AIBU to not want to pay in full?

[Lincspeeps]

DD is in before and after-school childcare in a small place near Peterborough. We used them for DS for three years and DD has been there for five years. Never had any problems with them and have got to know staff very well.

Last week we had a call to say that due to an admin oversight our cheques from May and July 2018 have never been banked (total of £580) and as they are almost 9 and 11 months old they need replacements as the bank won't take them.

We hadn't realised they hadn't been banked and, being honest, that money is no longer available. Obviously an error on their part and on ours. We have offered to pay them £100 per month but they want it all or they won't accommodate DS after Easter.

AIBU to not want to pay it all out. We would have to go into overdrafts to find the lump sum and would be charged. As it's a dual error I don't think £100 per month for six months is unreasonable....is it?

[kaytee87]

Honestly? I don't believe you didn't notice the extra money in your account.
We regularly have several thousand in our current account and I'd notice this.
The fact that you'd have to go into your over draft to get the money suggests you don't have lots of spare cash which suggests even more that you thought you would get away without paying for 2 months of childcare.
You need to pay up.

[GoldenHour]

You can ask but I think it's quite appalling you didn't notice such a large amount of money not going out of your account, that's poor money management and I find it hard to believe particularly as presumably you aren't flush for cash if you're unable to back pay in one go (nor could I, that's not a critique on that). Can you pay them by childcare vouchers instead? That'll save you 20%

[Sexnotgender]

You really need to pay them ASAP.

You have benefitted from the service they provided now you need to pay them for it.

Yes they’ve made an admin error but that’s really neither here nor there.

[CordeliaEarhart]

I'd offer them £100 per month provided DS has a place after Easter. Should you be forced to find alternative, more expensive childcare you will still pay them but it will be a smaller amount over a longer period of time.

The mistake was on both sides so they should be prepared to compromise.

[Sexnotgender]

I'd offer them £100 per month provided DS has a place after Easter.

This is terrible advice. Blackmailing them will not endear you to them

[Lincspeeps]

I do love it that some commenters apparently know me better than I know myself!

No, I didn't realise the additional money was there. It's a joint bank account and money is coming in and out all the time. They normally bank cheques within a week so just assumed they had gone out. £580 over eleven months is only an additional £50 per month.

I don't deny I owe the money at all and I am more than happy yo pay it. I just think that a demand for the whole amount in one go is unreasonable given that it's their mistake they don't already have the money, as it was given to them many months ago.

[ZippyBungleandGeorge]

I agree with PP s the only way you wouldn't notice that £580 hadn't been taken would be if you were fairly well off and didn't keep a close eye on your account. However you now say you don't have £580 to pay without going into a chargeable overdraft which suggests that money is very tight. Those things don't add up. You did notice they hadn't taken the fees out and you spent it. You should've gone in at the time and said the cheques hadn't been cashed or at the very least put the money aside so you'd have it to pay now. It's their fault they didn't cash it sooner, but it's yours that the funds are not available now. You thought you got a freebie, you didn't. I wouldn't age a payment plan right, you could post one month then take your child out. My DM tab s nursery for twenty years they are not huge money spinners, budgets are incredibly tight. YABU.

[Faultymain5]

So let me get this right. 9 and 11 months ago, their finance person failed to put a cheque in? And now they want two sums of £290 in one go plus your regular fee to keep your DD going to their nursery.

Yeah right. As if. No-one still has £290 in their account sitting there. You didn't notice it not coming out in May. My DH never looks at his account and this would happen to him (one reason why he is not in charge of our money unless it's a Direct Debit). What would have happened, for those that cannot fathom it, is that the OP would have assumed it was paid and whenever something a little extra needed paying over the last 11 months, she'd realise there was a little bit extra, because as far as she was concerned those cheques were cashed each of their respective months. Just little things that went over. Not a deliberate attempt to get away with not paying. Just an oversight, caused by their incompetence. Not sure why she should be charged unreasonable bank charges because they didn't do their job correctly.

OP try paying it in less than 6 months (i.e. 3), using your good financial history with them. Ensure that you pay a direct Bank Transfer rather than cheques (2019, get with the programme).

A payment plan is more than reasonable in these circumstances.

[CordeliaEarhart]

People keep saying "you need to pay" but the OP literally doesn't have the money so actually cannot do so. She has offered a reasonable payment plan.

