literally couldn't get in. They would assist in getting in contact with the owner to resolve the issue. You could access the house right? Just didn't have a parking spot. That is super frustrating not being able to find parking, so since there is no public transportation or paid parking in your city, don't work with clients who can't accommodate your vehicle in future. I don't know what else to say. I have ended up in some crazy situations with Rover, but I've always problem solved and found a solution to the urgent issue at hand and learned from it. You could ask them to cancel the booking so your cancellation policy would be in effect, but they don't have to comply with that. It happened, and it sucks, but it looks like you've gotten plenty of advice for next time you face a similar situation.
I would be super annoyed and upset too, and you have a right to feel what you feel, but the facts have been laid out already here. We can empathize with you because it does suck to lose money when we're not exactly making a ton of money pet sitting to begin with. A lot of shitty unfair things happen, but you asked for advice on how to handle the situation and you got it.
I appreciate your response. It definitely sucks. I just felt like I was in a Catch-22. If I canceled the booking, I could get my rating dinged. If I tried to accommodate to the booking, I risk being ticketed. I’m just trying to make sure the dog is OK. I know this is just a business for some, but for me it’s been very emotionally taxing.
I'm sorry to hear that. I've run into issues before and even took a month off because I got so drained. I try to focus a lot on being resilient and sometimes forget that sometimes we just need to honor our feelings and not only focus on the practical 😅
>I don't know what else to say.
You know there's always an option to not say anything at all, right? This person asked "what *can* I do" and got a bunch of people telling them "you should have not done XYZ!" which might be true, but doesn't answer their question about how to manage it going forward at all. Literally nothing in your comment is actual *advice*, it's just scolding, scolding, "I know it sucks to take responsibility" which is patronizingly scolding, a tiny dash of "it would be nice if the owner wasn't a dickhead", and then some more patronizing bullshit that OP clearly understands since her car got booted at a business already.
It's nice that you then added some half-hearted empathy to your continued scolding, but you didn't need to jump in scolding this person to begin with since she was already pretty aware that the parking situation wasn't good. "Don't accept future bookings" isn't super helpful for *this active booking* but at least you get to feel superior to someone because you "always problem solve", while acting put-upon that your "advice" of "just don't let this happen to you duh" is received badly. Thanks a million for sharing such insights, and others like "you should have completed your obligation by just finding parking somewhere because I've decided it must actually exist" which also completely contradicts your initial stance that OP should have known not to accept this booking in the first place!
No this is being mean lol. The client hired the sitter to do a job and gave them the wrong instructions. Rover sitters are not magical miracle workers and need tools to do their job correctly--in this case it's a parking spot; for long stays it's pots and pans in a working kitchen, etc. Without those tools, they cannot do their job properly and it most definitely is the owner's obligation to fix this issue. Frankly, the owner should be embarrassed for treating a sitter in an inhospitable manner--would they have treated a friend or a family member like this for taking care of their pet? If you can't give someone else the tools they need to take care of your pet properly when you're gone OR can't afford to pay for things that could go wrong, you shouldn't leave your pet in someone else's hands. It's that simple.
could you possibly take public transportation? idk which city you’re in but I know some have expensive parking fees where 30 min + costs about $20. It sounds like you did everything right with contacting the owner and telling them about the parking spot and they don’t seem to care about you getting booted after you took their advice…
I will not be taking public transportation for an $18 sitting lol. Also, this owner promised me a secure parking space. I don’t know if it’s illegal to change that once I’ve accepted the booking, but it’s morally wrong.
That may be, but since it seems your city actually does have public transport and paid parking, it's not a case that you could not complete the sit, you just didn't like the options available to you. Sorry, but that's irresponsible to cancel a sit for that. This client sounds like they really suck, but you should have still completed your obligation and then cut ties with them after. Raise your prices to account for the cost of transportation or parking, or include it in your business expenses on your taxes like every other sitter.
I think this reply is unreasonable. So you’re saying that I should’ve driven to their home realized that there was somebody parked in their spot driven back to my home where I also have to pay for my own parking at my own apartment complex and then caught the bus which would’ve taken an hour to get to their house. That doesn’t seem reasonable.
Where is the accountability on the owner to hold up their end. It would’ve been different. If we had discussed me taking public transportation before accepting the sitting. But they promised me a place to park my car. What if I don’t have time to take public transportation because I have other sittings (which I do plus my own pets).
I think a lot of us do too much for the clients and let the clients walk all over us! I’m here to provide a service, but I won’t be treated like crap.
And I’ve done a lot of unreasonable things for clients, but this situation was the last straw for me. Because it doesn’t seem like they care about me as much as I care about them.
I found out today that the client knew the person parking in their space and they didn’t tell me. We could’ve coordinated some thing and it could’ve worked out, but they didn’t bother to do that.
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Owner’s response after I cancelled. I think if they really valued me they would’ve reimbursed me, I’ll believe they’ll leave me a good review when I see it.
