DD12 wants to spend £92 on Robux

[IndieTara]

She had £220 of Christmas money ( mostly from her dad who claimed not to know what to buy her )
A few days ago she gave me £80 cash and asked me to transfer the equivalent into her bank account as she wanted to shop on Amazon.
So I did.
She bought a hat and spent £50 on a Robux e gift card and had some change.
20 mins later she went Into her bedroom And I realised I could here something. Turns out she'd been scammed of the Robux on Adopt Me and was crying her heart out. This is not the first time she's been scammed on there and we have had many conversations on the subject.

Tonight she has asked me to transfer money into her Go Henry account again. When I asked why she told me she wants to spend £92 on Robux.

Now obviously it is her money but I can't help thinking that it's a complete waste of money too. I really want to say no but also know that she should be allowed to spend her own money on whatever she wants. We both also know that if she asked her dad to do the same he would flat out refuse.
What should I do?

@IndieTara

I don't see it as gambling as they are using the game currency to buy ( in this particular game ) online baby pets which they then have to feed and look after so they grow up, then they use them to try and trade up to legendary higher status pets. It's all part of building up a virtual life, they build a house and choose Styles and furnishings. They can trade for cars and potions to make their pets flyable etc. They can set up andinvite friends to parties etc

There are plenty of other games and platforms they can do this without needing to swims real money to trade up.

That's why it's addictive and the start of gambling.
They draw you in to that "must have" mentality where you are so engrossed stopping isn't an option.

Tamagotchi were what we had as kids and you have to look after your pet. The better you did it the more you levelled up.
It never cost you more.

You're an absolute idiot OP. I really have seen it all now.

Have my very first

(I am posting this as a pro-gaming family who have two kids who play roblox but aren't allowed robux)

Seriously no, it’s her money but your her parent and need to teach her the value of it. That is a hell of a lot of money. As others have said she obviously dose not have the maturity to play the game if she’s constantly being scammed and spending that much money on it. You may as well throw it in the bin. As others have also said that amount of money could feed an entire family for a week, maybe teach her that lesson. Even my 6 & 8 year olds learnt their lessons after being scammed once. They have their own gohenry accounts too but we’d never dream of letting them spend money on rubox.

What's the fascination with this game? My niece who's just turned ten plays it and I've seen it once or twice. I thought computer games had advanced, it looks like something I was playing thirty years ago

Does she have SEN? A 12 year old who has a Go Henry account should otherwise have the maturity to at least be hesitant after a scam. Do you talk to her about the value of money at all? I think you need to educate her about money and start making her earn it - otherwise she’ll end up being financially illiterate when she’s older too.

You're an absolute idiot OP. I really have seen it all now.

What???

So much over reaction on here. 🤪🤪🤪

Can someone explain to me what a biscuit emoji means 😆

I have a 9 year old that plays adopt me OP.

Now I’m the first to say I am happy for her to spend her birthday money and Christmas money how she wishes as it’s her money and I don’t see it as any different to spending money on sweets/plastic tat toys etc. Aslong as my daughter enjoys it then she can spend it how she likes in reason BUT even I would say no to £92,
specially after she just got scammed for £50.

I also play adopt me with my daughter and she has a lot of ‘legendary’ pets and extras. She knows absolutely that she is not allowed to trade any rare pets without my say so (so I can check it’s a fair trade). I asked her has she ever done a trust trade before with anyone on adopt me and she just looked at me like I was mad and said ‘of course not, why would I do that as they just scam you’.

If your daughter is 12 and still getting scammed then I don’t think she’s savvy enough to be spending large amounts of money on it.

My daughters a premium member and spends £4.99 a month on Robux. She spends this out of her £10 a month pocket money and saves the rest also.

I occasionally buy her other items on there or more Robux as a treat for good behaviour/school work etc

I don’t think you have done anything wrong letting her have the £50 to play with as like you say it’s her money but I absolutely would not give her the final £92 she’s asking for.

I don’t get why people are saying that £92 could feed a family for a week though.. so what? What’s that got to do with the OPs situation. It’s the kids Xmas money, why try and guilt her on how she wants to spend it by mentioning how poor other people are 🤨

Or is it a flower? It looks like a Jammy dodger to me

I don’t agree with the wider sentiment that it’s the kids money to spend on whatever they want when.it’s a gift. There has to be some regulation .

@Ember89

Just to note that if she’s been scammed on Adopt Me, you can report to Roblox and they should make some attempt to recover her pets or reset it to how it was before she was scammed. Contact them.

But no, I wouldn’t be letting her spend the money either.

