Money Moral Dilemma: Is it OK to borrow from my kid's piggy bank?

janiebquick

My father regularly stole money in this way from myself and my siblings throughout our childhood. Fortunately, I quickly learned to hide any spare cash I had. You are not borrowing - you are stealing. What a terrible example you are to your poor children.

Tiny_Tiger

If you want to teach your child morals and money management:
1) ask before you borrow (otherwise they will rightly think its okay to do the same to you)
2) If you want to borrow what would seem to them a lot for a long time, suggest they can get some sort of incentive for allowing you to do so

dk2401

If you found a bunch of IOUs from your daughter instead of cash in your purse, I don't think you'd find it acceptable, so why would it be so the other way around..?
Sit down with your daughter and make a plan for you to repay the money to her, preferably with a little interest...
That way you will both learn something about financial planning.

Jagraf

gaving7095 wrote: »

Crikey this one's attracting a whole lot of judgement :-)
If it gets paid back, personally I don't think it's a big deal. I only wonder what kind of a piggy bank contains any significant amount of money, or else how exactly you find yourself that short that piggy bank money gets you out of a hole.
Start your own piggy bank maybe? :-D

I agree on all counts here.

FBaby

I do regularly not because I run out of money but out of cash and almost every time it is to give to one of the kids for transport or lunch money. I don't always tell my boy because it happens when he is still in bed but I always replace it that she day. He knows I do it and he isn't bothered at all. He knows 100% that I would never steal from him. Most of the money he gets comes from me any way!

FreddieFrugal

Well if you're actually borrowing that really requires permission.
If you explain the reason why you need the money at that point, what it's being used for, that you will repay them, and the child accepts this and allows you to then fair enough.

If you sneak it then you're being dishonest and setting a bad example.

Don't think of children as being a different species, they're just young people and even very young children are perfectly capable of understanding things like helping and supporting others.

If you're honest about it, then you're making it a learning experience and character building for them.

If you sneak money or belongings away from them, without asking or explaining first, then you'll build mistrust and resentment. Even if you get away with it, I'd feel horrendous acting in that way.

Would you 'borrow money' from an adult family member without asking? Why should it be any different for a child.

meknowalot-51

Jagraf wrote: »

Yes I would do and have done.

I have been too broke for new school shoes for DD. The choice was wet feet or borrowing the money out of her piggy bank.

I would have a real issue with sending her to school with wet feet

She has lovely healthy feet now and enough shoes to make a centipede smile, so I'm glad I didn't put her through that trauma years ago, because she would have remembered the shoes.

And I would do it again and again if I needed to.

Thats a lot of change for some school shoes,perhaps you could reverse the roles and let your child know the benefits of saving loose change.

Fujiko

Jagraf wrote: »

Yes I would do and have done.

I have been too broke for new school shoes for DD. The choice was wet feet or borrowing the money out of her piggy bank.

I would have a real issue with sending her to school with wet feet

She has lovely healthy feet now and enough shoes to make a centipede smile, so I'm glad I didn't put her through that trauma years ago, because she would have remembered the shoes.

And I would do it again and again if I needed to.

If there is enough money in your child's piggy bank to pay for or even contribute towards a pair of shoes shouldn't you encourage her to put it in a savings account? At least then she would be getting a small amount of interest.

sugarbaby125

gaving7095 wrote: »

Crikey this one's attracting a whole lot of judgement :-)
If it gets paid back, personally I don't think it's a big deal. I only wonder what kind of a piggy bank contains any significant amount of money, or else how exactly you find yourself that short that piggy bank money gets you out of a hole.
Start your own piggy bank maybe? :-D

I have 4 children, a 33 and 23 year old daughters, 32 and 15 year old sons. Only the 15 year old son is still at home.

My 2 oldest love spending and are both in debt and have no savings. As children they spent money as fast as they got it.

My 2 youngest children always had quite a lot of money in their piggy banks, as they were both savers rather than spenders. Both are also very generous people. They have both happily swapped change for notes, when I desperately needed change, but I would never just borrow money from their piggy banks or money boxes without asking them. Both of them kept their birthday and Christmas notes in their money boxes and piggy banks even though they also had junior bank accounts. They like to see their own money. Once my daughter was 18 she got a student bank account with free gifts and started saving in an ISA, so then her piggy bank and money boxes only ever had change in.

gloriouslyhappy

Once yes, twice no - you need to look at your own financial behaviour, why are you often needing to raid your child's piggy bank to the extent of having several outstanding IOUs? Only you can tell, but I'd recommend a money make-over, draw up a plan and stick to it, set an example for the children.