Foolish move on my part but who's BU?

[Mummybear8]

Parked my car in a car park to local shops on way to school run. Nipped in for one thing which took 2 minutes. Left my 18mo in the front seat, half asleep, strapped in, doors locked. Car within my view, due to large glass window at front of shop/till area. Come back to a man and a woman stood outside my car taking pictures of my car, my baby inside it and taking down my reg. He then proceeds to lay in to me about how dangerous it is leaving a child in the car, he's reporting me, I'm disgusting, can't I see what I've done etc.
I know that I probably should not have left my sleepy baby in the car and that it was a stupid thing to do and obviously won't be doing it again after this incident, I am bloody beside myself and petrified I'm going to be in trouble with the SS. I have been furiously googling and, whilst I'm yet to find any info saying it's actually illegal to leave a child in a car unattended (however foolish it was to do it, please go ahead and prove me wrong if I am and it is illegal), it is illegal to take pictures of other peoples children.
On the same note, what do you do when you're getting petrol? Do you leave your kids in your locked car on the forecourt whilst you run in and pay or take your child in every time?
Thank you

[Marmalady75]

I left my sleeping toddler in the car for a couple of minutes while I paid for a parking ticket. I came back to a very irate woman staring in the window. She started having a go at me. I calmly told her that it would have been far more dangerous to try to hold on to a wriggling toddler while paying than leaving him in a car sleeping. She continued with her rant about how this or that could have happened whilst I unstrapped my dc. I bit my tongue because my little one is like a sponge at the moment for new words, but in my head I was screaming at her to "just fuck the fuck off".

[lalalalyra]

I leave mine in the car when paying for petrol or when getting tickets from the parking machine. Far safer in a locked car than on a busy forecourt or in a car park where people are too busy looking for spaces than paying attention to pedestrians.

[CosyCoupe88]

They were more interested in the opportunity of giving you a hard time than having genuine conern at the situation. If they hd genuine concern one of them would have come into the shop to find you.

I have left my little one a few times like you but know I shouldn't just due to the tiny tiny risk something happened then I would never forgive myself. Don't beat yourself up about it..ss won't give a damn.

[Funnyonion17]

Your wrong to do it, as i figured out eventually i was too!

However social services will not entertain their reports so relax.

[emilybrontescorset]

Seriously social services have better things to worry about than this.

I presume this man and to a lesser extent wife were perfect parents who always always had their child saddled on their hip at all times .

Never ever leaving them alone and never left the house without them
Oh wait.........

[Megatherium]

You were in the wrong.
My rule of thumb is I don't leave my baby where I wouldn't leave my handbag

I regularly leave my handbag in the footwell of my locked car, occasionally I shove a coat or something on top of it. I take it I'm OK to do the same with my baby?.

[Megatherium]

things that go wrong happen very very quickly. Another car crashing into your parked car

But that car could just as easily crash into your children as you cross the forecourt.

[SpaghettiMeatballs]

How ridiculous.

I'm with everyone else who has commented that they've never seen children being got out the car at a patrol station. This only happens on Mumsnet.

I'd be frightened that the person queuing behind me at the pump would start to shout and swear at me if I held them up by getting my 5 and 3 year old out.

[Falafelings]

I leave mine in the car when paying for milk on cool days. The car is exactly outside the large shop window - only 10 foot from the shop.

The alarm goes off if there's any movement. They are old enough to avoid the alarm going off and get out in an emergency.

[Falafelings]

At petrol stations all kids stay in cars. Rarely see one outside

[bimbobaggins]

I would have done the same thing. As others have said how many children do you actually see in the garage at petrol stations.
I wouldn't give it another thought

[Itwillbefine]

Only on mumsnet do people take their children out of cars to go in and pay for petrol.

[Collaborate]

There are different ways of parenting. Just because your is different to theirs (or others who may have posted here) doesn't make you in the wrong. Ignore it and move on.

You did nothing wrong. People are too swift to judge these days.

[Ineedacupofteadesperately]

I'm going to have to get DH to read this thread as we've been having an ongoing argument about this. I want him to fill up our car (we only have one)when he's home from work because it's a huge pain to get the baby in and out of the car. The baby is (almost) 3 months. He thinks it's fine to leave baby in car for a few mins. I feel uncomfortable leaving such a little baby though have left my older DD on occasion in the past - but only if car directly in sight and waited until no queue. Although I won't leave my baby I do agree with the point that many have made that it is almost certainly riskier for the DC to walk across the forecourt / car park. I would never berate another parent for making either choice - sounds like the OP met with people more interested in being judgy and bullying her than really caring about her DC. Some people seem to get a kick out of this sort of behaviour. I would think ss will have better things to do, but understand your fears op.

[SallyGinnamon]

I didn't leave mine, even when paying for petrol but I am the archetypal pessimist.

However, even in the States in the US that have a law against leaving kids in cars say no more than 10 or 15 mins.

(There was a link on here a few weeks ago but I can't find it,sorry).

[notquiteruralbliss]

What knowlersaid. Busybodies. I woikfn't give their weird behaviour headspace.

[DaisyBlameless]

That daily mail article is concerning. What a waste of everyone's time.

[Catsize]

You did nothing wrong OP. You could argue you took a reasoned decision and concluded it was in the child's best interests to leave it comfortable and sleepy in the car.

[papercoversrock]

Tinted windows are the way forward. A few months ago, in a similar situation, I decided to take lo into the shop with me - in case of busybodies, mostly. Whipped baby out of the car and, in the 5 seconds it took to reach the shop door, was confronted by an angry woman asking me where his coat was. You can't win.

[CoffeeBreakIn5]

It's far more dangerous to have children walking across a car park than it is for them to be strapped into the car alone for 5 minutes. Some people are ridiculously precious and I absolutely despise busy bodies who feel the need to comment on and interfere with the parenting styles of others.

When getting petrol, my children stay in the car. When I go to the small shop with the parking directly outside the large glass window I leave them in the car. When I go to the big supermarket I take them with me because the car can't be seen from inside the shop. It's a judgment call each time and not up to passers by to decide. My children are 1 and 4.

OP you did nothing wrong, these people should focus on real problems.

[Darlink]

You did nothing wrong.

[bigbluebus]

I never got my children out of the car when I went to pay for petrol. The forecourt is always visible from the checkout and virtually every petrol station has CCTV directed onto all the vehicles. What on earth do people think is going to happen to their children in the couple of minutes it takes to pay for petrol? It had never even occured to me that people would take their children with them when they went to pay until I joined Mumsnet.

[RhiWrites]

OP it's not illegal to take pictures of other people's children. Where did you pick up that idea?

[ImFuckingSpartacus]

It's not illegal to take pics of other peoples kids, at all.

Nothing wrong with leaving baby in the car either. Anyone with half a brain does their own risk assessment, we should trust parents more to know if its ok for them and their children.

I do it all the time.

[anothermalteserplease]

I did what you've described a couple of times when I had a baby and toddler who were both sleeping.
I pay at the pump so am beside car the whole time when filling up with petrol.