How do you do this? I’ve just told my DDs it’s a lesson learned and they have been more careful since. DH usually plays with them as they are young but it would be good to know for future reference.

You need to start setting limits as to how much of birthday and Xmas money can be spent on games OP.

She’s already lost £50 and could easily lose another £92! You’d be mad to let her spend it.

Come down firm and say no because she’s already been scammed out of £50 and it’s not a safe place for her to spend Xmas money.

Yes it’s her money to spend but you are still the parent and are there to guide her to make sound judgements over her wants and needs. Say no.

My own DC are not allowed to spend real cash on in game purchases. They can by games but that’s it. They have to earn in game cash in order to by things (eg one game you have to complete daily challenges to get points that you can use to buy items. You can side step this and buy them with actual cash) because DC has to earn these points they’re more cautious in how to spend them.

@AliceMcK where have I said she's constantly being scammed?
I actually said she's been scammed twice in the 12 months she's been playing it, once on a trust trade and then the Robux.

Google Roblox and grooming. That should tell you. PLEASE dont let your child play on something like that without all the information. Horrendous game.

@MrsGrindah

I don’t agree with the wider sentiment that it’s the kids money to spend on whatever they want when.it’s a gift. There has to be some regulation .

Genuine question ... I’m not being narky.

Can I ask why? The way I see it is that the money is a gift for them to buy something they enjoy. If they enjoy spending time on a certain game then what’s wrong with that? I’m not talking £100s but if they wanted to spend £15-£30 on it and get real enjoyment then why not?

Should the money only be spent on things the adult deems ‘worth it’?

I don’t link pocket money to chores because as far as I’m concerned they need to be done regardless. I’m not going to pay her £1 a week because she made her bed for a week. That should be done anyway.

And if she pisses the lot up the wall again?

I'm sorry but nearly £150 on Robux in the space of a few days, especially when she clearly doesn't have the maturity to either know the value of the money she's spending or the ability to tell when she's being scammed, is frankly ridiculous.

@Charlie63849
''
I don’t get why people are saying that £92 could feed a family for a week though.. so what? What’s that got to do with the OPs situation. It’s the kids Xmas money, why try and guilt her on how she wants to spend it by mentioning how poor other people are 🤨''

Thank you I don't think that's the point either and when I said earlier in the thread I shouldn't be guilt tripping her I was jumped on. I've also said no to spending £92, as I said in my OP to me it seems a Waste of money and I wanted to say no.I just had a little niggle because it was her own money

@ChristinaMarlowe is right... Two of my sons friends (both relatively sensible) have been groomed via roblox. As a result one still is working with support agencies to undo the damage done

However back to original question...
DS plays Fifa and loves buying points to use on there.
He is allowed £15 a week (his dad funds this)
For Christmas we tend to agree that actual money gifted is used for purchases and treats such as things he wants for hobbies or more designer clothing or trainers he wants.

Some friends or relatives buy him playstation gift cards if unsure what to get him so he obviously is allowed to use those on there. He tends to add it to account but uses it gradually.

Op if she was on a Bingo site, would you still have the same attitude? Theses games are designed to hit your child in the dopamine receptor and make them want more more more. They can be fun and entertainment but it's your job as the grown up to manage it
You need to parent here and be bad cop, it's for her own good.

Mumsnet, in general, doesn’t like gaming so you get these completely OTT responses. The children should be playing with education wooden toys until they’re old enough to decide to give all their money to the local food bank.

In the real world, kids play video games with guidance from parents and they turn out just fine.

Does not sound mature enough to be given access to her own money. Think you need to manage it for her.

Not that I have a fucking clue what Robux or Go Henry is.

We don't allow any in game purchases. They're a waste of money, many are dodgy as fuck, with plenty of opportunities to be scammed and lots are gateway gambling activities.

If you want the buzz of levelling up spend the money on a decent game that charges you up front then rewards you for playing well not for spending cash.

[quote IndieTara]@Charlie63849
''
I don’t get why people are saying that £92 could feed a family for a week though.. so what? What’s that got to do with the OPs situation. It’s the kids Xmas money, why try and guilt her on how she wants to spend it by mentioning how poor other people are 🤨''

Thank you I don't think that's the point either and when I said earlier in the thread I shouldn't be guilt tripping her I was jumped on. I've also said no to spending £92, as I said in my OP to me it seems a Waste of money and I wanted to say no.I just had a little niggle because it was her own money[/quote]
I think you made the right choice saying no. I would of also said no to it.

Aww your poor child. What a shame. My children play Roblox and have told me about people attempting to scam others in ways you've described.