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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To think my friend is truly awful for doing this?

307 replies

Jamye · 01/05/2024 19:30

My friend has recently been very keen to book a mini break with me. I’ve been looking forward to it and she’s sent lots of links to luxury hotels etc. It got to the point where I had to say could we go somewhere cheaper, she said that was fine and then proceeded to say she only had ‘extra income’ because she was getting her ex to pay for all her DD’s childcare by firstly giving him inflated cost of them, not telling him she’s using tax free childcare and also taking holiday allowance one day a week so has a day with her daughter that basically her ex is paying her for as he thinks he’s funding nursery!

I was really shocked by this and think it’s very wrong. His maintenance was already high in the first place and then she asked for more because nursery is more, when it’s actually not. So she has all funded nursery and some left over for dd and for her to spend as she wants. I haven’t told my DH as he is still a colleague of my friend’s ex. They had an acrimonious split and my friend feels she is ‘owed’ this (he left her and only started seeing their dd when she was six months). I do totally get my friend has been through a lot and I have huge sympathy, but this is basically stealing money?! He is not a wealthy man and she earns well herself. AIBU to be surprised/disgusted by this?! I genuinely don’t feel I can sustain the friendship as it is so lacking in basic honesty!

OP posts:
MariaLuna · 01/05/2024 19:43

I wouldn't be going anywhere with someone like that.

She's sly enough to have you paying for it all.

Find some new friends who don't fuck people around.

PossumintheHouse · 01/05/2024 19:43

Fucking cheeky of her. And I'm frankly surprised he isn't asking for invoices for nursery fees etc.
If she can be underhand with him, she won't hesitate to do it to others she's close to...

DrJoanAllenby · 01/05/2024 19:40

It's neither here or there if he is a bastard or a saint, the fact is your friend has bragged about being a liar and a money grabber and that would make me question what other morals she is lacking in and whether she would happily cheat me out of anything.

I would have to call her out in it.

I also don't like stupid people and she is stupid to brag about conning her ex out of money. She could have just done it and kept her mouth shut but chose to stupidly blab about it.

Createausername1970 · 01/05/2024 19:36

HampdenRadius · 01/05/2024 19:32

You’re not being unreasonable. It would change my view of her as person, and I would probably consider whether to start distancing myself.

This.

If someone can do this type of thing to one person, then they can do similar to someone else - including you.

I would back off from the friendship.

Ofmince · 01/05/2024 19:35

They had an acrimonious split and my friend feels she is ‘owed’ this (he left her and only started seeing their dd when she was six months).

Meh, couldn't really get my knickers in a twist about this tbh. He sounds like a prize knob for leaving your friend when she was pregnant and tbh I do think he deserves a bit of karma for this.

He's obviously not doing any of the mental load of arranging nursery if he doesn't know how it is being paid.

YoureStuckOnMeLikeATattoohoohoo · 01/05/2024 19:35

I couldn't get too worked up about this tbh, I'm far more disgusted by the men who pay peanuts towards their kids and use every loophole in the book to pay even less.

He sounds like he left her whilst pregnant and totally alone in the difficult early days so I get her feeling like she's owed, it will likely be short lived and he will start paying a pittance soon enough.

HampdenRadius · 01/05/2024 19:32

You’re not being unreasonable. It would change my view of her as person, and I would probably consider whether to start distancing myself.