General Chat

Would you invoice a family if their child didn't come to your child's party? Is this the start of a new trend?
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cornwall-30876360

That is so stupid to try and claim £15-95 back off this couple and so nasty.

Iwould tell her to go float....

What a horrible thing to do.

Their child will have NO friends if they keep this up. :-P

How incredible petty. The mother would have had to pay the dry ski slope if the child-guest had attended I wonder if there were a number of 'no shows'?

One wonders if there is some 'history' between the parents, or if the child has a habit of accepting invitations then not attending.

I believe there are faults on both sides of this issue.

I agree that it was wrong to send the invoice but really wasn't it just good manners to let the host know that the lad would not be attending? The father claims that he had no contact information but they must have had in order to accept the invitation in the first place. Some untruths being told and I suspect bad blood between the families.

I'm afraid he's also been overcharged!!!!!

http://jnlplymouth.co.uk/birthday-parties/

Presumably the invites were handed out at school? It was silly not to put contact info on that to start with. The no-show family could have phoned the ski centre.

We have had an incident where we had no way to contact a parent. The child had been taught not to divulge their phone number; they lived in an expensive and isolated house.

However cross we might have been, we wouldn't have run to the local papers which presumably this has been picked up from.

Maggie,

The parents could have booked the last package,,which is

Slide n Ride £15-95

Still just a shame that the parents of the birthday boy couldn't have spoke to the parents about the cost first..



Even if there was bad blood between the parents or the invited child couldn't make the party the invoice should still not have been sent.

Has anyone realised that the parents of the birthday may not have wanted that child invited.....

It is a risk you have to take whenever you book anything involving other people.

When my children were young I would always reckon on the odd no show.

This boy was only 5. I know he was going to his grandparents but this is an age where you are bessie mates one minute and hate each other the next.

I'm surprised they didn't include the cost of the party bag!

In the news report I saw on FB the Mother said that 'they accepted the invitation and then realised he was due to spend time with his grandparents which he chose to do'. If they accepted the invitation then surely they could have made contact to say they had made a mistake. And why publish a photo of your child in the newspaper? Strangely I think the report I saw was in a Scottish paper. No doubt if his classmates see the photo they will be teasing him about his Mum not paying the bill. (regardless of whether she should or not).

I am a brownie guider with 24 girls and it is something we encounter too. We maybe book an activity like ice skating for the end of term that needs paid upfront. If we have used unit funds and one child doesn't show then it is annoying as units can run to a tight budget but we would never think of asking the parent for the money back.

The report has even got on Lunchtime BBC1 Nes


Just hope the birthday boy parents feel fools for starting this stupid act.

The parents chose to host an expensive party....tough....they pay!

I'd swallow the cost and certainly not embarrass my child. You cannot punish children at that age (which is what they are doing). What would they have done if all the kids had woken up that morning with an infectious rash? Billed the whole group? That's what you take out insurance for if you are that bothered about the costs.

*falls off soap box*

My reply to sender of invoice....

See you in small claims court.

Absolute nonsense.

The birthday boy#s parents could always ask ITV to put it on ""Judge Rinder lunchtime programme...

See what he says about the situation....

I ignore party invitations that include the phrase - 'Bring a plate'. :-D

I can't believe it! This story just made it on our National CBC News Network here in Canada!

Wonder if it's on CNN?

Awful, fgs why do people think it's necessary to organise this kind of birthday 'party' in the first place? especially for such young children...smacks of one upmanship to me, what was wrong with some balloons, jelly and icecream and pass the parcel? :-D :-D

I thought this was hilarious.

I am sure there is more to the story than at first seems but who cares? No doubt it will be blown out of all proportion on Faceache.

Dear All

Hello

I checked the date when I heard of this news story.

I thought it was April Fools!

Take gentle care
Best wishes
Elizabeth, EOS
xx