Please read the following document. You will be logged and deemed as having read and agreed to these conditions after clicking accept on the portal when you first log in, so please make sure you read them.
If you are a new client, or this is your first time using the portal, after logging in to the client portal, click 'My Information' in the side bar/menu and update each section, firstly the ‘client info’ and then your cats, click 'Add Pet' (if they are not already listed) and fill out each section for them too. If you have multiple cats please add them each separately - if the general instructions are the same for them all you can fill it in on the first cat's profile and select 'Yes - use the same info as the other cats' on each of the other cats' profiles. If you have additional pets eg. Fish, Guinea Pigs etc please also add these on as one entity eg ‘3 Rabbits’ and fill out the feeding section as appropriate.
You will then be able to use the portal to request future bookings - please follow the instructions on the calendar page to request your dates - following this accurately will ensure a swift confirmation. Please always use the portal, not the website form as this is for newbies.
Cancellation Policy:
If at any point you would like to request to cancel a booking, or your itinerary changes, please WhatsApp on 07939046220 saying you need to cancel or change your dates and with your new itinerary for example ‘leaving 6am 10th back 20th 8am’. I can then reconfirm & edit where needed. Please note cancellation requests will be actioned between 9-6pm.
Our cancellation policy is as follows:
- 5 working days before booking start date - 50% of invoice total charged (a working day is 9-6pm. If you send your request after 6pm it will be actioned the next day)
- On start date or during booking - full invoice total due
It's very important to request the right dates when you send your request, and to keep us in the loop if things change as otherwise any dates that have been wrongly booked and cancelled within the cancellation period will be chargeable. As well as our Whatsapp confirmation, you recieve an email confirmation and the advance invoice for this reason. This policy stands regardless of circumstances, unless we are put into another government stay at home lockdown. If you think there is a chance family or friends can do any of your dates please check with them before booking us, as we turn a lot of work away so it is the difference between us either losing income or being able to help someone who needs the dates. We would much rather a short notice booking than for dates to be taken away after being booked in.
December Payments & Cancellations:
Bookings starting between 14-31st December from this year we will now ask that invoices are settled up front at time of booking or start of December if you book in advance if you do not pay in advance already. Bookings will not be confirmed until we have received payment. If this will affect you I will also reiterate this when confirming with you. The cancellation policy for festive bookings also applies - from 9th Dec any dates cancelled on bookings starting 14-31st will be charged at 50%, or in full if on the date itself.
Keys:
We only need the key(s) for the door we will be using to access your property. Please leave a back door key, if you have a back door, out for us to use in case of emergency, or let us know if it is kept in a specific place.
Closer to your dates we will message you with the address for key drop, Kylie’s address, as we will require your keys dropped through the letterbox at your convenience before your dates in an envelope marked with ONLY your surname (no addresses for security please!), or on a tag with only your surname so we know who it is! We are also well versed in key safes (this is actually the preferable route for us) so if you have a key safe please let me know not to expect your key through my door and add the location and code to the portal. I can also supply a key safe at a non-refundable cost of £5 per unit if you would like one, please let me know. If you would rather us hold a key for you, we can do that too, or you can leave one in a safe place at your discretion. I’m sorry but after initial meeting/booking we do not do subsequent key collections.
If we hold your key please note that we only carry these when on a booking with your cat. With that in mind, we may not be around to return them at short notice. Keys are kept in a locked safe whilst not on a booking for you.
We return keys after completing the last visit to your booking through your letterbox/mail box unless you’ve asked to key hold or have a key safe. If you’d rather collect it from the safe place at my property, please let me know and I can leave it for you for the following day. This is why it’s important to have an emergency contact with a key for this reason, or to install a key safe as this means a key is always available incase of delays.