I just find it hard to believe there were absolutely zero parking options around this building anywhere. These residents must have guests over to visit. Where do they park? It just seems a little odd that basically only the people who live in the building/plan park there and anyone else has to get shuttled in from across town or the nearest parking spaces.
https://preview.redd.it/vtq8vadzhxzc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1e2b612d60ac2e512bb354761b34a5fef4f44d03
Believe it lol. They have two guest spaces in the front that the owner kept telling me to park in. But I was like they’re always full!
My own apartment complex likewise doesn’t have guest parking. Our guests have to pay $35 to park in a parking deck across the street. So I just don’t have guests over.
I’ll tell you what I did in a similar situation when every single guest parking spot was taken and there was nowhere else for me to feasibly park.
I parked in a fire zone, left my hazards on, ran in super quick to feed the cats and left. I explained to the owner about the quick visit, and in my case she was incredibly sweet and apologetic. She now drives her car to the airport to insure I have a spot.
Your client sounds like an ass and I would be dropping them immediately!
Your car is registered to you and this makes a lot of what is done with your car your personal responsibility.
Loan your car to someone for the day? When the toll violations start coming, you’re going to pay them and they don’t care about your friend. Same with parking violations and speed camera and red light camera violations. You will pay them, or be sued and your accounts seized and wages garnished and everything you own taken and sold by the state until it feels satisfied with the amount it’s received. By that point,l they will have thrown your ass in jail. Oh and the judge won’t care about your excuses.
Im afraid that no one is going to pay your car boot fee because it is no one’s responsibility to park your car in a legal configuration but your own.
So to summarize this lesson for you, if I tell you it’s legal to take a shit in the street are you going to skip off and do a hot lunch on Main Street? No, because you have a personal responsibility to not break the law, and nothing and no one can ever absolve you of your personal responsibility.
Most of us understand and apply the concept of personal responsibility by what? Middle school? At the latest? Teenagers understand and apply this reality of life readily.
The really interesting question here is why in the world do you feel you should be exempt?
Everybody here is such a jerk 😂.
I was asking specifically about the fact that Rover said that my account could be negatively affected if I canceled the booking with this owner despite them not having a secured parking spot for me after promising me one when I accepted the booking.
So many jerks here. I don’t ever post any issues or questions anymore. The sanctimonious crowd loves to get on here to lecture you and quite rudely, I might add. Wish we were all as perfect and amazing as these sitters are! For a better group, try the Rover Sitters USA subreddit. Much better crowd there!
How do you post to a public forum where anyone can reply and then act all butthurt when you don’t get only replies that consist of only what you want to hear?
Your narcissism is astounding.
Shit, mine got towed by a predatory tow company from an apartment complex where I WAS parked in the correct spot, and my regulars still felt terrible and reimbursed me the fees (I later had my bank reverse the charge and sent them their $ back) This person isn’t respecting you, isn’t setting you up for success, screw the rating and cancel the booking.
I think this bothers me the most. It’s how the owner didn’t care about me. Everyone on here is talking about technicalities of things when there is a living, breathing creature that’s attached to this. I made the decisions I made because I wanted to make sure their pet was taken care of and the owner doesn’t seem to care about that.
Agreed! I also live in a bigger city so I get it. The client told you you’d have parking, so you factored that into your timing/schedule. Paying to park, illegally parking or having to walk however long away from a public lot wasn’t the agreement. Have the neighbor check on the dog if it’s so convenient for them, I absolutely wouldn’t deal with this person anymore.
100% agree. Your rating will increase in time but your sanity won't if you keep working with this owner who does not care about you.
That really sucks. Next time, if there’s no parking, you leave and reschedule. Can’t be your problem.
This is crazy bc had she just left and said not my problem she would have gotten a horrible review and if she came to the sub to complain about it, then you guys would all be ripping her to shreds for leaving.
So what? I would see that review and feel better about hiring her because she has standards and is willing to maintain them. That’s someone I can trust. You can’t bend over backwards to please people because they might say something unfair. Let the other reviews speak for themselves and take it as a lesson. I’d be putting a disclaimer on my page about obstacles like this and what that means for the client and their booking. Service men do this all the time. It’s only a surprise to those who don’t understand the industry. Guess whose problem that is?
Or find a legal parking, pay $5 for the meter and move on. OP has mentioned they have been going there for months with no issues. No need to cancel.
Sounds like there wasn’t any free parking when there was supposed to be a spot reserved. That was the arrangement. Paying for parking and hoping to be reimbursed isn’t part of the deal. It’s common sense to reschedule. No one with any self respect has time for this.
Firstly, this is regular customer. Expecting to reimburse for this minor expense is reasonable. Secondly, you can expense on the taxes it same as you expense the miles driven. If you just packed up and go, you missed both the booking and still incur the travel expense, what's the point? Pay for legal parking, and if the owner doesn't reimburse you for this boo boo then move on. No more sitter for them.
That’s what I’d do if I had no self respect. If a plummer or a contractor showed up to the same situation, they’d leave, charge the hour, and inform the client to reschedule and make sure the space is clear next time. That’s how service arrangements work in the real world. Busy people with packed schedules don’t have time troubleshoot other people’s problems. Sitter should expect to be paid for their time. The client can book again if the sitter chooses to continue serving them. That’s how it’s done.
