Is Care.com A Reliable Website? Why We Do Not Recommend Their Services In 2024 -

Care.com is dishonest about their operating mode, When you sign up for the service and decide to cancel, you will go through an endless loop that wouldn’t allow you to cancel.

The company comes across as very untrustworthy and given their Trustpilot ratings it means that other customers have also had bad experiences. This article will explain further about this company.

Overview of Care.com

Care.com is a website where families can find local caregivers and care seekers who have been background-checked. It’s easy to use and available in 17 countries. While signing up is free, you can get more features with premium memberships starting at $12.95 per month.

Care.com Membership Costs:

Basic membership: Free
Annual standard: $12.95 per month
Monthly standard: $38.95 per month
Annual premium: $19.95 per month
Quarterly premium: $29.95 per month

Sign Up: Start by telling Care.com where you live and what kind of care you need, like babysitting or elderly care.
Home Page: Once you’re signed up, you’ll see a homepage with options to find caregivers nearby. You can also upgrade to a premium membership for extra features.
Apply for Jobs: Caregivers can apply for jobs by clicking “Apply to Jobs” and choosing the type of job they’re interested in, like nanny or senior companion. After passing a background check, caregivers can create their profiles and start looking for jobs.

Is Care.com Reliable?

NO. Once you sign up, even if you cancel your membership from premium back to free/basic, they will continue charging you. Their terms of service begins with a waiver of a right to a class action lawsuit — not exactly a sign of confidence.

Why Do People Feel It’s A Scam

Lots of complaints litter Trustpilot and about the services of care.com. They range from unethical business practices to unresponsive customer service. Here are some of the complaints

I sent over a dozen contacts for a house cleaner. Only one person answered me back and actually came to my house. That person never showed up again after cleaning one time I got no response from any of the others I contacted.
Impossible to cancel and close account. Rip off. Closed account online and they continued to charge my cc. I would give negative 5 stars if I could I asked for a refund because I never really used the site. They denied my request for refund . It is their way or the highway. Never again and would NEVER recommend to anyone. And to top it off, how do they avoid Google reviews ! ???
After reading these reviews, I cancelled my membership after 1 day. They say they do not do any refunds, but the site is totally useless. Caregivers do not reply, even those that messaged me about my job first. I will file a dispute with my credit card company and pray that care.com won’t charge my card even though I cancelled and got an email confirming my cancellation. I don’t trust scammers.

The site is full of bots. They bait you into an annual subscription and will later refuse any refunds.

Downsides

This company only cares to rip off your money without your consent. It requests you to pay one month of membership to view one profile, while secretly starting to charge you EVERY MONTH until you realize something is wrong. By the time you realize what’s happening, you could have been charged thousands of dollars. Unfortunately, there’s no way to easily reach out to them for help, as they lack proper customer service or contact information. Even if you try to dispute the charges with your credit card company, Care.com might refuse to refund even a single month’s fee.

Beware of Deceptive Practices at Care.com

It’s important to be aware of some deceptive tactics used by Care.com. Here’s what you need to know:

Free job postings can be misleading: You might be tempted to post a job for free, but once applicants apply, you’re required to purchase a subscription to view their applications and respond to messages.
Applicants are also charged: Applicants pay to apply for jobs, but if the job posters can’t read their applications or reply to them.
Disappointing candidate profiles: Some caregiver profiles may seem promising at first glance, but then they don’t respond to messages. Plus, many profiles have outdated reviews.
Poor customer service: Care.com’s customer service does not live up to expectations. Despite being called a “valued customer,” you might only receive apologies for the lack of service.
Non-refundable subscriptions: Once you’ve subscribed, refunds are not an option.
Fake job postings: Care.com may send you emails about childcare positions, but some of these jobs are fake.

Is it Worth Your Money

It’s way too expensive for what it is and not enough effort on Care’s part to screen the customers. There is no accountability for anyone who uses Care to hire yet to even make an account to view jobs you get charged $20 just for breathing. There are tons of guys on here who are pervs who want a girl to come clean for them and they give no information on their place or even have a picture of themselves on their profile and Care has done nothing to acknowledge or fix this. It’s a very one-sided experience that isn’t worth the money and I would not recommend it to anyone.

Other Choices Besides Care.com

Based on my own experiences, I’ve discovered several alternatives to Care.com that work quite well. Facebook groups can be a great resource for finding babysitters or smaller, home-based daycares. In every area we’ve lived, there are always groups focused on childcare – simply search for “babysitters” or “nannies” in your local area.

Final Words

Care.com is misleading and does not have many options for caregivers and it is closer to a scam than a service. The ratings on trustpiolot are very low therefore I recommend finding a better option for care.

Have you tried the services of Care.com, let us know about your experience in the comment section. Meanwhile click here to see other reviews.