I HAVE a friend who just bought a new house.
It’s a lovely house with big glass sliding doors leading out to the patio. We were all invited to her housewarming party and I went along with my five-year-old son. Sometime between tea and cake we heard an almighty crash, and there among the wreckage of a patio door was my boy, looking guilty but otherwise unharmed.
Naturally, I offered to pay for the repairs.
We discussed insurance and that her household insurance would cover it, but there would probably be an excess or even an increase in her premium. On the other hand, I could possibly claim from my personal liability insurance if it covers the actions of my child, but many policies do not extend to family.
Putting aside parenting lessons and teachable moments, what are the legal obligations of a parent in these situations? The law says that a child under the age of 10 does not have the capacity to know the difference between right and wrong and can’t be liable for a wrongdoing.
This can be applied to a horrible incident that happened recently in Cape Town where a woman and her five-year-old grandchild were shopping in a large retail store and the boy broke a chocolate bar. The store wanted to charge the elderly woman with some or other crime – even though it was not her doing but the action of her grandchild. She was so traumatised that she passed out in the store. The threat was hollow, they could not have successfully charged the woman, or the child, with anything.
On the other hand, a parent who lets their children run wild and cause havoc could be argued to be negligent and therefore liable for the children’s actions.
Even though the child is blameless, it is up to you as a parent to keep your children in check, especially in an environment where they could cause damage – otherwise, you could find yourself paying the price.