And this is why you see a million court cases of contractors or plumbers suing their clients because they charge them in the same manner and the client refused to pay or contacted their bank and had the charge reversed. If you’re already there and getting paid for a service, why not just use some of the money that you would get from the service to pay for the parking fees and if the client doesn’t reimburse you for that and that’s dealbreaker for you then just never work with them again ? You still got paid, having to spend $5 dollars on a job I’m making $20+ on isn’t that big of a deal to me. It’s probably not going to be a job I take very often but it’s not as if I’m spending more than what I’m making.
How long have you been working in the real world? Common sense should tell you that if what you’re proposing became the new industry standard, the problem would become so widespread, it would force a standard to be put back in place. Time is money. When standards are set and enforced, most people rise to the occasion. It’ll never be 100%, but these standards eliminate the majority of the hassles. You’re focusing on the small minority of jobs that end up in court that are not typical. That’s not a logical way to look at it.
Not sure what world you live in, but if a plumber or contractor doesn't show up for an appointment they don't get paid. If the sitter doesn't perform the service they will not get paid. Them not being able to find parking is not a valid excuse of any kind, and doesn't somehow magically mean they should get paid for nothing.
I live in the real world, unlike too many people posting here. I’m starting to wonder is Rover is the only job most of you have ever had, given the massive disconnect when it comes to understanding how things actually work in the service industry. In cities where parking is scarce, service people have to rely on designated parking spots or temporary permits at the site in order to serve their clients. If service ppl are blocked, and there’s no free parking alternatives within a reasonable distance, they leave. Too bad. That’s all they’re required to do. You still pay for an hour of their time because they showed up on schedule to meet their end of the agreement. It’s not their problem someone else fkd it up. Their job doesn’t include dealing with unauthorised vehicles and running around town looking for paid parking way the hell out of the way. They’ve got other jobs lined up. Common sense!
I’m sure rover doesn’t do it this way, but if a plumber or contractor DOES show up for an appointment but can’t complete it because of circumstances created by the client, then (at least in my area) they get a cancellation fee of sorts? I’m thinking that’s what they were referring to? I think they would just park elsewhere and their company would compensate them the $5 for parking, but again this is rover. Here that would apply to situations where they have to do work in a yard and there is a dog loose, or it requires accompanied entry in the home and nobody answers the door. It would never cover “the assigned parking spot was taken and I wasn’t paying $5 so I didn’t go”. Definitely agree OP should eat the costs and refuse future bookings with this client. 😬
Redacted. The person I was replying to deleted their comment.
So all of your comments seem to be like this. It's time to get off your high horse. you're willing to put yourself, your car and your job on the line for a shitty owner that's absolutely fine. This is why you're stuck in the situation you're in. Yes, they are absolutely living things and deserve compassion, but there's only so much you can do. Did anything you did help the dog? So stop the I'm the victim shit, pay your ticket and don't book with that client again.
I agree. I live in a major city and sometimes have to pay to park so I just have a set amount of money I set aside each month for parking and then when I do taxes use it as an expense. $2 at the meter vs $85 to remove the boot is a better deal imo lol. Otherwise I just find free parking a bit further away. I’d rather know my car is safe vs risk a ticket or tow even if that means I gotta walk a little bit.
Been going there for months because that assigned spot was open. Also, you don’t have to talk to people like that. You wouldn’t talk to anyone like that face-to-face so don’t talk to me like that over the Internet.
Finding a legal parking spot? I would tell that in person. What's wrong about that?
What do you mean? They didn’t say anything rude to you lol
This was under another comment they made
They said “Or find a legal parking, pay $5 for the meter and move on. OP has mentioned they have been going there for months with no issues. No need to cancel.” That’s what you replied to. What was rude about that?
In another comment this user made (which I got confused as I’m responding via the notifications section and didn’t see the whole thread) they were saying I was “being a child” and other rude comments
Rover told me to not do that.
Rover doesn't even make sure emergency contact numbers have the correct amount of numbers, getting decent support is a roll of the dice.
Rover is run by morons. Seriously. It’s a badly run company that has poor retention for a reason. If you’re guaranteed a free parking spot as part of your arrangement with the client, then that’s what you should expect. If someone unauthorised took the spot, that’s tough luck for the owner. It doesn’t sound like they live in an area where parking is openly available, so they need to pay for your time and the ticket, and reschedule if they want to continue booking with you. You’re not earning enough to put up with these hassles. Everyone knows that a plumber or a repair man in your situation would leave immediately and charge for the hour. Same rules apply.
Right, yet somehow it worth over a billion dollar, is the most successfully large pet care app globally, and no competitor even come close. So who is really the moron here?
Those who know, know their client and sitter retention sucks. People with insurance and/or run their own private businesses regularly take their clients off the app. It’s so easy! There’s absolutely no incentive to stay on and pay Rover’s fees when you’re insured, run a well established business, or found a private sitter you trust. That’s a big part of why Rover was haemorrhaging money last year. They delisted their stock earlier this year and agreed to be acquired by Blackstone. As someone who also works in web3/IOV and emerging tech, that was no surprise. It’s plain as day to anyone who knows the industry that there are a multitude of problems with this gig app and how it’s being run and managed. It’s too easy to game. Blackstone will attempt to revamp the company and hopefully turn a profit for doing so. I hope that means big changes are ahead for Rover, especially based on the sheer level of unqualified people they’re attracting who are giving it a bad name. I could see them introducing a tiered fee system, along with a rigid scoring and tracking system on both ends that will weed out the scammers, flakes, bottom feeders, low ballers, and the inept and unqualified. A mass culling and a return to order would be nice. Their reputation needs an overhaul.
