AIBU to think my son should not charge friends for lifts?

It’s less than a pound, saves them loads on buses and it’s more comfortable.
He needs to pay petrol so I don’t think it’s bad at all.

Nothing wrong with this at all! It’s his car, his fuel, his wear and tear of the car, his concentration the whole journey, he’s giving them comfort in a car instead of a bus journey .. this list is endless 🤷‍♀️

if they don’t want to give him a pound, they can get the bus or walk

Lots of kids do this. I told my son that his black box prevented him from driving after 10pm, so that he wouldn’t be giving lifts to pubs etc., but I think it’s ok to college, as a contribution to fuel.

Ethically corrupt?! Jeezo, how are you going to cope if he does something actually terrible?

YABVU. Not in anyway ethically corrupt.

Yabu. £1 per day each to go towards fuel for the car they are benefiting from is very reasonable. They'd spend alot more getting the bus.

It depends if he is paying for petrol or you are?

Smart kid! Bargain for his pals, he gets a bit to covers any extra fuel and wear and tear on his car. Sounds like a win win.

Excellent idea

This ^
its not like he asks them to perform an oral for a ride, he has to pay for petrol and has other car related expenses.
Also have you considered that it’s his way to restrict “demand” ? If he is the only one with a car the asks for lifts can be endless. If he is not the only one with a car, maybe he is doing the same as others.
Let him be.

I think ‘ethically corrupt’ is a total overreaction. Where I come from we call it’ contributing to petrol money’.

What a bargain! Why on earth should he be out of pocket for a favour? I can’t work out the ethical issue here. They save money, they have a more pleasant commute, your son can afford to keep doing this (the wear and tear on his car would mean I’d suggest charging a bit more honestly) and no one except you is upset. Unless you’re paying petrol and upkeep and he’s pocketing a profit?

No problem with this at all! It contributes to his running costs and saves them much more than that in time and money!

It's cheaper than the bus!

We also call it fuel contribution , common place around here where there is no public transport

How many friends does he give a lift to and does he pick them up from their house rather than them walk to him? Consider the cost of fuel atm.

Why should he end up out of pocket for going out of his way to pick his friends up? He’s doing them a favour. Surely that would be teaching him to be a doormat.

His customers have a choice but 2nd class riding beats 1st class walking

So does the car fuel, insurance, tax, servicing etc pay for itself or do you/your son?! They aren’t free. A pound is a lot less I’m sure than a bus/train or whatever and much more comfortable and convenient. His friends are free to not get a lift if they don’t want to pay.

I think it’s fine but then again my DS was selling garlic bread at school, we lived very close and it was wrapped up to keep warm and he made quite a bit of cash. The school lunches were not great.

He also outsourced part of his paper round to another kid and sold anti spider solution to my neighbour who was scared of them, she knew it was just washing up liquid put in small cosmetic bottle but he made a great label with a skull and crossbones on. He charged her 50 pence, he was 6. I did offer it back to her when I found out but she admired his entrepreneurial spirit and the fact he wanted to help.

My little capitalist running dog.

I think it's a funny friendship dynamic to talk about him charging them for lifts.

If they really are friends then these pals should be offering him something towards the cost of fuel or at least buying him an occasional coffee or drink or whatever.
It's the formalising of the arrangement with terminology such as charging them that makes this sound not right.
However er if his friends show no appreciation of the favour he is doing them he has every right not to offer them lifts.

You’re being ridiculous.

Contributing to petrol costs is perfectly normal and in fact, means he won’t get the piss taken out of him by friends begging for lifts everywhere. It’s also teaching his friends to value him, his car, and the favour he’s doing them.

I say well done your lad for being smart and protecting his valuable asset of a car.

I see why you would think this @KatherineJ1775 but if he doesn’t set some kind of boundary, he’d end up being taken for granted/always driving. Putting in this amount (bargain for his mates and convenient) allows him to cover costs and makes it clear it’s an arrangement rather than something fluid and vague. When I was younger (6th form) and some of us had access to borrow parents’ cars we always offered petrol money, it seems ok to me.