Invoicing & Payment:
Invoices are sent to your provided email address in the couple of weeks run up to your start date. Please follow the terms on your email to settle payment. Payment is to be received via bank transfer (internet/telephone or over the counter in branch). Sorry but we don't accept cash, cheques or Paypal, just bank transfer. Please check the dates on the invoice incase there are changes or mistakes so these can be rectified early!!! You can log into your account at any time to view past invoices and payments.
Team Members:
We now have a team of 6 (Myself (Kylie), Faith, Anna, Marianne, Rebecca & Maxxy) who will be working across the week for visits. Our schedules are done each evening due to last minute requests as we route depending on logical location. It won’t be possible for them to meet everyone but rest assured my staff are GPS tracked, fully trained, insured & DBS checked, and working under our reputation and name. They all follow the exact same protocols on visits and use the information that you provide on the portal - for this reason it is vital you update anything that changes. There is no need to leave a note as we go by the information on the system.
Initial Meetings/Change of Info:
Please note that, if offered, initial meetings are charged at £5 to cover fuel and time, and is chargeable if the booking is cancelled and we have done the meeting. We do not do subsequent key collections after your initial meeting and require you to drop your keys through the letterbox before your start date (see above). This also applies if you move house or get a new cat, as we get to know the cats on our visits rather than the initial meeting, so if you get a new cat we kindly ask you log into your account and add them to your record so that we have their information. If you move house please just WhatsApp us first to check we can still cover.
Availability:
We now require 3 days notice for bookings to ensure staff availability and cover- please be prepared for us to have no space if you book with less than 3 days to spare before the date you leave.
Please don’t request dates without an itinerary, we cannot hold dates ‘just incase’ as we are often turning work away and this is not fair those who need the dates, or my staff who are expecting the work. We would much rather a short notice booking than to be cancelling dates that aren’t needed when they could have been filled by someone else.
The set days in a year we are not open are as follows:
Bank Holiday Mondays
Christmas Day
New Years Day
If you have a booking which falls over any day that we are closed, we will leave double food out or can set your own timer bowl for that day if you don’t have a friend or family member to pop in. We are perfectly happy for you to ask a friend or family member to visit that day, just please let us know so that we don’t leave extra out and are aware for insurance reasons.
Visit Times:
Unless discussed otherwise, we offer flexible timed once daily visits. A 'flexible time visit' means you cannot request a time or time frame. We only visit on a day that no one is home between 9-4pm, so if you’re leaving after 9 we will start the day after and if you’re back before 4pm we will finish the day before. This is because visits can fall anywhere in the working day and where in this time period depends on our schedule as we have to work to a route. We kindly ask that when leaving your cats are fed as normal and all grazing bowls and water bowls etc are left full.
For once daily visits we find that giving any wet food when we visit and leaving dry food down to graze works best for most cats, but we can also leave a timer bowl down for pm/am feeds if you think your cat will benefit and you have one.
Visit Length:
Our standard service is a once daily visit with no set visit length. These visits are tailored to your cats personality, and our schedule. This may vary considerably depending on if your cat is already outside (or goes out during the visit), is shy or nervous of strangers, in which case I would judge how long I stay for the good of their wellbeing and stress levels. However if your cat is willing and likes a cuddle or play, we will often stay longer. Please remember that your cat will usually act differently with you to how they would with someone else, and they can sometimes take a little while to get used to us (or may be complete opposite!) At peak times, visit times may also be shorter due to volume.
We also offer longer visits of 45-60 minutes to existing clients - these are double your normal visit rate and can only be booked Monday to Friday, not at peak times and are dependant on availiability. You can choose these on the client portal when requesting dates and can mix and match with the usual service if you would like.
Visit Rates:
Please see our main website for our current rates. Existing clients may be on a slightly lower rate while we catch up to raising rates.
Saturday & Sundays of Bank Holiday Weekends, Good Friday, Christmas Eve & New Years Eve: Normal rate + half charge
Boxing Day – double rate charge
45-60 Minute longer visits - usual rate -£2. (Monday to Friday only, not at peak times and dependant on availability)
We generally charge the same depending on the number of cats but if you have more than 4 cats or we have any extra tasks involving small animals/birds etc we may charge extra ant our discretion.
