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“[Am I The Jerk] For Refusing To Pay For My MIL’s Broken Phone Screen After My Toddler Threw It?”
Picture this: You hand your phone to a toddler— what could possibly go wrong? You’ve probably been there, or maybe you haven’t, but we all know toddlers can be human wrecking balls with adorable faces.
Today’s Original Poster (OP) found themselves in a rather messy situation involving their 18-month-old, a cracked phone screen, and a mother-in-law who wasn’t thrilled about footing a repair bill. The twist? The mother-in-law was the one who handed over the phone to the toddler in the first place.
More info: Reddit
RELATED:
Giving your phone to a toddler is basically saying goodbye to your screen and hello to chaos
Image credits: George Pak / Pexels (not the actual photo)
The author’s mother-in-law was babysitting their child and gave the 18-month-old her phone, but when she was done, the little one threw it to the floor
Image credits: Super_Spud_Eire
Image credits: vecstock / Pexels (not the actual photo)
The screen of her phone was shattered, and the mother-in-law demanded that the author and her partner pay for the damage
Image credits: Super_Spud_Eire
Image credits: Kaboompics.com / Pexels (not the actual photo)
The author gave the mother-in-law reasons as to why they can’t pay for the damage, but she wasn’t happy about it
Image credits: Super_Spud_Eire
They finally asked the mother-in-law to pay for the damage while they pay back in installments, but she said it was their problem
The OP’s 18-month-old was being watched by the mother-in-law for a bit. She took a chance and handed over her phone to the toddler so she could enjoy some YouTube time. If you’ve ever given a phone to a little one, you know how quickly things can escalate.
The toddler, naturally, got bored and threw the phone from the high chair, leading to a shattered screen. Now, no one can argue that toddlers don’t make questionable decisions—they’ll eat dirt, chew on electrical cords, and apparently, launch phones into oblivion.
The mother-in-law, who’s doing quite well financially, demanded that the OP and her partner foot the repair bill, which was no small amount. To make matters worse, this was right before Christmas, and for the parents, that repair cost would be a significant burden.
It’s important to note that the couple doesn’t allow their child to use phones in the first place, and the mother-in-law knew this when she made the decision to hand over her device. Now, the OP had some strong points in their defense.
First, they weren’t there when the incident occurred. Second, they were not the ones who gave the phone to the toddler. And third, there’s the money issue. For the mother-in-law, it would be a drop in the bucket, but for the parents, it means scraping together extra cash they don’t have.
Despite all of this, she wasn’t willing to compromise. The OP and her partner offered to pay her back in installments, but she refused, claiming that it was their responsibility to handle the situation.
Image credits: Kaboompics.com / Pexels (not the actual photo)
The OP and her partner did a good job by trying to negotiate on the payment. According to Stitt Feld Handy Group, conversations with family can be often frustrating, so it is essential to be able to discuss and negotiate effectively to resolve conflict.
Therefore, the keys to having seamless conversations and reaching satisfying conclusions include entering the discussion with the goal of finding a workable solution for everyone as well as “keeping emotions in check” and “active listening”.
Research from Greater Good reveals that wealth can significantly impact how people think, feel, and behave, often without them realizing it. Wealthier individuals may struggle with empathy and compassion, while those with fewer resources tend to develop greater emotional intelligence due to their need for social support and understanding.
Take the mother-in-law, for example: her wealth might be influencing her inability to empathize with the OP and her partner’s financial strain. They go further to highlight that wealth can also cloud moral judgment, which could have led her to feel entitled to have the phone repaired without considering the situation.
The majority of commenters strongly agreed that the OP was not at fault, with many emphasizing that the mother-in-law’s decision to hand over an expensive phone to an 18-month-old was quite reckless.
However, a few netizens suggested that while the mother-in-law made a mistake, the OP and her partner should consider offering to pay a portion of the repair cost as the mother-in-law also did them a favor by babysitting their child.
What would you do if you were in the OP’s shoes? Would you pay for the repair or stand your ground? Please let us know your thoughts!
The general consensus from netizens is that the mother-in-law should not have given a baby her phone in the first place
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What do you think ?
The Other Guest 1 week ago
I don't even have kids and I know that toddlers throw things. MIL is out of line here for sure.
Janelle Collard 1 week ago
"Play stupid games, win stupid prizes." Is this MIL's first time around a toddler?/s If MIL can't figure out "don't give expensive stuff to a toddler who will throw it" she deserves a broken phone.
Surly Scot 1 week ago
I love seeing people post "play stupid games, win stupid prizes", this should be a national ad campaign.