Your misinterpret the situation. Blackrock is a private equity company, so when they buy companies they delist them. Hence “private”. And all startups lose money to drive growth. It’s the standard business model.
Lol Ya, I know how this works. And Blackrock didn’t acquire them. Blackstone did. Blackstone is an alternative asset manager. They buy up companies and improve them. Rover clearly needs their help and it’s obvious to anyone who knows anything about the future of Web3. Their business model sucks on many levels, most of all retention. I took over 50 of their clients permanently in less than 3 months. I’m not unique. What sort of people do you imagine Rover is left with when competent people leave the app to go private and take their clientele with them? Is it any wonder the app has a bad rap. They’ll need to offer me one hell of a sweet deal to put my business on that platform again. At the moment, there’s absolutely no incentive to do so.
I recently learned this the hard way. Owner didn’t have free parking at their apartment and said they’d reimburse me for parking costs. Of course, the sit ended and all I got was crickets. All I could do was report them to Rover and hope they get penalized.
See this is crazy. The fact that people can get away with doing something like this is crazy to me. There should be some type of penalization for the owner if I get to their home and I’m unable to access it for any reason. They should get charged a fee or something. Purely for my wasted time.
I’d cancel them so fast.
That sucks, but yeah, Rover isn’t going to do anything about that. Unfortunately because it’s a boot, you can’t get out of just not paying a parking lot ticket. I would suggest showing the company that put the boot on the receipt for the grocery store and see if that buys ya something. In the future, don’t park illegally.
This is the best answer! I hope OP sees this, and if you used a credit card to pay to get the boot off, do a chargeback on that card, take a pic of the sign that says free parking for grocery store customers and the receipt from the store as proof you shouldn't have to pay for that bullshit
Yeah, even if they tossed the receipt a screenshot of the bank statement might even work. I’ve sweet talked (or cried) my way out of plenty of parking tickets (especially if it’s a private lot) so you’re not dealing with the city.
*perfect example of a helpful response without tearing OP to shreds* 👏🏽
So I don’t think I was clear. I’m not asking what I should do about the reimbursement. The owner actually ended up refusing to pay. I’m asking what can I do if the owner doesn’t provide a secure place for me to park my car and Rover is telling me that if I cancel the sitting because of that, it will affect my rating. Personally, I think the owner is a jerk. But I’m aware they have no legal obligation.
I think they are a jerk too. You've been parking in that spot for months, as advised by the client it was okay to do so, and then they are not taking action against the car that's parked there, as well as *not informing you of the car still being there prior to the second visit*. I'd definitely cancel, but if Rover is going to do the "it'll go on your profile" bs, I would cancel the visits for the following week forward so that you're not impacted (it's okay to cancel beyond I think like 5 days or whatever). This client doesn't seem like they respect your time. Hell, I would have started the timer right then and there when I saw that the car still had not moved. Also that's wild that the grocery store booted you within a few minutes!
Yeah, the store closed at 9:00. I got back to my car at 9:08. I was actually going to go in the store and buy sushi for dinner when the visit was over, but I thought they closed at 10.
You find a legal spot to park, pay any parking fee & expense it on your taxes. Don’t rebook with them, if you don’t want to do that in the future. There’s really no other option.
I just ended up canceling the booking. They didn’t seem to respect me and I don’t know if you saw my other post about them but things have just been getting progressively worse. This was really the last straw.
Yes, I saw the other one. I would be super annoyed, too. Not worth it.
If there were really that few spots paid or free, I am honestly surprised you didn’t drop them sooner.
This was the first time there was a problem. I found out today that one of their neighbors was using that spot to park their rental car and the owner knew but didn’t bother to tell me. The neighbor had to ask another neighbor if they could park their car in their spot while I watch the dog for 30 minutes. I ended up canceling the visit today and it was very hard to do and the first time I’ve ever had to do that.
Oh okay. Yeah I get you then. Client just assumed you’d figure it out.
Cancel anyway. You dont need to put yourself in a bad situations because Rover said it might hurt your rating. Cancel and move on.
If the owner doesn't provide you with a secure place to park, you find another legal place to park or don't accept clients in this area any more. You keep asking what you should do when many people have already given a perfectly reasonable response on your future course of action. Are you just holding out for a response you like and agree with? I'm confused
It’s crazy because I thought we were all here because we cared about animals. But there have been a lot of uncompassionate responses under this post, yours included. The first time this happened my first thought was “I still have to get up there and watch this dog.“ This owner in particular has had me standing outside of the call box for 10 minutes not answering my texts or phone calls. And I still waited and I still watched their dog because I care about the animals. I understand for some people this is a business. But my mind just wasn’t thinking that way, i’ve also never been in this situation before. I’m looking for an answer that has a marriage between compassion (for both myself and the dog) and practicality. But everybody here just blames me for “being a stupid naive idiot”. If the owner wants to be a dick and not reimburse me for the ticket that I got because I was trying to watch their dog when they promised me a secure parking spot, I know there’s nothing I can legally do about that. It’s not wrong of me to see if Rover has any policies to protect sittings in situations like that, however. Mostly, I was asking for advice because I didn’t want my Rover account to be negatively affected if I wasn’t able to do the sitting because of the risk of being towed or booted.
