Vent Blog...Another Cancellation

Send him a letter and tell him you will no longer be their sitter. I'd call CSD. If he goes off like that on you what does he do to those children of his.

I guess I am a bit confused--do you have an actual contract with your Sitter City family, or just a statement on your profile? If I were you, I would be sure to have each family actually SIGN something if you intend to hold them to cancelation fees. If they don't want to pay it after canceling, let them know that you intend to put that in their review, and that you will never again sit for them.

Sorry, I am a parent and have had many of my babysitters no show on me. Who knew that so many sitters are so willing to just blow off $20/hr of tax-free income? I totally get your frustration, because my sitters no show on me at the worst times--days when I have doctor, dentist, chiropractor or PT appts, and then I am out the cancelation I must pay to these health care professionals. Bottom line, make EACH family sign off on it--just as each patient must sign their form stating that they understand a doctors office's cancelation policy/fees.

Hope you can find some less flaky clients :)

You seem like a nice person that is passionate about teaching & helping kids (just based on your previous posts). Clients flaking out on you seems to be a running theme for you, and you are obviously not happy about it, and t seems like maybe being your own boss & setting your own rules is not your cup of tea. You have to either enforce your policies, or take the losses, if you don't want to work for someone else.

Seriously, have you considered working for someone, or finding a different industry to work in? Something more stable, that wouldn't eat your bottom line? I would imagine you are at your wit's end at this point. I wouldn't be able to put up with all of that. It doesn't seem worth it.

It goes both ways. We found our sitter (we only have one we use and trust at the moment) through Sittercity, but of the 20 who applied, only 5 met the criteria we had stated in the ad, and of those 5, only 3 showed up for their interviews (neither of the no-shows bothered to call to let us know they weren't coming). Of the 3 who did show, we loved two of them, hired them, and then one called an hour before a sitting job to let us know that she just couldn't handle it. Huh? She's been a sitter for years, but she said she had too much on her plate to take care of our kids. AN HOUR BEFORE SHE WAS DUE TO SIT FOR US.

I think finding responsible sitters and responsible families is a real challenge, because you not only have to find someone good, but you need to find a good fit as well. I would make sure that you have a signed contract if you're going to charge a cancellation fee. I doubt just having it on your profile is contractually binding. Plus, then if he didn't pay, you could not only report him to Sittercity, but also (if you wanted to) sue him in small-claims court for breach of contract. But if you are depending on the money, you might try to be a nanny instead of a baby-sitter, and get something more regular. Best of luck.

Hm. Wonder what he had been drinking.

I hope you will report this, because it needs reporting. People think of sitters as they do of delivery persons, postmen, trash collectors, and house cleaners. They're thought of as services - and they're not often thought about as people.

Keep your standards - and your cancellation fees. When someone hires you, mention that fee every single time (doctors' offices do that). I hope you'll get some better clients soon.

It doesn't seem like this is working out for you. If you were just looking for some extra spending money that would be one thing but it sounds like you need a more reliable source of income. Have you thought about doing some regular, permanent daycare out of your home?
I know when I babysat for families as a teenager I would often get canceled at the last minute and of course no one paid me a "cancellation fee." So there is probably still that perception. Also how do you go about collecting it? It seems to be one of those rules that's almost impossible to enforce.

He was wrong. Actually never heard of a cancellation fee. Did you find out
why they canceled. Sick kid, family emergency etc. If you need this money to survive, your best bet would be to open a family based day care. Babysitting at night does not really give you a steady income (I would think)
because family situations and needs can change in an instant.

Sorry that happened to you. People just don't realize that you are charging for your time - if they book it and you reserve it, they should pay for it. It's only right considering that you could have possibly booked another client and still made some money if they'd given you decent notice.

Again, sorry. But don't give up on all people. There IS a nice family out there that could use your services. Keep looking for them!

I think that he is one of those that either thinks it doesn't apply to HIM or uses this intimidation tactic to get out of things, like your cancellation fee. It is unlikely that the fee is worth your time or money for small claims court, so you're out the fee. You might consider charging people a small fee to reserve their slot (not sure how this would be done - does sitter city have any sort of payment options built in?) and apply it toward the sitting once you have done it. Kind of like how a preschool will ask for a fee to retain a slot for your child in the fall.

sorry to hear that happened. This drums home the point even more how very professional you need to be in all forms of communication and your dress and demeanor, so that maybe some day the perception of sitters will change and they will be valued as they should. Hope you can enjoy your night off.

being self-employed is great in many ways but fraught with peril in others. you generally make a bit less and have to deal with rules you may not agree with if you work for an agency, but you also avoid a lot of frustration. i'm certainly not saying your treatment was justified, this man was way out of line and i'm glad you're reporting him to sittercity.
something perhaps to consider, though, is that if this is a repeating pattern, are you inadvertently contributing? i don't mean that in a judgmental fashion, clearly you are a caring committed good person. but projecting a no-nonsense air of professionalism tends to eliminate a lot of problems before they begin. it's nice to be accessible and accommodating, but do an 'energy check' from time to time to make sure you're not projecting an image of 'i can be taken advantage of'.
khairete
S.

Hi, Dancer:
If you have the paperwork that says: Cancellation Fee $.....
Do you have any proof that you were to babysit that night like
having it written on the calendar.
Go to small claims court in your area and start holding
people accountable for their responsibilities.
You can do somethin about irresponsible people.
That's why courts are made, to protect the innocent.
Good luck.
D.