Parent Guilt...when it comes to finances

qialah
Wed, 09 Mar 2011 15:56:06 +0000

Given that you paid for half the car and are paying the insurance, you’ve already set this up as subsidizing something you both know she can’t really afford.

I’ll assume she got the car with the mutual expectation that it would be a reasonable financial burden for her. Without knowing how much money she has, it’s hard to know whether paying $300 is reasonable or not. In addition, what’s the nature of this repair? Is this routine maintenece or something unexpected? Are there safety issues involved? Those factors would sway my decision.

I really don’t think there are any “life lessons” here that are forgone whether you pay or don’t pay, and I don’t think kids learn lessons better if they suffer. So, if I had thrifty hardworking full time student and this repair would seriously cramp her lifestyle, and I could easily afford it, I’d pay.