Children inside cars

[az33]

Would you say leaving a 5 years old locked inside a car (in his car seat) while you go to pay for fuel is ok? My husband has done that and I just find it unacceptable. He said our son didn't want to go out of the car and he had to pay for the petrol and it was only a few minutes.
I was furious but now wondering what others think, as he is making me feel like I'm overreacting

I think it’s safer to leave them in the car at the petrol station. People don’t expect small children on the forecourt. My twins are 9 now but they were bolters as tots so the whole getting in and out the car safely was a complete palaver and I’d of had to put up the double buggy.

You were furious?

It's completely fine and perfectly normal.

Never seen it either. Who takes the kids out to pay for petrol? Seems unsafe, unnecessary and I don’t know anyone that does it.

What your husband did was fine and completely normal. I’d never get mine out of the car unless it was a long journey and they needed a wee and/or wanted to choose a snack. I think you owe him an apology for overreacting.

This..

The above was in answer to this...
If your 5 yr old child is anxious about being left in a car for all of 3 mins where you can wave to them then surely you reassure them and tell them it's ok? Saying this kindly but you could be feeding the anxiety?

It’s fine. I can’t understand why you wouldn’t if the doors are locked and you can see the car from the shop. As long as the child is happy with ot

Yes he was with dad, so possibly waving and reassuring is not his forte

Yes it's possible I have overreacted

I get that... can you start to reassure him that it's totally normal to be left in the car for a short time while dad pays?

I did say maybe I overreacted, I asked for advice and yet people like to attack so much here, randomly it seems. Lovely!

I'm not sure why people have been so harsh in their replies to you OP.

I (nor my husband) would not have left our child in the car whilst paying for petrol inside at their age.

If people disagreed a simple "no I think it was fine to do this/leave them" would've sufficed rather than some of the angry replies here (I do note that not all replies are that way, but I'm surprised but how many seem to be quite harsh in the way they've replied).

What an utterly ridiculous addition to your post, get a life!

People have left their kids in the car to pay since the inception of petrol stations.

It's fine.

Of course it's ok, you'll be gone for less than a minute and you can probably see the car. As long as they can't get out and it's only a couple of minutes, then it's fine

Exactly, also after posting I noticed there was another similar thread where ppl answered very differently. Never mind 😂

But you have been ridiculous OP.

No one IRL takes their children out. What if you have 3-4 kids? Lugging them through a busy forecourt where cars are driving? Yeah that's safe. Or as PP said twin babies, juggling them through a busy forecourt?

If you were at a pump with queue full of cars behind you at rush hour and you were there fannying about getting your kids in and out people will be rightly rolling their eyes at you.

These threads come up often but usually about babies, and people seem quite divided. I absolutely think it’s fine. Perhaps would bring them if I could see queue was massive.

It's absolutely fine from a safety point of view, I often leave mine in the car while I drop younger sibling into nursery, as do all of the other parents doing the same thing.

BUT, you've said your DS wasn't fine with it, so I'm that case your DH should've gotten him out. But you should reassure him for next time that it's fine.

How about you stop fannying about here and enjoy your Sunday

I think in terms of risk assessment the car is the safer place than going through the forecourt, and there are big windows that you can see your car from

I wouldn't leave a young child in the car to nip onto a corner shop or similar where you cannot keep an eye out though but perhaps I would do if I had twins or multiple young children who are hard to manage. I didn't drive when DD was little so was never a issue

But this question comes up often and the answers are very personal.

Perhaps you apologise to DH for overreacting but say it makes you uncomfortable and see if you can schedule car top upson a Sunday or at a pay at a pump station instead.

How about you stop fannying about here and enjoy your Sunday

@az33

You're the one wanting people to 'fanny about' as you posted presumably wanting replies.

Weird thread.

Absolutely fine. I have a 6 year old and it’s something I would have done for a few years now.

But only if I was going to be very quick or could see the car from the queue and I absolutely wouldn’t lock it. There’s more risk of an accident occurring where a child needs to quickly be able to get out of the car than some baby snatcher happening along.

I think it's fine to leave them in the car.

Up to the age of 2 when she could be easily carried, I would take my daughter in but she was very unsettled of left at all even for a few minutes. After that she has been left in locked car. 95% of the time I pay at pump and didn't have a car until she was a year old so I think she was taken in to the petrol station twice and left in the car twice.
If I can I will fill up without her in the car just in case pay at pump isn't working. So I will fill up on my way to work having dropped her off or on my way to pick her up from nursery rather than on my way to or home from nursery. Mostly because it's less hassle and she still often wants to come with me everywhere I go and I don't want fancy the hassle