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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

My friends 4 year old trashed Ds bedroom and broke his expensive birthday toy.

297 replies

Cannierelax · 28/03/2013 12:07

AIBU to want some form of compensation for the broken toy? Perhaps a replacement or even a similair but cheaper toy. My Ds is 5.5 and my friends Dd is 4.5. When i told my friend Ds was really upset she said, well that's what kids do. Em, not my child. Aibu? My friend was there when this happened and gave her Dd a row. She knew that the toy was broken but I said I would get DH to try and mend it. I've just messaged her saying DH Was not able to repair it at this point. At this point she stated that's what children do. I messaged back that it was a birthday gift he was looking forward to for several months. She hasn't messaged back.

OP posts:
StrawberryMojito · 28/03/2013 12:31

They are not missing the point, you are. It is not broken but diassembled. You will have to reassemble it. Annoying but possible. Therefore you cannot ask her to replace it.

allnewtaketwo · 28/03/2013 12:31

If she replaces it or gives you the £70 to replace it then you would have to rebuild it anyway Confused

5eggstremelychocaletymadeggs · 28/03/2013 12:32

cannie my boys are lego nuts we have thousands of pounds worth of lego including city sets, star wars, technic, harry potter stuff, the new vampyre range, batman lego etc masses and masses of lego. We try to keep all the instructions but yes the models get disasembled.

Bingdweller · 28/03/2013 12:32

BTW, Tesco have it for £54 and I noticed it is for age 6-12... Sounds like you should have put it away from the 4 year old before the visit!

Original poster
Cannierelax · 28/03/2013 12:32

MY DS DOESN'T DISMANTLE LEGO MODELS. They model he had wasn't meant for this purpose. It annoys me how friend laughed it off.

OP posts:
OhChristHasRisenFENTON · 28/03/2013 12:32

Considering it's a Lego construction I am not surprised your friend's response at all. She told her child off for the destruction of it, - that's enough, - she shouldn't be made to pay for another one Confused

I know it's going to be a pain to get the instructions, rebuild it etc, but it's not actually ruined - it can be rebuilt.

I think you are going rather OTT about this.

TheBigJessie · 28/03/2013 12:33

cannierelax I get that you didn't know there were instructions online, but why haven't you tried sending a sad letter to the Lego headquarters with an SAE? That's what we used to do in the old days.

PollyEthelEileen · 28/03/2013 12:33

Lego is meant to be "broken".

Once you've tracked down the instructions, DH and DS can have more hours of special father/son time building it again :)

starfishmummy · 28/03/2013 12:33

Get the instructions on line. Rebuild it. If any parts are missing or broken then ask your friendto replace those pieces

BringBackBod · 28/03/2013 12:33

YABU
It's not broken, just disassembled.
That's the point of Lego isn't it?

jinxdragon · 28/03/2013 12:33

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

McKayz · 28/03/2013 12:33

I would have laughed my head off. Say she gives you money for a new one. You'll have to build it anyway.

We aren't the ones missing the point here.

StrawberryMojito · 28/03/2013 12:34

Ok, so you're annoyed. Now get over it and rebuild it.

haggisaggis · 28/03/2013 12:34

So you woudl actually ask someone to replace a dismantled lego set with another dismantled lego set (albeit this one will have instructions) for your dh to rebuild? That's nuts!

eslteacher · 28/03/2013 12:35

I think she should tell her child off for willfully destructing another child's long building project. But I definitely don't think she owes you a new set of Lego.

SaltyandSweet · 28/03/2013 12:35

Good heavens. The whole point of Lego is being able to build it and take it down and rebuild it another time or in a different way. It's unreasonable to ask someone to "replace" a toy that's not broken forever. Sounds like you want monetary compensation for breaking a Lego building! Shock If it was too precious for your DS to take the risk that a friend invited to his house might disassemble it (quite a normal urge for Lego structures), you should have put it out of reach. YABVU.

sleepyhead · 28/03/2013 12:35

It doesn't matter that YOUR DS DOESN'T DISMANTLE LEGO MODELS. It doesn't change the essential essence of the produce which is that it can be dismantled and put back together with no more financial cost than an evening.

Now granted, since you are clearly not a sorting fraek like me it will be a boring evening, but unless your time is a hell of a lot more valuable than mine, it's still not worth £70.

TeWiSavesTheDay · 28/03/2013 12:35

Seriously, you are massively overreacting. It is not in any way broken.

Sort out the lego bricks, find the instructions online, put it back together.

Yes annoying, yes time consuming, but nothing else.

Job done.

CaptainRex · 28/03/2013 12:35

OK Lego geek, I do buy lego sets, build them with full intention to keep as fully built (eyes up lego Death Star sitting proudly in the corner of the room)

However even I think YABU, just download the instructions and rebuld it - there is always a key to how many of each shape you need at the back so can sort the bits you need and dont need), and yes its something I have had to do several times as DS loves to pull apart and then wants it rebuilt out of the huge box of lego we have, so we JFDI (and handy tip, always keep the instructions just in case)

WorriedMummy73 · 28/03/2013 12:35

Hang on, let me get this straight.

Your DS has the Lego Police Station and he built it and another child basically took it apart? And you want that child's Mum to buy another set for £70? But wouldn't your DS then have to build that second set into the Police Station? We have this set and iirc it was in pieces when we got it, so we had to build it from scratch.

Sooooooo, even if your friend replaced the toy, or gave you the money for a new set, you would still have to rebuild the model?!?! Why don't you just do that with the set you've got?

Also, who builds a massive Lego set then bins the instructions?

YABVVVVVVVVU - why not ask her to come round and rebuild the Police Station cos either way that's what needs doing here!

This is weird...

BettySwollocksandaCrustyRack · 28/03/2013 12:36

We have the lego city police station and the fire station. Yes they take hours to put together which is why we have it on the top of DS's bookcase so it can't get taken apart.

You cannot ask her to replace it, it is not broken and can be put back together. My DS has the lego pirate ship as well which my friends son used to make a bee line for. I used to just put it up high when he was round so it wouldnt get disassembled.

Moral of the story OP - always keep the instructions :)

PickledInAPearTree · 28/03/2013 12:36

There is no way, on this earth, I would give you £70 if it was me.

SchroSawMargeryDaw · 28/03/2013 12:36

If you were my friend I would call you a loon unreasonable and give you the instructions.

It's lego FFS and no one is "missing the point", infact it seems like it's you who is missing the point.

It's not broken so no you shouldn't ask her to replace it!

WorriedMummy73 · 28/03/2013 12:36

Xpost with Haggis! Exactly my point...

5eggstremelychocaletymadeggs · 28/03/2013 12:36

Your ds doesnt take them.apart but most kids do that is the whole point of lego!!

Sorry yabu you CAN rebuild it and if she buys a new set you will STILL have to build it!!!

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