Load More Replies... m6nbtfpx7q 1 week ago
“Handing an 18-month-old child a phone means you don’t need it anymore” is the best comment and op should borrow that for this circumstance.
Apatheist Account2 1 week ago
Point 3 is irrelevant, legally. However, if one is babysitting and does something negligent, they bear the responsibility, particularly if they are aware (although that's harder to prove) that they shouldn't have done it.
Bernd Herbert 1 week ago
Parents are reponsible for what their kids are doing. Except, if they are not present and someone else is watching the kid. In this case, MIL had the the responsibility of watching the kid.
LonelyLittleLeafSheep 1 week ago
"No, and if you continue to push the issue we will not allow you to babysit anymore."
Sally Horrocks 1 week ago
'Allow her to babysit' - she's doing them a favour, not the other way round! Agree that MIL should be responsible for paying for the phone.
Load More Replies...
moggie63 1 week ago
If posters are going to abbreviations is it too much to ask that they first tell you wtf they actually mean?
Kathrin Pukowsky 1 week ago
I wish the MIL complains to a common-sense friend about her grandchild breaking her phone and the parents being unwilling to pay for it, and the friend just goes: "Why on earth did you hand your phone to such a young child? They throw stuff like they're training for the olympics!" Because, according to OP, the MIL isn't malicious or otherwise unreasonable, she just got the wrong idea about who's responsible in this case.
Ryan-James O'Driscoll 1 week ago
I'm normally an advocate for parents taking responsibility for their child's actions and paying their damages, but this isn't one of those times. This was not an out of control or I'll disciplined child, this was a small child acting like small children do under the supervision of someone who should have known better. As well as not replacing the phone, I would seriously question how suitable she is to babysit. It's better in that case that she gave the child something they could harm, rather than something that could harm the child.
Bookworm 1 week ago (edited)
Re: your last sentence, I can totally picture this escalating into any number of other, more serious Reddit scenarios from 'didn't put the kid down for her nap and screwed up her schedule' up to 'fed child an allergen on purpose and was shocked when we had to call an ambulance.' She's going to do her own thing, whatever and whenever she wants, regardless of instructions, example and/or common sense, and it might never get beyond the phone incident or it might have disastrous consequences.
Load More Replies...
TribbleThinking 1 week ago
The MIL sounds like trouble on a stick. Do you want her babysitting your child? If not, you're already morally not obliged to compensate her for the repair, so this could solve two problems!
KatSaidWhat 1 week ago
Do nothing. She can't force you to pay for it. Even if she is petty enough to take you to small claims, they will laugh her out of court.
Nils Skirnir 1 week ago
If grandmom cares for the kid for free and anytime OP wants, I’d be willing to pay for the phone repair to keep things going. As it is, we have no idea of the whole story.
lenka 1 week ago (edited)
Cheaper to hire a babysitter. If the Grandmother continues to be negligent while watching the child and then expecting the parents to pay for damage caused by said child, it is going to get extraordinarily expensive for the parents. They are better off paying for a babysitter on the regular than accepting this as the status quo.
Load More Replies...
Kate Johnson 1 week ago
I'd say that was you're very stupid choice and you will pay for it, and because you've caused this drama you will no longer ever be allowed alone with your child, since you obviously lack the judgment to be trusted.
BarkingSquirell 1 week ago
Yes, you are. You have to pay for the damage your child did. Addiment on that.
Lew k 1 week ago
I'd say a bunch of a-holes honestly here. Yes the Mil is an entitled idiot but the posters attitude of "we weren't directly watching our kid, so we're not responsible for things they do." News flash. You are responsible for damages done by your kid. No someone shouldn't hand a child a phone but if someone is watching your kid and the kid breaks their things it's your responsibility even if you weren't there. Sorry that one bit bugs me about the poster. The attitude of we weren't there so not our problem makes me feel everyone involved is a bit entitled. If my kid broke my mom's phone I'd offer to pay for it and my mom probably wouldn't accept and would say something along the lines of it was no one's fault. That's how a normal non entitled scenario would play.
Steve Robert 1 week ago
My youngest great grandson is going on three years old. He will take my daughter's phone, press the button that says "granddad", tells me all about his day in toddler English, and then says "bye", and hangs up. Even though I tell my daughter she shouldn't be giving him her phone, I still think it's adorable.
The Other Guest 1 week ago
I don't even have kids and I know that toddlers throw things. MIL is out of line here for sure.