Updates & Photos:
Service reports will be sent via email on each visit, so please check your junk mail if you don't see them coming through and mark them to go to your inbox. You don't need to reply to updates but if it's the first time you've received them by email i'd appreciate a reply the first time just so we know they're working! We will take photos of your cats to send you as and when we can, but due to the nature of some cats this is not possible for every visit. Please let me know if you cannot recieve emails when away. If you haven't heard from us there is no need to text, as its likely that we just haven’t visited yet. We will send your service report after we visit, and generally reply to any communications from you between visits when we next send your update unless it’s an emergency. Photos will sometimes be used on our Facebook & Instagram pages, Norwich Cat Sitting Services and The Cat Lady Norwich. Obviously no address details or owner details are given, just lovely photos focused on your cat!!! If you would rather we did not use photos of your cat(s), please tick the relevant section on the client info on the portal.
Additional Supplies & other pets:
Prices quoted are for our time and travel to care for your cat. All food, treats, litter and any other requirements for the wellbeing of your cat should be provided by you before going away. Please try to leave more than enough for your booking as we are unlikely to be able to stop to get extra supplies, but in the unlikely event we can an extra visit charge plus the total of goods will be added to your invoice. Please note this only includes pet supplies. We can also feed fish & small animals such as hamsters/gerbils/bearded dragons etc, but do not clean out cages or hutches. We don’t generally offer rabbit or guinea pig feeding unless they are docile (eg unlikely to try to escape their hutch or bite/charge) and only require basic feeding/watering. Please add additional pets to your account as one entity and fill out the information for them as a whole.
We are sorry but we no longer water gardens or large batches of plants, as this takes away from the time with your cat. Due to weight, we don't generally put out waste bins for collection, and ask if you need this doing they are put out before you leave. We are happy to pull them short distances back from the path once collected if we notice them.
Inoculations:
Unlike a cattery, we do not require your pets to be up to date with vaccinations. However, please ensure that your animals are up to date with veterinary recommended flea treatment such as stronghold, Advantage or Advocate, and worm treatment if needed, before you go away whether they are indoor or outdoor animals. This protects your pets from unwanted visitors and in turn protects my other clients too as it is not fair for us to be going into an untreated house when other people have done theirs.
Outdoor Cats:
Although it is safer to keep your cats inside when you’re away, we understand that this does not work everyone, and a big appeal of cat sitting is that they can have their home comforts. Please be aware that we cannot be held accountable for cats that wander or go missing while having access to a cat flap/being allowed outdoors, or if you have another person coming into your home while you’re away (eg neighbour/cleaner/workman) who may leave windows or doors open and let your cat out by accident. You will be deemed as accepting this when you acknowledge this document. For this reason alone, we always recommend we are the only ones entering your home to save any confusion, and we also need to know of other visitors for insurance purposes. Please note that as we cannot guarantee cats who are let in and out manually (by a window/door) will be around for our visits, and may need to stay out in this instance, we recommend cats like this are kept in with a litter tray while you’re away for their own safety as they may be outside for long periods and more likely to stray if they do not want to come back in when we visit.
Emergency Contact:
Please provide an emergency contact name and number for someone for us to contact incase of delays or emergency with your cat, house or us. You should always have someone else with a key nearby, or install a key safe, as we have had instances where we have walked in to burst pipes, electrical faults, alarms going off etc so the emergency contact must be as local as possible and able to take over in these situations. As well as this it is important if you are booking in months prone to bad weather incase snow prevents us from travelling to visits and someone else needs to pop in, so please make your emergency contact someone local with a key or able to get to one where possible.
