Coronavirus (COVID-19) Advice for Pet Boarders

Published: 11th March 2020; Updated: 18th March 2020

It's likely that as the Coronavirus (COVID-19) situation develops it may affect your boarding business in a number of ways. In this article I've tried to gather relevant information to help you plan for how you'll manage your business and useful sources where you can seek further advice. This should not be taken as legal, financial, medical or a replacement for any other expert advice.

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Advice for Pet Boarders

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Customer Cancellation

As restrictions on travel are implemented covering different areas, it's likely that you will encounter customers that have cancelled their travel plans and no longer require boarding services. It's important to have a clear policy for cancellations, which should be part of your booking agreement.

Cancellation policies must be fair, this means:

You are only entitled to keep or receive an amount sufficient to cover the actual losses that directly result from the cancellation (eg costs already incurred or loss of profit).
You must take reasonable steps to reduce your losses (eg by re-selling the space).
Non-refundable deposits should only be a small percentage of the total price.
Cancellation charges must be a genuine estimate of your direct loss.

In practical terms this means most deposits are made up of two parts:

a small completely non-refundable amount that covers all your costs e.g. the time you spent meeting your customer, carrying out pre-stay visits, paperwork etc.
a larger amount that is refunded if the customers cancel and you are able to replace the booking with another one, but kept if you are not able to reduce your loss

If a customer cancels without sufficient notice for you to reduce your lose by re-selling the space to someone else they may be eligible to pay you the full amount (depending on what your cancellation policy states). Many boarders use a time periods as part of their cancellation policy i.e. if a customer cancels with plenty of notice they'll receive the refundable part of the deposit back, but if they cancel with no notice they will not receive their deposit back and they'll also owe any outstanding amount.

Helpful government guidance on setting cancelation policies is available here:

What should you do?

It can be difficult to decide what to do in a situation when a customer cancels through no fault of their own. For a one off situation during normal business operations e.g. a pet passing away or a the owners serious illness, you may decide to waive payment as a good will gesture, however if many customers cancel and general bookings are reduced this can have a severe effect on your income.

If you are uncomfortable asking for full payment, even when it would legally be due, consider other ways you can mitigate your losses:

Offer credit against a future booking instead of a refund: where a customer cancels you may consider encouraging them to move their booking rather than completely cancelling. This may help you spread the income loss more evenly (keep in mind although you don't lose the payment now, you won't receive a payment for the future booking so you'll need to budget carefully).
Encourage your customers to check their travel insurance policies which may cover expenses, such as boarding, if their travel is cancelled so they are not left out of pocket either.
Rather than waiving the full fee, waive a percentage so that the loss is split between you and your customer.

General Customer Contact

You'll need to consider how you will manage customer contact based on current government guidance, the individual customer and your own situation. The steps you need to take, if any, may change over time as the situation develops. Aim for sensible precautions that mitigate risk, without being disproportionate.

All boarders should follow current government public health advice on hygiene and reducing the risk of spreading infections, see: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/.

One way you may implement these are to:

wash your hands with soap and water (for at least 20 seconds) before/after handover meetings with customers
if you visit customer's houses use hand sanitiser gel before/after you visit
cover your mouth and nose with a tissue or your sleeve (not your hands) when you cough or sneeze
put used tissues in the bin straight away and wash your hands afterwards
try to avoid close contact with people who are unwell
if you work from home, ensure that family members wash their hands with soap and water (for at least 20 seconds) when returning to the house from work or school
if you run a centre, ensure staff was their hands with soap and water (for at least 20 seconds) when arriving for work
disinfect frequently touched objects/surfaces such as door handles (including cars)

peopleThe government has asked everyone in the UK to avoid non essential contact with other people to help reduce the spread. This may mean you could also considerWays that you can achieve less contact whilst running your business include:

carrying out conversations by phone, text or video chat rather than in person, for example discussions on pets needs or follow ups after boarding
limiting contact during handovers i.e. during collection or drop off and conducting them outside
asking customers to use hand sanitizer before entering your home

Contact with Self-Isolating Customers

Customers returning from travel abroad may have been told to isolate, as will have anyone showing symptoms. You can monitor travel advice for different countries here. It may be helpful to note which country customers plan to travel to.

If a customer goes into self-isolation whilst you are boarding their pet, you'll need to decide with the owner the best course of action, that may be:

You'll return the pet to the owner minimising contact
You'll return the pet to emergency contact (who may return it to the owner)
You'll keep the pet for an extended period whilst the owner self-isolates

If you decide to return a pet to someone that has been told to self isolate it's sensible to take the same precautions as advised to those delivering other services i.e. deliver to the door step but don't enter the house. For example, you may ask the owner to wait in their car and call you so you can bring their pet out to them, return the pet in a secure carrier without making contact with the owner, or deliver the pet to their house asking them to unlock the front door and then retreat to another room whilst you place their dog inside. It's important to consider the pets safety to make sure escape it not a potential risk during handover. Usual conversations carried out post-boarding can be carried out separately by phone call and payments made remotely.

Ensure that you have emergency contact information for each animal you board and that owners understand that the emergency contact they give is aware they have been nominated and must be assume care for the pet if necessary.

If a pet owner is admitted to hospital their pet insurance may cover the cost of boarding during that period, otherwise the owner will be responsible for all fees. If you have many empty slots you may consider offering a discounted rate for those preferring their pet to stay with you whilst they self-isolate.