Honestly, OP, I'd ask for advice on the moneysavingexpert website. MN is a bit weird about debt.

[ZippyBungleandGeorge]

It wasn't £50 a month though was it. It was £580 over two months.

[diddl]

I think for some of us it's hard to understand how the money is no longer available.

When I used to write cheques I would always then work on my balance being what was left after they were cashed.

[ZippyBungleandGeorge]

Where did the extra £580 go? If your budget is tight your money is accounted for so if you just spent in your normal way the would be excess left in the account.

[newmumwithquestions]

The mistake wasn’t on both sides! The OP paid. It’s not up to the OP to check that the cheques are getting cashed. And it’s none of anyone’s business how she manages her money - she paid.

The OP has offered a perfectly reasonable payment plan.

I am a small business owner by the way - I would be being apologetic to the OP and accepting her payment plan, not threatening to withdraw services.

[TinklyLittleLaugh]

Who is threatening to withdraw your place if you don’t pay it all in one go? Is it the admin person who messed up desperately trying to cover their arse?

I think you are being perfectly reasonable. Try speaking to someone higher in the organisation; they may not even be aware of this.

[bethy15]

If you don't have that money to pay it all off right now, you must be on a tighter budget,and if so, you would have noticed that they never cashed those cheques.

They are in the right to want their money.It's an awful lot you haven't paid and I'm guessing anyone in that amount of arrears isn't allowed to use the service.

[PandaBlue]

How would you feel if your employer forgot to pay you but then told you you were only getting £100 a month for the next 9 months.

This is a rubbish analogy. Firstly the OP did not forget to pay them. She gave them the payment, for whatever reason they didn't bank the cheque. It is THEIR fault that they haven't had the payment yet.

Secondly a payment plan is a very reasonable compromise. OP isn't refusing to pay and six months is reasonable (where did you get 9 months from?)

Regardless of whether OP has the money or not, it was the business that made the error and they should be reasonable about having it paid back. If the nursery are that strapped for cash then I'm not sure £600 is going to make much difference to its future success, and I'd be considering looking elsewhere for better security anyway.

[Toooldtocareanymore]

They could present cheques to bank and see will they take them you can lodge cheques that are over 6 months old, it's up to banks if they honour them or not, if they do you could find yourself in overdraught anyway. I agree you should have some flexibility regarding payback but honestly 6 months is way too long, you should pay one month extra this month and another next month or month after, from their perspective it will take them 16-18 months to be paid if they agree to your plan and your son could be gone in six months, making it very hard to chase for their money, it probably also gives them all sorts of accounting headaches.

[DishingOutDone]

that's hilarious, if your company underpaid you then they'd pay what was owed on THEIR terms! As other posters have said if this goes to court you will simply be asked to pay in instalment as already offered. The nursery is behaving like some sort of finance company what twats. Stand your ground op, carry on offering the money for the term as usual plus £100 a month extra.

[Ihopeyourcakeisshit]

I'd be doing what Tinkly has suggested.
Think you are getting a bit of a tough ride on this thread OP.

[bethy15]

People keep saying "you need to pay" but the OP literally doesn't have the money so actually cannot do so. She has offered a reasonable payment plan.

And I'm guessing they will take the plan for the money, but won't allow their services to be used.

She's already had those services and hasn't paid for them. It's well within their rights to deny further services.

[CluedoAddict]

You need to pay. They can bank cheques over 6 months old. I had a cheque come out of my account that was a year old for school photos.

[Lincspeeps]

Can I just clarify, for a second time, that neither I nor my partner realised the cheques hadn't been cashed. If we had, we would have raised it with the childcare people. I think this thread has become a bit bogged-down with this point and I wanted to clarify.

Yes, we are a bit shit at managing our finances but nothing more.

[SnapesGreasyHair]

Have you checked they definitely haven't cashed the chq? My nursery tried to make me pay again... transpired they'd credited another child's account with my payment...

[flowery]

”£580 over eleven months is only an additional £50 per month.”

”our cheques from May and July 2018 have never been banked (total of £580)”

Which is it? £50 a month for 11 months or nearly £300 at a time twice?

[WeeDangerousSpike]

I think your payment plan is entirely reasonable.

I don't earn much, money is tight, I can totally imagine not realising that cheques haven't gone out.

If they really won't accept the plan can you take out a 0% credit card? At least you won't be paying interest on it then.