To pay for DCS Men B vaccine from their savings?

[Afo]

My first AIBU. On maternity leave with DC3 at present so money is tighter than usual. We've cut back on spending but I do save £50/month each for the 2 older DC. I have booked for them to have the Meningitis B vaccine during the week, having been on the waiting list for a number of months. I just don't have the spare cash at present (£400). I was telling my Ddad today that we were going to get them and he asked the cost, and in passing told him I had to go to bank in person first to withdraw the funds from the DCS accounts. He made it clear he thought I was BU for going ahead with the jabs when we couldn't pay for them out of our own pocket and that at their ages (5 and 2) they wouldn't be at that much risk and that I was mad for dipping into their savings this way!! I was a bit put out tbh but said nothing but of course I've been feeling guilty all evening. I didnt have plans to put the money back btw.

And the gift of life

Having a vaccination doesn't give you the gift of life, it gives you protection against that disease .

I'm sorry you think it's rude, but giving a small child money for a vaccination instead of a present seems quite bizarre to me.

I got it free with dc2 so I paid over £300 for dc1s jabs on credit card.

No offence but is your dad a doctor? How does he know they're not at high risk?

Are you sure you didn't just want a big MN pat on the back for vaccinating OP?

Fwiw I wouldn't raid their savings either- what's the point in having them to use them every time something like this pops up?

I would use my children's savings for this if I had to.

I think it's very common, parents see childrens savings as their own and spend them as they wish. The person gifting has no idea that, instead of the child choosing a gift with the money, mum/dad are using it to extend their salary and buying what they can't afford.

I won't gift cash or vouchers now for this very reason which is a shame as lots love a trip to the shops with their own money.

You're not raiding their savings, you are using money put aside FOR THEM to buy something FOR THEM.

And yes if you used them every single time a potentially life saving vaccine became available, that would still be fine.

Don't let anyone make your feel bad about this.

I would use the money you have saved for them without a doubt.

My children are older and my dd has just had this jab in the last year and I am very grateful she got the new jab.

DS had the previous men one that doesn't cover as much but would pay for him to have the new one (I didn't realise you could!)

You have put this money aside for them and this is a good way to spend some of it.
(Also agree that saving in an account in your name might be the way to go going forwards!)

The gift of life thing was a joke obviously.

The point is they were too young to know about Xmas money etc. It was a way of our families being able to help us all out.

Yep that was exactly it matching

Fgs I am not raiding their savings. And I havent touched them for anything else! And I haven't saved for them as a tax break or anything else if I had enough money in the bank to worry about stuff like that £400 would be neither here nor there. I'm just trying to do the best for my kids.

My point was at 2 and 5 you've found something worthy of using it for so you can expect similar LIFE SAVING EMERGENCIES every few years. If you need to use savings each time it's not for their future really is it? It's just savings.

Well all done now. Just for anyone that is also going ahead through boots you can use your advantage card plus any coupons you may have so I was able to use a double points and a 10% off.

If you feel guilty about it could you do it as a sort of IOU thing and aim to pay the 400 back into their accounts when things pick up for you financially?

I think you did the right thing. I'd do the same if I had the money.

I'm a bit baffled as to why people seriously think she should owe her children this money. It's FOR them. Yes, ofc, I'm sure OP doesn't take food & water out but this is a different matter. You certainly don't need to pay it back.

I would definitely do this. You are making the right decision OP. An old colleague of mine lost her little boy to men B. Heartbreaking, and now, mercifully avoidable.

This thread made me look back at my DS (aged 7) red book. I had thought he was vaccinated, but of course it was just against Men c. I am ringing our health centre on Monday to find out what is what and will most definitely be seeking (and paying for) the Men B vacc.

So THANKYOU OP for starting this thread, and THANKYOU everyone who suggested Boots etc.

Worstthreadspinner - I said if she felt guilty about it then she could repay it. If she feels that it is something that they would have paid for themselves if their finances were better then I can understand not wanting to take it out of their savings.

Use the money. It's your money. What if you'd told him you weren't putting into their savings for a couple of moths while you were on Mat leave? Surely that's understandable? But because you've physically put it in and tried to save, but now something has come up, that's somehow terrible? Honestly, MN's family and friends never fail to blow my mind.

OP. The risk of MenB is small - yes. But the outcome if you catch it is horrific. So I would use the savings to give them protection.

And while a peak period is about a year old, there's another surge for teens, so it's future proofing too.

I knew someone at school who got MenB. Fine one day, coma the next, dead within 24 hours.

YANBU. I think it's perfectly fine to dip into their savings for this.

My eldest had the second one at Boots last week. Just be aware though that if you weren't on the waiting list then Boots charge £115 per jab, not £95. I wish I'd got her on the waiting list! Still, I'm glad we got it done. Good to get Advantage card points too - although we might have immediately blown them on a 'well done for being so brave' present

Use it.

HellsBells, there is no evidence that the childhood vaccine will last until teen years. The manufacturer info here in Table 3 shows antibody persistence pre-booster and then 1 year after the booster for the 4 different strains in the vaccine. It does show that immunity to certain strains has waned 12 months after the booster dose and it states: "The need for additional booster doses to maintain longer term protective immunity has not been established."

People paying privately should probably be aware that additional booster doses may be required before teenage years. Although perhaps the NHS will be offering a MenB vaccine to teens in the future.

It might not yet be established, given it's a new vaccine, but i will happily take the risk.

That's fine Hellsbells. I can understand people with younger children who have just missed out on the vaccine on the NHS wanting to catch their children up. If the vaccine only protects them until they're out of the higher risk category then at least it's something.

I'm just thinking of parents who may be spending a lot of money to vaccinate their older children who aren't in the at risk group but with the view of it protecting them until their teens/adulthood. They may be interested to see the figures. For a couple of the strains in particular it is very unlikely that protection will last that long given how much it waned within 12 months of the booster. I think people should know what they're getting for their money, particularly if they're having to scrimp and save to give it.

OP, we are in the same boat (mat leave, taking it from kids savings and getting stick) ! I just went ahead and took it from their bank. You'll never regret getting a vaccine. If it bothers your DF so much, tell him to dig deep!