Mom bashed for refusing to pay for babysitter’s laptop after son broke it

The internet has slammed a mom for refusing to pay for her babysitter’s broken laptop—after her son was the one who broke it.

Published on Reddit‘s r/AmITheA**hole forum, a woman under the anonymous username u/throwaw679991 shared her story to receive feedback from the “AITA” community. The viral post has over 13,000 upvotes and 5,000 comments.

The original poster (OP) began her post by explaining that she hired a babysitter to look after her two children ages 6 and 8 while she was at work. She wrote that the babysitter was 17 and brings her laptop with her to study, which was fine with the OP as long as she keeps an eye on the children.

Recently, when the OP returned home, the babysitter showed her the cracked laptop, as the youngest child broke it.

She wrote, “I was shocked I asked how this happened, and she said that she left the laptop in the livingroom and went to make the kids lunch but my youngest grabbed it and ran with it til he dropped it and broke the screen. I said that was horrible and apologized to her but stated it was her fault for leaving the laptop within reach of children.”

“She said she thought my kids were old enough to know not to touch others stuff. I explained how they might have thought it belonged to us since it was in our house. She asked if I could pay for it to get fixed but I refused and insisted it was her problem not mine,” she continued.

The babysitter went on about how she had exams and that she didn’t have enough money to get the laptop fixed. After arguing for a while, the OP told her to go home.

Later that night, the babysitter’s father called and demanded that the OP pay to get the laptop fixed but she still said no. The OP said that the babysitter now refuses to watch her children unless she pays for the laptop. She also said that she paid the babysitter in advance.

Newsweek has reached out to u/throwaw679991 for comment. We could not verify the details of the case.

Newsweek has published several articles regarding babysitting, including a woman who refused to babysit for a friend, a teen who refused to babysit her cousin’s baby because her dad had a “day off” and a man who has never babysat his sister’s kids.

How babysitters can balance work and school

“Having a healthy work/life/school balance is very important to the health of any childcare provider,” Jada Rashawn, a nanny expert at Sittercity.com, told Newsweek, “Burnout is a very real thing, and caregivers should take care to avoid arriving there. Prioritizing yourself matters: find the type of job that best fits your work/life/school balance and set up a schedule that helps keep that balance in check.”

When it comes to babysitting, Rashawn said, it’s important for childcare providers and parents to have a very clear conversation about the duty and expectations of the job and outline them in a contract or agreement.

She also said that many parents are supportive of the caregivers, including those who study while the children are asleep. However, it’s important that parents and caregivers are on the same page about what it takes to keep the children safe at all times.

Redditor reactions

“[You’re the a**hole]. A 6 and 8 year old are absolutely old enough to know not to touch/run around with other people’s electronics. Signed, Mother of a 6-year-old,” u/TentaclesAndCupcakes wrote, receiving the top comment with over 44,000 upvotes.

“[You’re the a**hole]. You pay for what your kids destroy. That’s part of being a parent. End of story,” u/whatever13131313 admitted.

U/andreaak88 said, “At what age do you think kids should learn not to touch things that don’t belong to them? It’s super concerning to me that you think, as a parent of two children, that this shouldn’t have been taught to your kids years ago. Like hello? [You’re the a**hole].”

“[You’re the a**hole] your kid damaged her property. She’s correct they should know not to touch others people stuff. Even with the weak excuse the kid could have thought it was yours doesn’t make it any better,” u/FantasticCockroach63 commented.