Janelle Collard 1 week ago
"Play stupid games, win stupid prizes." Is this MIL's first time around a toddler?/s If MIL can't figure out "don't give expensive stuff to a toddler who will throw it" she deserves a broken phone.
Surly Scot 1 week ago
I love seeing people post "play stupid games, win stupid prizes", this should be a national ad campaign.
Load More Replies... m6nbtfpx7q 1 week ago
“Handing an 18-month-old child a phone means you don’t need it anymore” is the best comment and op should borrow that for this circumstance.
Apatheist Account2 1 week ago
Point 3 is irrelevant, legally. However, if one is babysitting and does something negligent, they bear the responsibility, particularly if they are aware (although that's harder to prove) that they shouldn't have done it.
Bernd Herbert 1 week ago
Parents are reponsible for what their kids are doing. Except, if they are not present and someone else is watching the kid. In this case, MIL had the the responsibility of watching the kid.
LonelyLittleLeafSheep 1 week ago
"No, and if you continue to push the issue we will not allow you to babysit anymore."
Sally Horrocks 1 week ago
'Allow her to babysit' - she's doing them a favour, not the other way round! Agree that MIL should be responsible for paying for the phone.
Load More Replies... moggie63 1 week ago
If posters are going to abbreviations is it too much to ask that they first tell you wtf they actually mean?
Kathrin Pukowsky 1 week ago
I wish the MIL complains to a common-sense friend about her grandchild breaking her phone and the parents being unwilling to pay for it, and the friend just goes: "Why on earth did you hand your phone to such a young child? They throw stuff like they're training for the olympics!" Because, according to OP, the MIL isn't malicious or otherwise unreasonable, she just got the wrong idea about who's responsible in this case.
Ryan-James O'Driscoll 1 week ago
I'm normally an advocate for parents taking responsibility for their child's actions and paying their damages, but this isn't one of those times. This was not an out of control or I'll disciplined child, this was a small child acting like small children do under the supervision of someone who should have known better. As well as not replacing the phone, I would seriously question how suitable she is to babysit. It's better in that case that she gave the child something they could harm, rather than something that could harm the child.
Bookworm 1 week ago (edited)
Re: your last sentence, I can totally picture this escalating into any number of other, more serious Reddit scenarios from 'didn't put the kid down for her nap and screwed up her schedule' up to 'fed child an allergen on purpose and was shocked when we had to call an ambulance.' She's going to do her own thing, whatever and whenever she wants, regardless of instructions, example and/or common sense, and it might never get beyond the phone incident or it might have disastrous consequences.
Load More Replies... TribbleThinking 1 week ago
The MIL sounds like trouble on a stick. Do you want her babysitting your child? If not, you're already morally not obliged to compensate her for the repair, so this could solve two problems!
KatSaidWhat 1 week ago
Do nothing. She can't force you to pay for it. Even if she is petty enough to take you to small claims, they will laugh her out of court.
Nils Skirnir 1 week ago
If grandmom cares for the kid for free and anytime OP wants, I’d be willing to pay for the phone repair to keep things going. As it is, we have no idea of the whole story.
lenka 1 week ago (edited)
Cheaper to hire a babysitter. If the Grandmother continues to be negligent while watching the child and then expecting the parents to pay for damage caused by said child, it is going to get extraordinarily expensive for the parents. They are better off paying for a babysitter on the regular than accepting this as the status quo.
Load More Replies... Kate Johnson 1 week ago
I'd say that was you're very stupid choice and you will pay for it, and because you've caused this drama you will no longer ever be allowed alone with your child, since you obviously lack the judgment to be trusted.
BarkingSquirell 1 week ago
Yes, you are. You have to pay for the damage your child did. Addiment on that.
Lew k 1 week ago
I'd say a bunch of a-holes honestly here. Yes the Mil is an entitled idiot but the posters attitude of "we weren't directly watching our kid, so we're not responsible for things they do." News flash. You are responsible for damages done by your kid. No someone shouldn't hand a child a phone but if someone is watching your kid and the kid breaks their things it's your responsibility even if you weren't there. Sorry that one bit bugs me about the poster. The attitude of we weren't there so not our problem makes me feel everyone involved is a bit entitled. If my kid broke my mom's phone I'd offer to pay for it and my mom probably wouldn't accept and would say something along the lines of it was no one's fault. That's how a normal non entitled scenario would play.
Steve Robert 1 week ago
My youngest great grandson is going on three years old. He will take my daughter's phone, press the button that says "granddad", tells me all about his day in toddler English, and then says "bye", and hangs up. Even though I tell my daughter she shouldn't be giving him her phone, I still think it's adorable.
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