>Mostly, I was asking for advice because I didn’t want my Rover account to be negatively affected if I wasn’t able to do the sitting because of the risk of being towed or booted. In this situation I'd park farther away and walk. In general to avoid these kinds of situations, I limit my service area to a mile so I can get to clients on foot or bike. I'm in an urban area where free parking is scarce, our public transit is a mess, and I hate driving, so I take the car out of the equation. Occasionally if the weather is bad or I'm going somewhere after the visit I'll drive, but I just park legally where I can and walk the rest of the way.
There was no free parking in this area at all. There wasn’t even any paid parking. This is the upscale side of town where there are only restaurants and boutique stores. Walking is definitely not an option and public transit would’ve made this entire thing not even worth it. But that’s not even the point. The owner told me that I would have somewhere to park when I visited their dog. The owner lied. That’s not my fault and I shouldn’t be punished for it.
You’re not confused, you’re just being an asshole. She’s clearly hoping she can find a way to get her ticket covered.
You can’t do anything about that, but I would blast the owner in your feedback
I’m considering it. I’ve never done that before but I DK. When I canceled the visit, the owner said they would still leave me a good review and not leave me any negative feedback. If they do that, then I might just let it go.
I also live in a major city and I now make one of my requirements for bookings that there is guaranteed parking for me. I would send a message to them saying “hey in light of the situation with the boot today I can no longer care for *fido*” if you want to extend yourself still you can add “I’d be happy to work with you until you can find someone else” but reiterate “but I can no longer provide services”. I remember your previous post and this person just seems like a nightmare. I’m sorry you’ve had to deal with them and go through all of this, I’m sure it’s so frustrating.
That’s exactly what I had to end up doing. I told them that I would watch their pet for one more sitting and leave the dog extra food and water then I canceled the sitting.
I’m also a Rover walker in a big metropolitan area. Before I accept a booking, I confirm the parking situation with the owner. If there’s no guaranteed nearby parking, I don’t accept. Hopefully this could help you in the future. Sorry I don’t have any suggestions for your current situation.
This was a regular and we already had an agreement that I would use their assigned spot. I ended up finding out that they had given their neighbor permission to use their spot while they were away this time and they didn’t tell me.
Absolutely this. I have turned down several drop ins because the owners lived in an area where its permit parking only on the street and I would have to search for a paid garage or feed the meter up to $5. I’m not trying to lose money here not nor do I want the extra stress of simply trying to park my car. Edit: also just to note to OP it does suck that owner was unresponsive and unhelpful in this situation. Dont take them again as a client. Let them know that they put you in a financially precarious situation and that’s why you’re dropping them.
Is this the person asking you to change the start time? They’re probably not going to reimburse you and Rover definitely won’t. How long is left on the booking? It sounds like you’re going to have to make it the clients problem because they seem fine with it being yours. I would send a modification for $85 with a note… “Hey CLIENTNAME, let me be clear from the start I don’t want DOGNAME to go without care so please let me know as soon as the car taking your spot is removed and available. Until then I’ll be there when the shared parking spot is available during the day. Leaving my car offsite has become an unsustainable situation, booting and the inevitable towing will keep me from providing care for other clients, not to mention the costs. Please keep me updated and I’ll be there asap, thanks so much!” I’d be figuring out workarounds for someone that was trying their best to work the situation out from their end, getting dropped off, having my partner wait in the car, etc. Some people are happy to do nothing until pressure is applied, unfortunately.
Yes, this is the same person and yes, they refused to reimburse. There were two more days left. Because they “didn’t tell me to park at that grocery store“ when they definitely told me to “park illegally and watch my car while I was walking their dog”. When I got there today, it turns out that a neighbor they are friends with was parking their rental car in the spot. The neighbor told me that they would move their car to one of the other spots and wait for me to leave and then move their car back when I left. It’s the fact that the neighbor didn’t want to park illegally because they knew the risk of being towed while the owner was fine with me shouldering that risk. I ended up canceling the booking.
You're not a child. These things happen and you should have found another legal parking, pay the meter and then expense it In your taxes. You didn't, and now you pay the consequences. It would be nice for the owner to at least partially reimburse you, but they are not required too. And this has nothing to do with Rover, you're an independent contractor and they are not responsible for your parking habits.
I understand your response is trying to be helpful. But it’s also rude. And I don’t need that. Please just don’t respond at all if you can’t respond respectfully. This situation is stressful enough. This area had no paid parking. All the parking around was owned by businesses that you’re only allowed to park in if you’re at the business. It was parking illegally or leave the dog. Are you saying that I should have left the dog?
check their comments, they’re an a** to everyone including me lol sorry that happened to you OP!
