Over the next few weeks we're moving to a new payment setup: faster payouts sent straight to your own Stripe account, and an updated Sitter Agreement.

• Faster payouts: released on day 2 of your booking, not days after it ends
• Direct to you: payments go straight to your own Stripe account
• Chargebacks: we administer disputes on your behalf and reimburse dispute fees
• Simplified Owner Refunds: a fixed 2% for owner refunds, we cover the difference

1. Faster Payouts

You've always been the merchant of record for your sits, with CatsOnly collecting payment on your behalf. What's changing is how the money moves. Each booking is now charged directly on your own connected Stripe account as a split payment. Payouts are released on the second day of your booking (or 7 days after the owner pays, if later). Previously you waited until a few days after the booking ended. We've had clear feedback about this and we're pleased to have made it happen.

2. Chargebacks: We Handle the Process

If an owner disputes a payment, Stripe debits the disputed amount and Stripe dispute fee directly from your Stripe account balance while the dispute is in progress.

You're not on your own: CatsOnly gathers the evidence, responds to the card issuer, and handles the admin. CatsOnly also reimburses the dispute fee to your account where you've met your responsibilities under the Terms. If a dispute is lost, the disputed amount is debited from your Stripe account balance in the same way as a refund.

3. Simplified Owner Refunds

We heard owner feedback that fluctuating refund fees were a bit confusing. To make things easier, owner-initiated refunds now have a predictable, flat fee of just 2%. Better yet, if the payment processor charges you more than that, we've got you covered and will pay the difference!

4. Why We're Making the Change

We're moving from managing your Stripe account as a marketplace to managing your Stripe account as a platform. This means you collect payments directly on your Stripe account, and CatsOnly handles the admin. One reason is VAT, charging directly on your Stripe account formalises your merchant of record status, so VAT only applies to your sits if you're registered (or required to be) yourself. Another is that it will enable us to provide a wider range of payment services to you. The new setup also avoids active account fees from our payment processor.

5. A New Sitter Agreement and Updated Terms

Both take effect on 28 August 2026. The Sitter Agreement sets out the arrangement in plain terms: you appoint CatsOnly as your agent to collect payments, you're the merchant of record, you set your own rates, you're responsible for your own tax affairs, and the platform fee is collected automatically from each payment.

For cancellations before care takes place: if you cancel a booking or refund care that was not provided, the owner receives a 100% full refund and CatsOnly waives its platform fee. The Stripe processing fees incurred on the transaction are charged directly by Stripe to your connected account and are non-refundable by Stripe.

What Happens Next

Migration starts on 28 August and you'll receive an email when it's your turn. There's no rush, but everyone will need to move across eventually. It takes a few minutes: reverify your Stripe account and accept the Sitter Agreement when prompted on your sitter dashboard.

Questions? We're at catsonly.uk/support.

Happy sitting,
The CatsOnly Team 🐾