my child broke fireplace at friends house

kerri_gt

I would personally offer to pay for the damage - I know it was an accident, kids can't always be watched 100% of the time (even when you blink they seem to get up to something given half a chance) and children do need to learn not to touch things etc etc but it's happened. The thing is that if it was a broken plate/mug or something else fairly innocuous then I think it would be fair enough to write it off. However, a fireplace is a feature of a room and I personally wouldn't want to look at a broken hearth 24/7.

Your friend may well decide that accidents happen and accept 1/2, or choose to claim on the insurance but I think not to at least offer (with the intent to pay if necessary) would be very unfair.

bouncydog1

I would pop round to the friend's without the child, apologise profusely and ask them to get a couple of quotes for repair (if possible) or replacement.

At the end of the day, children are children, and it doesn't matter how much a house is child proofed accidents do happen.

You cannot realistically expect another person's house to be childproof (no matter what they say). You may find they refuse the offer but at least you will have made it (and you will feel better)!

diable

or you could beat your child with a leather belt, video it and send it to your hosts and saying the little one will never ever do anything like that again ;o))))))))





I was joking............

Doozergirl

I think you could probably get it repaired by a specialist for much less than the cost of a new one. I would speak to a fireplace shop or a worktop supplier of a similar material to see if they could recommend.

I can understand why people think the parents should pay but then I also know that I take out accidental damage insurance in case of accidents. So if an accident happens, no matter who caused it, if the cost was considerably more than my excess, I'd use my insurance policy. If someone crashes into my car, it's not my fault but I'm insured and I'll have to pay the consequence of it.

I'd be a bit peeved if the parents thought that I should like it or lump it and vocally said so though! tbh, I can think of a couple of things that our kids have done in other people's houses by accident, likewise things that my friends kids and dogs have done to ours. Money has never been mentioned. As a parent, it's pretty inevitable that stuff gets broken so I'm more inclined to be fatalistic about it, think our friends are too!

slummymummyof3

You and your wife are responsible for your child. If you went in to a shop and your child broke something there - how would you deal with that? The only difference being that most shops display a sign saying breakages/damages must be paid for! I wouldn't hesitate in offering to pay for my childs damages!

Queen-Bee_2

Unbelievable. I don't understand why the OP can't simply accept that this is his child, his responsibility and that he should absolutely i) apologise unreservedly and ii) offer to get the hearth repaired at his expense.

Why on earth should someone else have their home damaged because people fail to supervise their children properly?

Shame on him for trying to legitimize his reluctance to pay up.

apple111

I agree with the majority here, YOUR child, YOUR responsibility, YOUR liability.

Its a discrace to hear your attempts to shift the blame by disputing whether or not your wife's friend's house was childproof or not. It is HER house and she can do what she likes.

But then your attitude is no great surprise. The theme in these threads tend to be how can you get out of paying for things irrespective of any conscience, manners or moral obligations. If that is the mode of operation of a moneysaver, I would rather not be one thanks.

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/2678035 This thread was much the same with a moneysaver's child damging someone's car parked on the owner's driveway!!! And the Op came out with some shameless nonsense about offering to pay in installments and even had the cheek to complain that the person whose car was damaged didnt ask about HER child's welfare!!!

Put it like this, if it was my house and my fireplace, and you/your wife didnt offer to pay and even mentioned the "childproof" debate, I would commence small claims court proceedings as a matter of course just to teach you about responsibilities.

Claim of the insurance???? Sure, lose the no claims, increased premiums for a few years based off a lack of supervision by your wife. Not a chance!

huckster

Stop trying to bait the OP. They have had the advice and now it is up to them.

I get a bit fed up of some of the self righteous people that post some of these comments. There is no point,as no one other than the person making these post obtains any benefit from doing so.

The posts are the type you see in the Daily Mail, often posted by the fish wives of this tollerant country of ours.

apple111

huckster wrote: »

Stop trying to bait the OP. They have had the advice and now it is up to them.

I get a bit fed up of some of the self righteous people that post some of these comments. There is no point,as no one other than the person making these post obtains any benefit from doing so.

The posts are the type you see in the Daily Mail, often posted by the fish wives of this tollerant country of ours.

Nothing to do with baiting, and neither is it anything to do with self righteous. Its about accepting responsibility that it is your liability to rectify damage caused by you/your kids to other people's property.

And your previous advice of asking the op's wife's friend to claim off her house insurance (no claims discount impact, higher premiums, excesses etc) says volumes about you...........

huckster

It is up to the home owner to make sure that they have adequate Insurance to cover accidental damage in their home. This is particularly important if they have children or invite other peoples children into their home.

If you read the OP's comments, their friend said that their home was child friendly. This being the case, you would have expected any heavy ornaments to have been placed out of reach. For the home owner not to have done so is careless. What if the 2 year old had hit themself or another over the head with the ornament ? We would be talking about something more serious than a damaged fireplace.

I actually agree with you that the OP should make an offer of sorting out the damage, but it is not my money at stake and I don't know what their financial position is. It is therefore a bit impolite of people to tell the OP to pay up, especially in the agressive manner in which some posters have done. I view people who do so in this way, as the fish wives of Britain.