Should I replace child's designer coat?

[happyrain]

DS punctured a hole in the arm of a classmate's coat while playing with a stick during breaktime this week. The children play in a wooded area so stick play is not unusual there, although I have of course had stern words with DS about stick games and being careful and so on.

Parents of coat-child naturally aren't happy. I have offered to have the hole professionally repaired but no, they want us to replace the coat. I'm guessing the coat is some sort of designer one as they want the best part of £200 from us.

Whilst I completely accept my DS's responsibility for the damage I am not sure that £200 for a small puncture hole is entirely reasonable.

Any thoughts?

Wear and tear, including some accidental damage is par for the course at school/nursery.

This wasn't malicious damage. I fail to see how it's your responsibility at all OP. The kids were both in the care of the school.

Coat-child's parents need a reality check.

Yabbers

If someone let a child muck about in a Ferrari or with anything very expensive and another child damaged it, I wouldn't expect the other child's parent to pay for the damage. An adult driving is a completely different scenario.

The OP wasn't in any way in control of the situation in school or what ridiculous clothes the other child was wearing. She therefore isn't responsible for making good any damage that happened by accident.

Clearly the parents can afford to have their child playing in designer clothes and can afford to replace them if they get damaged. If they have an ounce of sense, they will have him wear the damaged one at school in future.

I’m surprised that this issue’s arised at all. I would expect teacher mentioning all this to you only because (if) boys were playing dangerously with sticks or something like this. I never occurred to me that you could expect another parent to pay for something damaged in the play. You are too nice, OP.

How do you know he other child was not lying, they could have said your son did it because they were too frightened to tell their parents that they had torn an expensive coat.

My goodness😮 so those parents have spent in excess of £400 (as £200 was a 'compromise' amount?!) on 2 same size coats for her 8 y.o. DS? Wow. That'd keep.my whole family in super new coats for 4 years (£50 per coat X 4 people every 2 years) and I'd be so chuffed with those!

I think your offer had been very kind OP and it was an accident at school not malicious bullying.

I wouldnt dream of sending DC in designer gear into school to play in. Mainly as mine come back with hands and clothes covered in paint and felt tip enough as it is 😁

I'm glad it seems resolved now OP . Seems like their teacher had a quiet chat and put forward a bit of sense of proportion.

Ludicrous. If anyone pays for a repair it’s the school for not supervising adequately. But really, who puts their child in a £200 coat and then sends them off to school in it.

But, even assuming the Ferrari was to be repaired. A decent job will run into the 1000s where your average car might be a couple of hundred. Do you tell them they are getting a couple of hundred towards the repairs because they were stupid to have such an expensive car out where it can easily be damaged?

Still not a valid comparison. What would be a valid comparison is taking the Ferrari banger racing - where the owner would not be able to claim for the damage to his car because he accepted the higher risks involved.

Ugh. Who buys their child designer clothes and then send them outside to play in them? When kids have destroyed my kids clothes accidently during games, I've never demanded money! Ridiculous. Kids are kids!

nope would not have offered either. Put your child in a coat designed to be replaced easily if they are likely to be in such an area. If its for playing in it should be easily replaceable by the parents.

Unless the coat is brand new it would have depreciated in value lol so it wouldn’t be worth 200 any more.

If this happened to my dc I’d be pissed off and out them in s cheaper one next time- wouldn’t ask for the money back

If its for playing in it should be easily replaceable by the parents.

Agreed - if I could shit gold could pay for very expensive items, I would be happy to replace at the same standard. I'm a cheap fart though, so don't!

Glad this is happily resolved, OP.

There's a reason I don't drive a brand new car, and it's other drivers damaging it. Same applies to a coat. No way would I send my kids to school in anything costing anywhere near that (I think usually about 10% was our norm). Yes, they got ripped/damaged, but that's the fun of being a child.

These parents are franky F*wits.

This

Serves them right for not sending ds to school in an appropriate coat! I wouldn't have even offered to repair it tbh

Anyone stupid enough to send their kid to nursery in a £200 coat is an idiot. Tell them where to shove it.

Jeez. Why would they send their kid to school in such a coat? I also buy mine a decent coat from somewhere like next but designer?? No way!!

They should expect coats to get wear and tear at school therefore shouldn’t have wore it if they were bothered about the coat.

I wouldn't expect another parent to pay if my child's stuff got ruined. Should have sent them out in messy play clothes and save the expensive things for nice trips or days out

If the teacher didn't actually see your DS poke the other one with a stick, and your DS says he didn't do it then I'd be inclined to think that the child just tore the coat himself whilst playing in the wooded area!

I also suspect that the school has asked parents to send children in suitable clothes for school/outdoor play so it's really the other parents fault for sending their child in such an expensive coat. Unless they're sitting at desks all day and not playing outside, you always have the risk with children that they'll damage their clothing!

No chance!! Don’t send a child in an expensive coat if you don’t want it damaging!! Please don’t pay it!!

Glad this is resolved, they were being ridiculous. Apart from anything else, the coat wasn’t brand new so would have been worth only a proportion of the original price because the kid had already had some wear out of it. Your offer of a repair was very decent and sufficient. Also Burberry quilted kids coats appear to cost around £150-250, certainly not £400.

And there’s no proof your DS did it! Nobody saw him. He says he didn’t do it. Does he have a habit of lying? I don’t see why you wouldn’t believe your child if he’s usually honest. They are trying it on imo.

YANBU. No way should they have sent their kid in a coat that expensive and they will have to bear the brunt

*Were they not supervised at school ?

Stick play is not on the curriculum !*

Comments like this genuinely depress me. Free play is an essential part of a child's development and happiness. Playing with sticks is a very normal way to play. So are small accidents. They are also a normal part of a happy and active childhood. And clothes should be for the child, not the child for the clothes. Dress children appropriately for active play.

Oh, and btw i have been on a training course which was all about teaching the curriculum outdoors, using things like sticks.