Self Isolating Yourself

You should have a plan for what will happen if you need to self-isolate - read NHS rules for self-isolation here. This should include:

What will happen for customers booked for that period that have not yet arrived
What will happen with current guests

If you are self-isolating you cannot accept boarders. If you don't already have someone, find other boarding services in the area to work with now, so that you can divert your customers due for boarding to alternative services if necessary.

You should seek advice from 111 and/or your vet on whether current guests should stay with you during the isolation or can be transferred to their emergency contacts. This guidance may change overtime so plan for both eventualities.

If you live with other people, where possible they should take over care of any animals. Otherwise avoid any unnecessary contact and maintain good hygiene.

If you board dogs, have a plan for enrichment (including for your own pets) that does not involve walking as you'll be asked to stay in your home. You may want to stock up on toys and supplies to make enrichment devices. A good source of enrichment ideas is the Canine Enrichment Facebook Group

If animals in your care need veterinary attention during a period you are self-isolating consult your vet over the most appropriate arrangements.

Can dogs/rabbits/cats get coronavirus?

The general concensous seems to be that, no, pets can't get corona or act as carriers. However, it's possible pet's fur may act like any other surface i.e. if you have the virus on your hand and then touch your pet and someone else touches them immediately afterwards it could transfer.

Research is still being done to understand more about the implications of COVID-19 and how it transmits. Current advice from the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the NHS states:

"There is currently no evidence that companion animals or pets can be infected with coronavirus (COVID-19)." - NHS"

The current advice from the World Small Animal Veterinary Association, of which the British Small Animal Veterinary Association (BSAVA) is a member, is:

"You should restrict contact with pets and other animals while you are sick with COVID-19, just like you would around other people. Although there have not been reports of pets or other animals becoming sick with COVID-19, it is still recommended that people sick with COVID-19 limit contact with animals until more information is known about the virus. When possible, have another member of your household care for your animals while you are sick. If you are sick with COVID-19, avoid contact with your pet, including petting, snuggling, being kissed or licked, and sharing food. If you must care for your pet or be around animals while you are sick, wash your hands before and after you interact with pets." - WSAVA

Employers

Guidance is available for employers and business here on how to prevent spread of infection and what to do if staff have suspected or confirmed cases here.

Income Protection Insurance

There are insurance policies that will cover loss of earnings if you become sick, keep in mind this would only cover the period you are off work due to illness, not income losses because of cancellations. These insurance policies are called Income Protection Insurance or sometimes Accident, Sickness and Unemployment Insurance.

If you have Income Protection Insurance, you should check exactly what coverage they provide in relation to Coronavirus, for example will they cover a period of self-isolation if you have not been diagnosed. More information on insurancec is available from the Money Advice Service.

If you do not already have insurance it's unlikely you will be able to obtain any coverage for COVID-19.

Government Support for Small Businesses

The government has announced a range of support packages for businesses. However, most of these will not apply to the majority of self-employed boarders working from home.

Business Rate Relief - The government plans to introduce a business rates retail holiday for retail, hospitality and leisure businesses in England for the 2020 to 2021 tax year. It's not clear if this applies to kennels, catteries and day care centres. There may also be a grant available for businesses with a rateable value of £15,000 and £51,000.

Grant for those who pay little/no business rates - If you are eligible to pay business rates (usually if you have employees, work from a business premises or have converted part of your home to business use), but you have been given business rate relief (so you don't actually pay much or any rates) then you may be eligible for a grant of up to £10,000. Business rates are handled by local authorities so you'll be contacted by them if you are eligible and it's expected more information on this will be available early April.

Statutory Sick Pay (SSP)

Statutory Sick Pay is paid to employees by their employers. That means it's only relevant to you if you employ staff or are employed by a company, it's not available to those that are self employed.

The government has announced several changes in SSP to support workers and businesses, those are:

It will apply to those self-isolating even if they are not sick
It will apply from the 1^st day of leave instead of the 4^th as previously the case
Businesses with less than 250 employees will be able to claim back the costs

Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)

If you are self-employed and have to self-isolate or contract coronavirus, you may be eligible for Employment and Support Allowance (ESA). The government announced in the budget (11/03/2020) it planned to change terms to make it easier to for self-employed people to claim. More information on ESA is available from the Citizen's Advice Service

Coping with a Reduced Income

Loosing income from cancelled bookings or just a reduction in bookings as people delay or forgo holidays is a big worry for all small businesses. Try and be proactive, save money where you can, put savings away when possible and check if you are eligible for benefits.

If you are having trouble with your household bills speak to the companies/organisations involved.

The government has announced three-month mortgage holidays for those struggling with bills. Speak to your lender to arrange this. As this is an agreed 'holiday', rather than you just not paying, it shouldn't effect your credit rating, but ask your mortgage company for confirmation.
Loans & credit cards - there is no official guidance on these so individual companies are offering different support - talk to your provider to find out how they can help you.
Fixed rate savings - if you have savings locked in a fixed rate account you may be able to access them now, without penalty.
Your energy company may be able to arrange for you to pay your bills over an extended period.
You can ask your local authority to divide your council tax over 12 months, instead of the usual 10 months, reducing your monthly bill.

If you are struggling with business or household debt, you can get advice tailored towards self-employed people from the Business Debt Line

Fake News/Scams

Make sure when looking for information on corona virus you check the credentials of the source. There are many shared social media posts that spread incorrect information, or information that proports to come from a friend of a friend whose a medical or veterinary professional. This article quotes official sources and includes links back, so you can check for yourself the validity and for updated information.

Examples of fake news include that hand sanitiser is dangerous to pets - it isn't as long as it's used in accordance with the instructions.

Also beware of scams that may target people worried over the coronavirus.