son has added £45 to this months phone bill

[southeastastra]

should i get him to pay? grr

my parents used to make me if i did something like this, because i had a job and didn't use my phone.

YANBU IMO

i know, we're on virgin, which has always been quite cheap. some of these call are 100 mins long! i'm so angry with him.

he is 14 and has some birthday money left over. don't know why he can't just msn them.

Is he ringing his friends' mobiles, sea? They're never included in free packages and don't come cheap - I had the same problem with the DDs when they were younger, they don't realise how long they're on for or how much each minute costs.

Can you sign up for 18185 when you're with Virgin? They only charge max 6p a minute to ring a mobile.

On this occaision I would get him to pay half. You should not pay it all. I think taking all of it of him from his birthday money would be a little mean and would make you feel guilty.

no they aren't mobile numbers, it's just the length of time, one is two hours! all to the same number.

can't believe i didn't notice at the time.

i should never have brought cordless phones.

dp will freak out

is it the 1st serious girlfriend?

I would make him pay it. Had similar with DS when a teenager, was single parent, and very strapped, so made him pay all his own things like that

Made him realise what money was for and how much things cost.

At 23 bought his first flat, and the FA was amazed that he had no debts, no credit card. He told him it was cos his mum made him think about what he was spending.

Well still sign up to 18185 if you can - there is a single 5p connection charge, and then he could talk for 24 hours for nothing

(You would have to make sure he dialled the code beforehand though)

Do you not get the free calls for an hour?? I know if you dont redial then you get charged, but maybe you should make sure he does redial!!

I'd make him pay towards it, and keep the phone away from him unless he asks, then time his calls.

Def make him pay at least some of it though - he probably didn't realise.

My nephew ran up hundreds of pounds on DB's phone bill using a dial-up internet link about 10 years ago (he didn't realise either)

i'll sign up to 18185 thing ww. though i'm hiding the phone as well.

they just have no idea how much things cost do they?!

you should pay the extra £1.50 a month to have a call barring service on the phone that only you know the code to, that way if he wants to use the phone then he has to ask for permission and you can monitor it.

hmm maybe i should get that fawkeoff.

18185 only seems to be for bt users? unless i missed something on the site

he'll definitely pay something towards it £30?

can you sign up for 18866 - I don't think that is specific to your provider. We have this and we make a lot of phonecalls including a lot abroad (have an au pair) and our phone bills are minimal.

Sea - ds1 once put £500 on my quarterly bill. £500 feckin quid.

And, oh yes he paid! Took a few months mind.

blimey £500! though maybe ours would be that much if it wasn't monthly.

will check out the 1886 site weegle. looks good

i'd definitely make him pay all of it. My ds 3 is always on the phone and if he go's and makes calls that I get charged for I make him pay for them otherwise he'll have no sense of responsibility when it comes to money. It hasn't done him any harm from what I can see.

i still think you should have the callbar for when you're not at home, he will just not bother to use the 18185 thingy or wont typer the codes in proper so you will still end up with a bill

18185, 18866 and 1899 are all the same company.

oh are they ww, oh well he's not going to be happy tonight