Until lockdown, my seven-year-old son was collected from school by his grandfather as my husband and I work full-time. We class ourselves as responsible parents and have screen time rules and parental controls on our devices. However, my dad bought a Kindle Fire from Amazon in September and unbeknown to us, my son was using it during February and March to make purchases for games he would normally play safely at home. He ran up a bill of £600 and it was only discovered when my sister went on to Dad’s Amazon account to check a purchase he had made.
I tried to call Amazon customer service but it has shut its helpline and a promise by a chatbot that someone would call has not been kept.
It is clear that multiple purchases on the same day for the exact same things have been caused by my son pressing the button repeatedly. I know there are bigger things happening in the world right now, but the insecurity around our finances have meant this has come at the worst possible time.
JS, Ballymoney, County Antrim
I’ve had a number of similarly agonised pleas from parents since reporting the case of a mother who also faced a £600 bill after her kids went on an inadvertent shopping spree. All of them involve virtual merchandise for online gaming platforms which can be bought with a click. The bank card registered with the device is then charged.
The sales practices of the online gaming companies are iniquitous as they blur the lines between real and virtual money. However, parents should know this and safeguard their devices, although some of those who have written in have been caught unawares after their domestic circumstances changed abruptly due to the pandemic. Your case is different since a 73-year-old new to smart technology will not necessarily have foreseen the consequences of loaning his tablet.
Happily, Amazon agreed to refund the money after I contacted them. You must now show your father how to enable parental controls on his tablet and remind him not to share his password with your son, so that unwanted in-app transactions are prevented.
If you need help email Anna Tims at your.problems@observer.co.uk. Include an address and phone number. Submission and publication are subject to our terms and conditions