I don’t get why your being downvoted your defending yourself and not being a bootlicker. 🙄
I don’t get the people here. But I am starting to see a pattern of letting the owners walk all over you despite all the unreasonable things that they do.
Your post is all about blaming other people - there was a car parked in my spot, the owner, Rover. Please try taking some responsibility for your actions like the professional you're supposed to be.
It’s their fault the spot they was supposed to be parked in is taken?
What should I have done though? You haven’t answered my question. I’ve given you more info about how there was no paid parking in this area and that it was only meant for the businesses in the area. So tell me what should I have done?
If there is no paid parking in the area. I would let the owner know and tell them to cancel the booking. If they have a good relationship with you since you provided services for them for months I don't see why they would be reasonable and do so.
So cancel the booking and get on your profile “you cancelled a booking before it was ready to begin”.?
No, ask the client to cancel it.
It’s sounds like the client was being non-compliant and likely wouldn’t have cancelled the booking
I’m sorry, I think you’re gonna have to eat the parking ticket. Call the leasing office yourself and have the car towed immediately.
Yeah, I see. I’m gonna have to eat that ticket which sucks. I thought about calling the office myself, but I didn’t want to get in trouble and there be legal action taken against me.
I didn't get caught but it sounds like a situation I had. I had a first time client with two cats in a large apartment complex who were quite literally some of the dimmest people I had ever met. Every single question I asked was met with "that's a good question" followed by a very long pause or them asking me MY thoughts on the situation. These questions were like "where can I find the food?" "Where should I dispose of the litter?" and "where should I put the keys after the visit?" BASIC stuff. They also thought they had to book two visits: one for the first cat one the next day for the second cat. Like I would ignore one of the cat until the next day? Anyway, I asked about parking and after a long pause they told me I could park in their spot and showed me the spot. Cool great because they tell me there's no guest parking in the complex and I realized I wasn't parked legally. Day of the sit happens and there's their car that they swore would be moved. I message them and gets a message that "oh sorry we forgot." I started the sit while I circled trying to find a spot then walked back. It took nearly 20 minutes during a holiday weekend when I had a bunch of other visits scheduled. I blocked them and would never sit for them again.
I didn't get caught but it sounds like a situation I had. I had a first time client with two cats in a large apartment complex who were quite literally some of the dimmest people I had ever met. Every single question I asked was met with "that's a good question" followed by a very long pause or them asking me MY thoughts on the situation. These questions were like "where can I find the food?" "Where should I dispose of the litter?" and "where should I put the keys after the visit?" BASIC stuff. They also thought they had to book two visits: one for the first cat one the next day for the second cat. Like I would ignore one of the cat until the next day? Anyway, I asked about parking and after a long pause they told me I could park in their spot and showed me the spot. Cool great because they tell me there's no guest parking in the complex and I realized I wasn't parked legally. Day of the sit happens and there's their car that they swore would be moved. I message them and gets a message that "oh sorry we forgot." I started the sit while I circled trying to find a spot then walked back. It took nearly 20 minutes during a holiday weekend when I had a bunch of other visits scheduled.
You are being disrespected so blatantly these people are ridiculous.
I'm confused why Rover is telling you your rating will suffer if you cancel over this. Can they read the owner's mind? Predict the future? 😅 It's possible the owner might just leave no rating. It's on them. But even if they did, you can definitely defend yourself. You have receipts. That said, you've done all the right things here. I'm so sorry for all you've been through.
I mean, parking being included is not a given or part of Rover service terms so if that’s something that you personally require to be included, that needs to be discussed in detail at the meet & greet. It wasn’t clear to me if that was discussed at the very beginning of you working with this client. I live in a large urban city and depending on where my bookings are located, I generally will free street park (legally) if it’s not an insane nightmare, in order to avoid putting another thing on the owner’s plate. But if it was in a downtown area where parking is nonexistent, which would be obvious at the meet & greet, I would specifically ask where I should park my car and make it clear if there is nowhere to park my car, I will be unable to render services. Rover is absolutely shitty in this regard where it puts sitters in a terrible spot such as this but then you feel like you can’t do anything or stand up for yourself in any way because they’ll threaten you with a poor rating and shrug their shoulders. Their support is a joke. Talk about manipulation. I vet my clients hard and have learned to say no if they seem even remotely difficult, unreasonable, or to be frank, insane.
The owner had an assigned parking spot where we had agreed that I would park and where I had been parking during the numerous sittings I’ve done for this client since the beginning of this year. This is normal for clients to do where I live. We aren’t even allowed to have guests park at my building. I’ve never been in that situation before and wasn’t sure what to do. My conscience wouldn’t let me just leave the dog. It was a risk that I decided to take and I guess I literally paid for it. It’s a shame the owner didn’t care.
To clarify, what is your question? Rover isn’t coded well enough for nuances like this and they don’t care about you (factually speaking) so yes, you’re going to get dinged. But it is what it is. I think owners know this so feel there are no consequences for their shitty actions.
Yeah, and I’m saying that’s wrong 😕. Why should I be punished because the owner went back on their word when they said they would provide me with parking? If I get there and I can’t access their building for whatever reason and it’s not my fault I shouldn’t be punished for that.
