How do you handle owners that are constantly late?

I always confirm times beforehand (generally at the m&g), which it sounds like you're also doing. At the meet and greet, I have a little info sheet that I give everyone. It has my contact information, items that they need to bring for their dog's stay, general rules for boarding (arrive leashed, etc.). But I also have a policy on there that states that if they are more than 30 minutes late, they are required to re-schedule. If rescheduling requires that they cancel, they agree by accepting the booking that their stay will be cancelled according to the refund policy on Rover.

The day before the booking, I send a message like: "Looking forward to seeing you guys tomorrow. Should I still plan on you arriving at X:XX AM/PM?". Then, I generally follow-up with "Great! I have an appointment/M&G/drop-off/etc. around (30--45 minutes after the scheduled time), so please let me know if you'll be running late or need to reschedule that!"

I must be lucky as all my owners tow the timely line,lol. I do firmly establish the pickup/drop off times and late pickup fee of $20 after 5pm for an am drop off. I live in a busy urban area, so maybe they get that time is $$$

I have to say, this is the part as a sitter that I like the least about this job. It bugs me to no end when people aren't respectful of others' time. I wish I had an answer, but so far not much has worked. This happens to me on a very regular basis and what I do if it's a repeat offender is drop them as clients. Which is a bummer because some of them have dogs that I really care about. I've tried to note in my profile about pick up and drop off times without sounding too annoying but I think there are just flaky people out there who just don't get it or who just don't respect you enough to care. The second issue I've lost clients to is the people who want to book and only pay for one night of boarding but they want to drop off their dog at 8am on the first day and pick up their dog at 8pm on the last day. Sigh...trying to practice patience.

This thread contains a few different responses on how to handle this. https://www.rover.com/community/quest...

Yes, this can be frustrating. The best way to minimize this is to strategically prevent it by confirming times in writing and setting expectations of what is required with the pet parent. If it continues happening, you may opt to modify approach, have conversation about impact and what needs to happen in future, or discontinue booking that person.

Hello! I would tell them I follow the "daycare" policy. Drop off is from 8am-9am and pick up is from 5pm-6pm (or whatever time you agree upon). If you are late - no matter what the situation may be (I am human and have acknowledge a situation or two that was out of the parents control) - you are charged an additional $5 per 30 minutes you are late. I have some people who would pay an extra $20 just so they could go to the grocery store alone. I know I watched kids but the policy worked well.

It Is frustrating when owners don't let you know if they are running late. I make it very clear they "Must" let me know if they are running late because I may take dogs out for a walk and they will have to wait until I get back. If they are late picking up, I will tell them they have to pay for daycare and later raise their fees. If they are courteous and let me know they are running a bit late I may let the daycare slide. If delayed due to traffic/flight delay and can't get here before 7pm in the evening they Must extend another over night and pick up the next morning.