'AITA for expecting compensation from my sister because her son ripped my passport?'
"AITA for expecting compensation from my sister because her son ripped my passport?"
Last week I (F 21) was supposed to go to Paris for a week with my friends. My Niece J (6) was very jealous when she found out we’d be spending a few days in Disneyland, and started begging me to take her. I told her I couldn’t but promised to bring back presents for her and S (2.5) my nephew.
My sister K (26) even said that maybe they could go on their holiday next year. This wasn’t good enough for J so she started whingeing, and then screaming, so my sister took her home. This was a week last Wednesday, they came round on the Sunday, the day before I was due to leave.
I was packing my suitcase and had all the things I was taking spread around my room, my passport was on my desk, but when I went to pack it it was gone. I couldn’t find it anywhere, neither had my parents or sister. We finally found it in the possession of my nephew, and he’d ripped through the page with my photo rendering it useless.
When my sister asked him what he was doing with it he told us that J had given it to him. My sister started interrogating J and she finally admitted that it wasn’t fair that I got to go to Disney and she didn’t, so she gave it S and told him they were playing hide and seek with it. She’s been abroad and knows that I can’t go without my passport.
There was no time to get a new passport so I didn’t get to go on the holiday I’d been saving ages for and it was late to get a refund. The cost of the holiday, the park tickets I’d already paid for and the replacement passport totals at £725, and I told my sister I want her to pay me back.
She said that S is only little and he didn’t know what he was doing, I told her I believe that, but her daughter knew full well what she was doing. I did tell her if she couldn’t do it in one go I was happy to accept installments. She refused and she and her partner are acting like I’m an asshole, my mum and dad are siding with me though and telling them they should pay me back.
My sister said they’d have to take the money out of the savings they have for the kids Christmas presents, and was I happy for taking away their Christmas? I reminded her she didn't have to pay in one go.
Edit to answer some FAQs:
I looked into an emergency passport and claiming on my insurance. An emergency passport takes a week and I was due to travel the next day. Insurance does not cover you if you don't have a passport prior to travelling, only if it's lost while on holiday.
My niece has been punished. My sister told her that there was absolutely no way they'd be going to Disney next year. I also gave her my own form of punishment: My friends still went on holiday, and I gave them some of my Euros to get me some Disney swag.
I asked them if they could get a Nemo cuddly for my nephew (he's Nemo mad, I didn't blame him for the incident because he's only little), I made a big show of making it clear she got nothing, but that she would have done if she hadn't taken my passport and she'd brought it on herself.
Comments:
herdingcats2020 says:
NTA. They should have offered to pay from the start. Their kids caused this and one of them on purpose caused trouble. They SHOULD be using it as part of Christmas. The little girl should KNOW what she did was wrong and there are repercussions for bad behavior. They'd no longer be allowed in my home. Is small claims court a possibility? idk.
tinypicklerick111 OP responded:
I don't really want to have to take my family to court though.
subsailor1968 says:
NTA. It SHOULD come out of their Christmas. The kids damaged your passport and caused you to miss vacation and lose significant money. A loss of some Christmas gifts would be a lesson to them, at least the older one who knows better, and to the parents.
islasdiary says:
NTA. It’s not your fault her daughter is a spoiled brat that thinks she can get whatever she wants, however she wants.
carton_of_cats says:
I think you’re absolutely right, J’s attitude needs to be reigned in yesterday. Wonder where she got it from?
Nathan_Poe says:
NTA. It's just common decency to cover the expense of damage your child does. Why should you eat the cost that her child caused. Using money from Christmas presents will be fine. A sound learning lesson for the kids.