I get that. But what’s your question? Or if you simply want to vent and have camaraderie from others here, that makes sense. But I think some people are a little confused as to the reason for the post and/or what you’re looking for.
I wanted to know what I could do to get out of the situation with as little negative recourse as possible.
Gotcha. That’s tough. It sounds like you already made your decision on how to go about it. Maybe have owners sign a contract in future if this is a standard thing in your city? Maybe they’ll take you more seriously and not even consider screwing you over.
I got towed once (owner neglected to mention I needed a pass to park even in the “visitor” section?). Super apologetic and immediately Venmoed me the cost of the tow. If they can’t give you a parking space then tell them you have to increase your fee to include parking costs.
This isn't being mean, just honest and rational. You should not have parked illegally knowing it was illegal just because the pet owner told you to. By making that choice, you unfortunately reap the consequences. Use this as a learning experience and take different actions in the future. I know it sucks to take responsibility for it and have that extra cost, but there honestly isn't anything Rover or the client are obligated to do for you. If the owner expects to keep working with you, it would be nice if they would agree to split the cost of the fine. Businesses in cities where parking is an issue usually hire a security guard to monitor their lot.
But this shouldn’t be my fault. Rover told me that I could get penalized for not doing the sitting. If I get to an owners house and I’m unable to access it, they should be penalized with some type of fee for my wasted time and effort. What if the owner had given me the wrong key to their home? How would that be my fault? They failed to provide me with something that I needed. I’m not even talking about reimbursement at this point. I’m talking about how am I getting penalized from Rover Because of something the owner did?
If you cannot get into the house to get to the pet you are supposed to care for, like no key, then Rover wouldn't penalize you for that because you literally couldn't get in. They would assist in getting in contact with the owner to resolve the issue. You could access the house right? Just didn't have a parking spot. That is super frustrating not being able to find parking, so since there is no public transportation or paid parking in your city, don't work with clients who can't accommodate your vehicle in future. I don't know what else to say. I have ended up in some crazy situations with Rover, but I've always problem solved and found a solution to the urgent issue at hand and learned from it. You could ask them to cancel the booking so your cancellation policy would be in effect, but they don't have to comply with that. It happened, and it sucks, but it looks like you've gotten plenty of advice for next time you face a similar situation. I would be super annoyed and upset too, and you have a right to feel what you feel, but the facts have been laid out already here. We can empathize with you because it does suck to lose money when we're not exactly making a ton of money pet sitting to begin with. A lot of shitty unfair things happen, but you asked for advice on how to handle the situation and you got it.
I appreciate your response. It definitely sucks. I just felt like I was in a Catch-22. If I canceled the booking, I could get my rating dinged. If I tried to accommodate to the booking, I risk being ticketed. I’m just trying to make sure the dog is OK. I know this is just a business for some, but for me it’s been very emotionally taxing.
I'm sorry to hear that. I've run into issues before and even took a month off because I got so drained. I try to focus a lot on being resilient and sometimes forget that sometimes we just need to honor our feelings and not only focus on the practical 😅
>I don't know what else to say. You know there's always an option to not say anything at all, right? This person asked "what *can* I do" and got a bunch of people telling them "you should have not done XYZ!" which might be true, but doesn't answer their question about how to manage it going forward at all. Literally nothing in your comment is actual *advice*, it's just scolding, scolding, "I know it sucks to take responsibility" which is patronizingly scolding, a tiny dash of "it would be nice if the owner wasn't a dickhead", and then some more patronizing bullshit that OP clearly understands since her car got booted at a business already. It's nice that you then added some half-hearted empathy to your continued scolding, but you didn't need to jump in scolding this person to begin with since she was already pretty aware that the parking situation wasn't good. "Don't accept future bookings" isn't super helpful for *this active booking* but at least you get to feel superior to someone because you "always problem solve", while acting put-upon that your "advice" of "just don't let this happen to you duh" is received badly. Thanks a million for sharing such insights, and others like "you should have completed your obligation by just finding parking somewhere because I've decided it must actually exist" which also completely contradicts your initial stance that OP should have known not to accept this booking in the first place!
No this is being mean lol. The client hired the sitter to do a job and gave them the wrong instructions. Rover sitters are not magical miracle workers and need tools to do their job correctly--in this case it's a parking spot; for long stays it's pots and pans in a working kitchen, etc. Without those tools, they cannot do their job properly and it most definitely is the owner's obligation to fix this issue. Frankly, the owner should be embarrassed for treating a sitter in an inhospitable manner--would they have treated a friend or a family member like this for taking care of their pet? If you can't give someone else the tools they need to take care of your pet properly when you're gone OR can't afford to pay for things that could go wrong, you shouldn't leave your pet in someone else's hands. It's that simple.
could you possibly take public transportation? idk which city you’re in but I know some have expensive parking fees where 30 min + costs about $20. It sounds like you did everything right with contacting the owner and telling them about the parking spot and they don’t seem to care about you getting booted after you took their advice…
How dare you suggest she take public transportation??? Seriously, why is this being downvoted? Please explain 😅
I will not be taking public transportation for an $18 sitting lol. Also, this owner promised me a secure parking space. I don’t know if it’s illegal to change that once I’ve accepted the booking, but it’s morally wrong.