Veterinary Care:
In most instances, if your cat urgently needs to be seen by a vet (eg wounded from fighting, breathlessness, trauma or car accident) I will take them myself. However please try to have an emergency contact who is available and has a key on hand just incase, especially for cats with existing conditions. If for any reason your cat needs emergency medical treatment while you’re away, we will do my best to contact you first to explain the situation. If for any reason we cannot get hold of you or your emergency contact we will use our own judgment in the moment. Please be aware that although we are vets we do have extensive knowledge on feline conditions and symptoms that require veterinary intervention (including many qualifications listed on the website), so if we advise that a vet trip is needed with the symptoms presented in front of us it’s important you take this on board. We are quite often fully booked and an added vet trip does hinder us getting round our other visits so if we suggest one it isn’t a decision made without good reason, as the welfare of your cat(s) is our priority. If the emergency is outside normal hours we will take your cat to whichever vet can accommodate them. If we can’t get hold of you we will pay the bill myself and add it to your invoice, if the vets aren’t okay with leaving an invoice with us for you to settle when you return. Please make sure your vet details are correct on your account.
Litter Trays & Cleaning Up Mess:
We scoop litter trays daily as standard and as we are there in real time we change or top up litter as a we see fit which may mean more regularly depending on the litter used. Please always leave more than enough litter for your booking duration. If your cat usually goes out you may not know how much litter is needed so always get more than enough. Your cats’ areas will be left as found on our first visit. All visible cat mess (vomit, urine, faeces & 'kill' remains) will be cleared up to the best of our ability during each visit, however I cannot be held responsible for mess made anywhere hidden in the house, or after we have left on our final visit. As we are not cleaners, we will always do our best to clear up safely if there is mess made (eg we don’t want to ruin your carpets so if there is faeces, urine or sick on them we will clean up the best we can with the safest products you have but it is likely you’ll need to wash areas when you get back if this has happened)
Extra Visitors & Tradespeople:
As our service is for once a day visits, if you wish someone else to visit your cats for extra company or suchlike please note and acknowledge we will not be covered by our insurance. If you acknowledge this and still want them to visit, we ask other visitors only visit before 9am or after 6pm as otherwise this defeats the object. This does not include workmen or cleaners (see below)
Please note that if anyone else is staying at the house we will not visit. Please let me know if this is going to happen ASAP as if you are inside the cancellation policy period it will be classed as a cancellation and the charges will still apply. Please always arrange these instances before booking us where possible so you can let us know when confirming
If you have other tradespeople in while you’re away eg cleaners/workmen PLEASE let us know which dates & times they will be in when we text to confirm your booking so we can work out logistics early as cats are usually more on edge if there are people working in their houses. We leave doors as we normally would find them, so if we aren’t aware other people only have one key for example they may get locked in/out if we don’t know any differently.
If someone turns up when we are visiting who you have not told us about and asks to be let in, without a key, we will never let them gain access due to safety reasons, so please let us know if this is likely to happen!
Privacy Policy:
Your personal details and any information collected on the client portal are stored securely and only used by NCSS staff members when on a booking for you. Your keys are kept securely in a locked passcoded safe, and only taken out when on a booking with your cat. They are clearly identifiable to us, but no one else. When dropping your keys please only write your cats' name or your surname on the envelope/key tag, NO ADDRESSES. Please do not attach any AirTags or Tile trackers to your key, as this is a security breach for the other houses we are visiting on the same route. If you do, these will be left at your first visit at your property. Your emergency contact details are only used if we have no other option and are not passed on without yours and their consent
Thank you for trusting us with your cats and home. If you are happy with the service we would really appreciate a Google review after your booking, as they go a long way with helping us get new clients and keeping relevant in searches. The link is here: https://g.page/thecatladynorwich/review?gm
Best Wishes
Kylie, Faith & Team
Norwich Cat Sitting Services
Whatsapp Only - 07939046220
Booking Portal Link - www.norwichcatsittingservices.co.uk/clientportal
