Every booking on Poppynz starts with a written agreement between the family and the helper. People sometimes hear “agreement” and picture a contract with clauses. It’s closer to a shared note: what, when, how much, and what happens if things run over.
What’s actually in the agreement
The form is short on purpose. It asks for the things that cause misunderstandings when they’re left to memory.
- The service. Childcare, tutoring, meal prep, a check-in, or a custom service you’ve both described.
- The schedule. One-off or regular, with days and a time window.
- The rate. The helper’s hourly rate in CAD, copied from their profile at the time of signing.
- Overruns. What happens when a session runs long, and by how much before it’s billed.
- Cancellations. How much notice either side gives, and whether a late cancellation is paid.
- House notes. Allergies, pets, the neighbour with the spare key. Anything a helper should know before the first session.
Both of you confirm it in the app. From then on it’s the reference for every session booked under it.
What happens when a session runs long
This is the line that earns the agreement its keep. Sessions on Poppynz are tracked in the app, so the time is never in dispute. What the agreement settles is what that time costs. A typical arrangement is that the first fifteen minutes over are free, and anything beyond that is billed at the agreed rate in quarter-hour blocks. Some families prefer a flat “ask first” rule. Either is fine, as long as it’s written down before it happens.
Payment is automatic after each tracked session, at the rate in the agreement plus the 5% family service fee. Because the overrun rule is already in writing, nobody has to negotiate at the front door at 9pm.
Changing it later
Rates go up, schools change timetables, a second child arrives. Either side can propose a change from inside the agreement, and the other confirms it. The old version stays on record, so if a question ever comes up about what applied in March, the answer is there. A helper’s new profile rate applies only to new agreements; existing ones keep the rate they were signed at until both of you update it.
Why it protects both sides
Families sometimes assume the agreement is there to protect the helper, and helpers assume it’s there to protect the family. It’s there for whoever remembers the conversation differently, which at some point is everyone. Written expectations are also what our support team works from if something does go wrong, and a helper’s record of completed agreements is part of what earns the Major-domo title.
Nobody has ever regretted writing down the rate. Plenty of people have regretted not writing it down.