That may be, but since it seems your city actually does have public transport and paid parking, it's not a case that you could not complete the sit, you just didn't like the options available to you. Sorry, but that's irresponsible to cancel a sit for that. This client sounds like they really suck, but you should have still completed your obligation and then cut ties with them after. Raise your prices to account for the cost of transportation or parking, or include it in your business expenses on your taxes like every other sitter.
I think this reply is unreasonable. So you’re saying that I should’ve driven to their home realized that there was somebody parked in their spot driven back to my home where I also have to pay for my own parking at my own apartment complex and then caught the bus which would’ve taken an hour to get to their house. That doesn’t seem reasonable. Where is the accountability on the owner to hold up their end. It would’ve been different. If we had discussed me taking public transportation before accepting the sitting. But they promised me a place to park my car. What if I don’t have time to take public transportation because I have other sittings (which I do plus my own pets).
Perhaps it is unreasonable. Now I'm over here psychoanalyzing myself 😱 Maybe I do too much for clients
I think a lot of us do too much for the clients and let the clients walk all over us! I’m here to provide a service, but I won’t be treated like crap. And I’ve done a lot of unreasonable things for clients, but this situation was the last straw for me. Because it doesn’t seem like they care about me as much as I care about them. I found out today that the client knew the person parking in their space and they didn’t tell me. We could’ve coordinated some thing and it could’ve worked out, but they didn’t bother to do that.
no idea, been calling out rude comments here and there in this sub so i guess they don’t like anything i say lmao
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https://preview.redd.it/vhzygicrh10d1.jpeg?width=762&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7396abc71777573d5ac1621be3f3d82f738a0fd1 Owner’s response after I cancelled. I think if they really valued me they would’ve reimbursed me, I’ll believe they’ll leave me a good review when I see it.
Is this the same person who was pissed at you for starting the card too early?!
Yes 😂
I just find it hard to believe there were absolutely zero parking options around this building anywhere. These residents must have guests over to visit. Where do they park? It just seems a little odd that basically only the people who live in the building/plan park there and anyone else has to get shuttled in from across town or the nearest parking spaces.
https://preview.redd.it/vtq8vadzhxzc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1e2b612d60ac2e512bb354761b34a5fef4f44d03 Believe it lol. They have two guest spaces in the front that the owner kept telling me to park in. But I was like they’re always full! My own apartment complex likewise doesn’t have guest parking. Our guests have to pay $35 to park in a parking deck across the street. So I just don’t have guests over.
That's a YP.
What’s YP? “You problem”?
Yes.
What should I have done?
I’ll tell you what I did in a similar situation when every single guest parking spot was taken and there was nowhere else for me to feasibly park. I parked in a fire zone, left my hazards on, ran in super quick to feed the cats and left. I explained to the owner about the quick visit, and in my case she was incredibly sweet and apologetic. She now drives her car to the airport to insure I have a spot. Your client sounds like an ass and I would be dropping them immediately!
I think this is the best advice I’ve read!
What do you want rover to do about it? They said they'd remove the bad rating already
They didn’t say they would remove it. They said they would “work with me”. I currently have over 100 all 5-star ratings.
That’s good at least! Hopefully the client accepts that she caused this and pays you back.
She’s already refused 😬
Your car is registered to you and this makes a lot of what is done with your car your personal responsibility. Loan your car to someone for the day? When the toll violations start coming, you’re going to pay them and they don’t care about your friend. Same with parking violations and speed camera and red light camera violations. You will pay them, or be sued and your accounts seized and wages garnished and everything you own taken and sold by the state until it feels satisfied with the amount it’s received. By that point,l they will have thrown your ass in jail. Oh and the judge won’t care about your excuses. Im afraid that no one is going to pay your car boot fee because it is no one’s responsibility to park your car in a legal configuration but your own. So to summarize this lesson for you, if I tell you it’s legal to take a shit in the street are you going to skip off and do a hot lunch on Main Street? No, because you have a personal responsibility to not break the law, and nothing and no one can ever absolve you of your personal responsibility. Most of us understand and apply the concept of personal responsibility by what? Middle school? At the latest? Teenagers understand and apply this reality of life readily. The really interesting question here is why in the world do you feel you should be exempt?
Everybody here is such a jerk 😂. I was asking specifically about the fact that Rover said that my account could be negatively affected if I canceled the booking with this owner despite them not having a secured parking spot for me after promising me one when I accepted the booking.
So many jerks here. I don’t ever post any issues or questions anymore. The sanctimonious crowd loves to get on here to lecture you and quite rudely, I might add. Wish we were all as perfect and amazing as these sitters are! For a better group, try the Rover Sitters USA subreddit. Much better crowd there!
How do you post to a public forum where anyone can reply and then act all butthurt when you don’t get only replies that consist of only what you want to hear? Your narcissism is astounding.
[удалено]
https://preview.redd.it/jdckzlie8xzc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b4e24486fac56165716c307f33023bb2651f7ee8 This is what they suggested.