Money Moral Dilemma: Should I pay to have the bike my ex-husband got our son serviced?

lucys_mum

ABSOLUTELY NOT !!!!!!!   It belongs to your son and if your son chooses to sell it then tell your ex that you're perfectly capable of selling it yourself and will invest the money as he has suggested.

subjecttocontract

This isn't a money moral dilemma.......it's a very silly question that just requires a one word answer = NO.

fifty-something

It's your son's bike.  End of discussion.

Myviewtoo

Does your son still want the bike. If not sell it yourself and either give him the money or invest it as your ex suggested. It's nothing to do with him at all. What a cheek!

JayD

sammyjammy said:

Does son not want the bike?  If bike was gifted it now belongs to son not ex husband.  If you do give it back to him to sell then no I would not pay for a service.

Exactly! It seems very odd that your ex is now asking for the bike back! How old is your son? Surely he has some thoughts on the matter, after all it is HIS property, to do with as HE wishes ...

And, no, I would not keep spending money on it yourself, no matter what.

Epsomdtc

Lol, no.
Nice try though!

Hunter_Willis_2

Absolutely not!  The bike was a present and belongs to your son for as long as HE wants it, your ex has no further claim on it.

primrose_penguin

Your ex husband is being really cheeky, the bike was a Christmas present to your son and therefore is no longer anything to do with him. You do not say the age of your son, but if he has outgrown the bike and is of an age to make his own decisions then it is his choice what he does with the bike not his fathers. If he is younger, then as you have paid for all the repairs etc. have a chat with your son and find out if he wants a bigger bike or something else, then you could either part exchange the bike or sell it yourselves, whatever you decide it is nothing to do with your ex husband. I would sell it as it is, if that is what your son wants, obviously it will not be worth a lot after 1 1/2 years of use, I would not waste my money on servicing it. I would also tell your ex husband to stop interfering.

suzukigirl2009

MSE_Kelvin said:

This week's MoneySaver who wants advice asks...

My ex-husband bought our son a second-hand bike that cost £180 for Christmas the year before last. Since then it's been badly damaged a couple of times, and I've paid for it to be fixed professionally. My ex now wants the bike back to sell, saying the money he gets will go into a savings account he's set up for our son. Yet he wants me to pay to have the bike serviced again so it can be sold - should I do it? I've probably paid more for the bike now than my ex did.

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My question to this dilemma is why does your ex need to sell your son's bike to fund a savings account? The bike was a gift to your son so therefore he owns it, not the person who bought it. Also, as you say, you have paid out of your own pocket to get the bike fixed in the past for your son, and it sounds like your son still uses it. It seems to me that your ex is robbing Peter to pay Paul, so to speak. He should just put money into the savings account from his own pocket; okay, it may not be as much as he would like to if he were to sell the bike, but then he should pay for the servicing, not you! Sounds like a bit of a Tony tight wad to me.

JaneHenery

No, you shouldn't. Why is he making decisions about the bike at all? I'm assuming your son is a reasonable age, why isn't he deciding what happens to his bike? The bike belongs to the person to whom it was given, your son. If dad has plans for other people's possessions that's at best a poor sense of boundaries and at worst theft. Tell him to back off and let your son decide.