Furious mum demands babysitter pays £450 in 'emotional damage' after feeding vegetarian kids chicken nuggets
19 November 2020, 16:10
The babysitter claims the mum told her nothing about the children's dietary requirements.
A mum is demanding her babysitter pays £450 in compensation after she fed her vegetarian children a chicken nugget Happy Meal from McDonald's.
The babysitter took to a Reddit forum called 'Am I the A******', to explain the dispute, claiming the mum hadn't told her the children were vegetarians.
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The 19-year-old unnamed babysitter explained that she decided to treat the children – a boy, 9, and a girl, 7 – to McDonald's for their good behaviour, claiming this is what they asked for.
She wrote: "When I asked what they wanted to eat they asked for a chicken nugget Happy Meal.
"Since they were so well behaved I decided to buy them the Happy Meals they wanted."
However, when the mum returned home early and found her children eating chicken nuggets, she was furious.
"The mum came home early and she literally ripped the nuggets out of their hands", she explained.
The babysitter also claims the mum shouted at her for "allowing the children to eat dead corpses".
After leaving without being paid for her time, the babysitter said she received a furious text from the mum demanding she pay £225 for each child for "the emotional damage she had caused them".
What's more, the mum told her if she didn't pay she would take her to court.
The babysitter wrote: "My dad and older brother are both lawyers so the threat didn't really scare me.
"I refused to pay the money and told her that she should've told me that she was vegetarian and I would've made sure to completely respect her family diet choice and since she didn't tell me it's not my fault.
"She said that I shouldn't just assume everyone eats meat."
The dispute divided opinions on the forum, with many commenting that they thought the mum overreacted.
One person wrote: "The only person who caused the children emotional damage is the mother. Not only did she rip the food out of their hands, she screamed at the babysitter and her kids. Sounds like her kids don't want to be vegetarian."
Another commented: "She still owes you money for babysitting. I'd be willing to bet she has pulled this stunt before to get out of paying and maybe try to get some extra cash."
However, one person thought that the babysitter should have asked about the dietary requirements, writing: "In the future, if you continue working in childcare, make sure you always check about dietary restrictions when you started with a new family!!
"Ask up front if they have any allergies, or anything they're not allowed to eat. Also get some suggestions FROM THE PARENTS for what is ok to feed the kids."
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