London - Organising a child’s birthday party is akin to a major military exercise these days.
From entertainment, to balloons, cakes, pop and goodie bags, costs quickly add up.
But if your child agreed to attend a bash and then didn’t, would you expect a bill for a “no-show”?
Tanya Walsh and her partner Derek Nash were appalled when their son Alex, five, arrived home from school with a £15.95 (about R280) bill for missing his classmate Charlie Lawrence’s big day at a local ski centre.
The couple say they have even been threatened with legal action over the bill, which was delivered via their son’s school bag.
The mother who organised the party, Julie Lawrence, said she was left out of pocket, and is entitled to the payment after expecting Alex to attend the event. But Alex’s parents say it clashed with a last-minute family engagement and they were unable to contact his friend’s mother to let her know.
Walsh said: “I messaged Julie on Facebook to say sorry and let’s resolve this amicably. And she said, ‘The amicable way I believe is for you to pay me the money. And let that be a lesson learnt’.
“The next thing I heard was she was taking us to the small claims court. My partner went to see her and it ended in an argument. She shouted down the street, ‘Don’t mess with me’.”
Walsh, who lives in Torpoint, Cornwall, added: “Every time I spoke to her previously she was always very polite. All of this is very shocking.”
Walsh said she had no way of contacting Lawrence – who is married to husband Simon – because the party was held during the Christmas holidays, and says she never received an official invite.
She added: “Julie could have tried to contact us before issuing the bill. If she had spoken to us we would have considered paying it. I could totally understand her point. It is not about the money for us and we did not mean to let them down. It is the way she has gone about it.”
Nash, 45, admits telling Lawrence that Alex would be attending the party at the Plymouth Ski Slope and Snowboard Centre just before the Christmas holidays. But it ended up clashing with a meeting with Alex’s grandparents.
The party would have involved half an hour on a snow run, three toboggan rides, food and drink, and balloons. The bill arrived a few weeks later after Alex’s teacher at Torpoint Nursery and Infant School accepted a brown envelope from Lawrence.
Nash said: “My partner looked out for (Mrs Lawrence) to apologise for Alex not showing up to the party, but didn’t see her. But on January 15 she looked in Alex’s school bag and found a brown envelope. It was an invoice for £15.95 for a child’s party no show fee.”
Nash said he visited Lawrence’s home and told her he was “not happy”.
He added: “I thought it was a joke to begin with. I am lost for words.”
Lawrence said in a statement: “All details were on the party invite. They had every detail needed to contact me.”
On Monday the manager of the ski centre, Louisa Duggan, said the company would never send invoices to individuals. She said: “We are upset that we have been dragged into this. We are quite flexible if any of the party does not turn up. We can put on other activities to compensate or often an adult will take part in place.”
Daily Mail