Mum struggling to pay bills shocked at son’s ‘livid’ response when asked to help with rent

A mum struggling to pay bills was left shocked by her son’s ‘livid’ response when she asked him to contribute towards their living costs.

The mum asked her son, who earns between £800-900 a month, to help her by contributing £80 per month out of his earnings. But she said he went ‘completely f***ing livid’ when she made the request.

Her son is currently saving up to attend university, but his mum is about to lose out on £60 in child benefits and said she is finding things ‘really really tough’ at the moment amidst the rising costs of living.

She took to Mumsnet and posted about her experience on the thread Am I Being Unreasonable? (AIBU?), to see what others had to say about her situation and if she is right to ask her son to pay some money towards costs while he is living with her.

Her post was titled ‘AIBU asking my 18-year-old for board?’ In it she wrote: “He earns 8-900 pounds a month and I’ve suggested he gives me £80 a [month]. Would make up for the £60 I will lose from child benefit. He’s at college and due to go to university in September he’s saved around £2,000 for this already.

“He is absolutely and completely f***ing livid about this situation. Things are really, really tough for us at the moment if that makes any difference. Vote away, vipers.” Her post was met with a variety of opinions and responses from other users, who were keen to share their thoughts on the matter.

One person put: “He’s done well to save but he knows he’ll need it for uni. It’s not his fault you lose benefits you came to rely on. Don’t punish him for it.”

Another said: “He’s earning a decent wage so paying board is the right thing to do. Me and DB [dear brother] both had to pay £40 per week back in 2000/2001. DM [dear mother] said if we didn’t like it we could move out and see how we liked paying rent and bills. We paid the board.”

A third Mumsnet user commented: “It wouldn’t even occur to me to charge him TBH”, while another said: “He has very few other outgoings. £80 / month will not put him in the poorhouse or damage his uni savings, but it might help him to understand that life costs money.”

Another Mumsnet user sarcastically added: “Welcome to the real world little boy. Oh no, actually in the real world you’d be sleeping rough or paying £200 per week.”

And someone else said: “It’s not ideal because it would be good if he could save the majority towards uni but the fact is he’s an adult and he’s earning a wage and the family is struggling. It’s not as if you’re asking him for a massive amount. I think it’s [fair] enough if you’re in a difficult position.”

The majority of Mumsnet users said the mum was not being unreasonable to ask her son to pay. Thoughts?