I'm not buying that a 3yo is capable of what he claims. He's TA.

You shouldn't expect her to repair the damage that your own son did, but if she really took a 20 minute call outside while she left your 3 year old alone, then you should definitely never use her as a babysitter again. But I don't believe the "I didn't want the baby to overhear" excuse -- she probably either saw or suspects that you have a nannycam inside keeping an eye on her, and she didn't want you to overhear her call. And that whole story about a 3 year old moving the couch so she could scale the gate is completely unbelievable.

A guitar neck doesn’t warp “all at once”. It takes both lots of neglect & lots of time to make that happen & a guitar with a warped neck is not worth anywhere near $2200 no matter what kind it is. This guy’s a lowlife piece of s**t.

I think they are both TA’s. Why is the dad so concerned about his guitar, when his three year old could have gotten really injured. The babysitter should not leave a three year old unattended for that long. They are both in the wrong.

I dunno. When my son was 3 he fried several 500$ ac units. Shoving silverware in the vents, jamming the fan and burning it out. 2 flat screen TV with his toys. My Xbox with juice. He has a penchant for destruction. All of these things were done in the time it takes to piss. Because....that's when he did it. While I or my wife was taking a quick piss. So a 3yr old trashing a guitar is 100% believable

I've been playing guitar and bass for most of my life. Keep the instrument in the case. If it's as valuable as the owner claims all the more reason to do so. BTW I raised three boys and they all knew my guitars were off limits. No problems. I was wondering, how come the guitar in the picture wasn't the actual guitar?

Can you imagine how horrible this was for the girl?!? Some enraged, entitled, ahole dude all up in your face insisting you hand over 2k and blaming you for something that his kid supposedly did under his roof to his belongings? Plus, I'm not buying he's never left his son out of eyeline for at least 15 minutes- as a parent of two teens and a former nanny I call BS.

I don't know anything about guitars but I do have two small children. A 3yo is definitely able to move a couch (if not too heavy), climb safeguards and go downstairs. My 2yo climbs fences and uses our stairs on a regular basis all the time. She also pushes furniture around if she wants to get somewhere she can't without help.

...So WHAT if your guitar is worth less?

imagine if it was his wife who took care of the baby... would he have the guts to ask her to pay?

Mr I think you may be the asshole for charging an innocent babysitter for having to take a call that she made sure your child didn’t have to listen to, then saying your 3 yr old can scale a baby gate, push a couch, MAGICALLY WARP A F***ING GUITAR NECK, and that the babysitter should pay you. You are a piece of s**t dude, not just an ashole. OH AND DID I MENTION YOUR FINING HER 2,200?!

Wow we've got a great movie material right here! Marvel needs to take the rights so we see this super baby at the cinemas!!!

Everything about this story seems like a lie. 3 year olds can be left in a secure room for 15 mins. They're in their bedrooms for 10hrs when they sleep so no the babysitter is not at fault. I would clean the kitchen while my daughter was secure in the living room at 3. I'd pop my head in now and then to check on her. Sometimes I would shut the bathroom door when using the toilet too when she was in her playroom. I understand why you would use nanny cams but I will say if anyone I know has cameras on in their homes constantly I won't go over their house anymore. I find it incredibly strange.

He is almost certainly lying about the guitar, if it is warped rather than broken. I wouldn't be surprised if he's not lying about the 20 minutes too.

The parents are stupid enough to pay that much it also means its their fault it happened. Lock the door of your room of instruments

Now, I can see docking the babysitter the 20 minutes pay for leaving the room to take a call—-she could’ve talked in another room, but positioned herself to still keep the kid in sight. But dad’s claim is just OTT. 1) I’m and adult, and moving a couch isn’t easy, 2) This is a 3 year old, and dad is trying to say he did stuff you’d expect out of a much older child. 3) Why wasn’t the basement door locked, or at the very least, the “valuable” guitar kept in a locked climate controlled display case? 4) Did the kid also move furniture in the basement to get up to where the guitar was kept, or was it on the floor? 5) The music shop owner would know about repairing musical instruments, and how improper storage and display can affect them. This damage did not happen in 20 minutes or by his 3 year old. If he had said the kid broke the guitar, I’d believe him a lot more. But warp it? F**k no, Buddy, try again. The babysitter is a teenager, ffs, so quit trying to make her pay for your negligence.

