What is the CatsOnly Booking Support Guarantee?
CatsOnly does not provide insurance cover or a reimbursement scheme for bookings. Sitters are responsible for choosing and arranging their own insurance if they want or need it.
We want sitters to have the freedom to select insurance that is best suited to their services, experience, risk level, and circumstances. CatsOnly helps by keeping the booking, payment, messages, cancellation and refund state, and support reports connected when a booking is arranged and paid through CatsOnly.
What CatsOnly can help with
If something goes wrong during a booking, CatsOnly can help review what happened and support practical next steps. This may include:
- Reviewing the booking details, payment state, messages, photos, and reported concern.
- Helping the owner and sitter communicate clearly about what happened.
- Checking whether a cancellation, refund, payout hold, or support review is available.
- Facilitating refunds or dispute handling where supported by the booking state, Stripe, and CatsOnly workflows.
CatsOnly support does not replace insurance, legal rights, veterinary care, emergency services, or Stripe's own dispute process.
How this compares
Different platforms use the word guarantee in different ways. Some guarantees include defined reimbursement limits, while others are support promises.
The Cat in a Flat details below are included as a historic comparison. The wording supplied for its old guarantee uses coverage and reimbursement language, but calls the product a guarantee rather than insurance. Rover also describes its current guarantee as a reimbursement programme, not insurance.
| Platform | Is it insurance? | What it may help with | Important limits |
|---|---|---|---|
| CatsOnly | No. CatsOnly does not provide insurance or a reimbursement guarantee. | Booking support, payment-state review, cancellation and refund help, and dispute facilitation where the booking was paid through CatsOnly. | CatsOnly does not pay covered-loss claims. Sitters choose their own insurance. |
| Cat in a Flat | The supplied wording calls it a guarantee rather than insurance. | Cat injury vet care during an eligible booking, up to £700 per booking with a £150 excess. It also included lost-key replacement up to £250 with a £50 excess. | It applied only to eligible bookings made and paid through Cat in a Flat, with exclusions such as personal property damage, more than 5 cats, pre-existing or chronic illness, sitter injury, travel costs, and intentional or criminal acts. |
| Rover | No. Rover describes its current guarantee as a reimbursement programme, not insurance. | Up to £25,000 in eligible vet-care reimbursement, 24/7 support, some pet owner property damage, and some third-party injury costs. | Rover says reimbursement usually applies when the responsible party is unwilling or unable to pay. Rover reimburses after the first £50, and exclusions include sitter property, sitter injury, family or roommate injury, care beyond 30 days, and pre-existing or preventable issues. |
Rover's current guarantee terms are published at Rover Guarantee Terms. Rover's public guarantee page also describes the programme as reimbursement rather than insurance, and says users who want protection beyond the Rover Guarantee should buy sufficient insurance.
Why CatsOnly does not include platform insurance
CatsOnly is built around independent sitters choosing the cover that fits the way they work. A sitter who only offers short local visits may need different cover from a sitter who offers frequent bookings, handles several sets of keys, or wants broader public-liability protection.
This means CatsOnly does not bundle a single insurance policy or reimbursement limit into every booking. Instead, sitters can compare providers and choose cover that matches their services.
If you are a sitter
If you offer cat sitting through CatsOnly, choose insurance based on the services you provide and the level of cover you want. For example, you may want to consider whether your policy covers home visits, key handling, public liability, accidental damage, veterinary emergencies, or care for multiple cats.
If you list insurance details on your CatsOnly profile, keep them accurate and up to date. Owners may ask you about your cover before booking.
If something goes wrong
Open the booking and select Report concern. Include:
- The booking dates.
- The sitter or owner name.
- What happened and when.
- Any relevant photos, messages, receipts, or veterinary information.
- Whether you have already contacted the other person, your insurer, Stripe, or another service.
For urgent welfare, medical, or safety concerns, contact the relevant emergency, veterinary, or local authority service first.