I think The Who story is made up, from the babysitter talking a call to the guitar being destroyed. The whole story makes no sense. She's been a good babysitter up until now and decides to be reckless all of a sudden? The kid moving a couch, opening a basement door, going down the stairs without tripping, taking a guitar off of a wall, and warping it? Just reread his whole story, it sounds like something he made up in his mind and pulled it out of ass.

both assholes. dad for the money, babysitter for letting the kid alone. doesn't matter if it's a private call. if it's an emergency, you take it where the kid is.

If he loves his guitar that much, why does he want it replaced - he is a thieving git, and a liar to boot. He was probably laying the trap even as he hired the babysitter.

and if that's a Fender Squire, which it appears to be, it's $200 tops new. They are cheap bargain brands and the neck was probably warped from the factory. He's a liar or he misplaced a decimal.

This story is so full of garbage

I'm just happy that a unattended child for 20 minutes damage a guitar, but herself is doing good and didn't hurt. This should be a eye open for the babysitter. This story could have a much much worse and.

OP got flamed.

Just install your guitar wall mounts high enough that there is no way a kid will reach it. That's what my dad did and we've still got all guitars in A+ shape.

ESH. The babysitter should not have gone outside and OP should not have asked babysitter to front the bill. A quick AITA key: YTA=you're the asshole. NTA= not the asshole. NAH=no assholes here. ESH=everyone's shitty here

The guitar should have been put way in a safe location and at least insured; however a babysitter who HAS TO be on the phone for twenty minutes needs to be fired.

That smells fishy!

The real problem is she left a 3 y.o. Unattended for 20 minutes. That’s enough for a toddler to have an accident and die.

When did Squier come out with a $2200 acoustic? Maybe $220! BS!

Look, he is overreacting but she is at fault on this one. Worst thing could have happened.

I'm literally more shocked that the sitter left the child alone that long

This is ridiculous Who doesn't lock their basement I'm not American but in the show's I've seen basement stairs are pretty steep. Also if the baby needed a couch to get over the gate did the drop on the other side not hurt them. Why is your child moving said couch like how?! Also guitars are heavy how did they get it off the wall? Lastly your priorities are messed up I appreciate the child wasn't hurt however they could have been and therefore you should still be concerned. You can replace a guitar but not a baby. I get she shouldn't have stepped out but also I want to hear her story cuz baby's don't move sofas

How the hell does a 3yo move a couch!?!?!?!? There is no way the kid is responsible for all that he claims. He’s 100% TA.

I’m wondering if the babysitter had friends over messing with their stuff and came up with that story....

Ummmm shouldn't he be more concerned that his 3-year-old was left completely alone for 20 minutes with the run of the house? The kid could have broken something important like their leg, arm, neck for crying out loud. Plus his story about the kid moving furniture and warping a guitar sounds shady. What an a**e.

He's lying. There really is no way that kid warped the neck of his guitar. That ONLY happens over a reasonably long period of time, and ONLY when it gets damp. He broke his guitar himself when he realized that HE destroyed the value of it himself and thought he could get away with screwing someone over for the cost of his mistake.

I want to say this didn't happen. Because it's far too... unreal.

Nobody is talking about the babysitter's negligence to the child? 20 minutes outside while a 3 year old is inside?

I am in agreement with most of the commenters here that it is the parents problem. Yes the babysitter was somewhat negligent but if you have children and don't want something broken, either teach them to respect things or keep them 100% out of reach, like no way kids can get to valuables and get insurance for the most valuable items.