Under 16 years old staying in Motorhome overnight on their own

lindyloot

lindyloot

LIFE MEMBER
Joined
May 28, 2008
Posts
672
Likes collected
27,482
Location
Yeovil
Funster No
2,874
MH
Gone Kaput
Exp
since 2007
Can anyone tell me if it is legal for a 10 year old and a 16 year old ,are allowed to overnight in a motorhome on their own ( both girls). My daughter has told me that they have to sleep in the motorhome. They are spending Christmas with their dad at his girlfriends parents house
 
Sort by date Sort by votes
Peter and Julie said:
Still massively, OTT your reading into a situation that has zero bearing on the posters question. What ifs? has nothing to do with it. IF they dont want to go, don't! Their choice. It's legal. I'd still put them in the cellar though, just in case they damage the van :giggle:
Click to expand...
Not is not OTT, there are genuine concerns which should never be ignored nor the genuine feelings of the children. How would you like it if you were having to go to somewhere you don't know, with people you haven't seen before, never mind stayed with, in winter and be 'put out' of sight overnight, just you and your sibling? This is the first time the Dad has had them and his focus should be on their needs and putting them first, not sticking them outside in a camper on their own. You've got to wonder just how much he wants to interact with them or is he just doing it because it's what his girlfriend/her parents want ...
 
Upvote 0
They probably don't realise the WiFi will still work in the van.

Let them know it will and I'm sure they will be a lot more accepting.



In jest, but probably not to far from the truth lol.

Make sure it's going to be warm and they have an easy way to contact Dad and I really don't see a problem.

I remember us two and the two kids of another family we met sleeping under the stars on a beach in France just outside the vans. Great fun, I think I was the eldest at 12 years old.

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 
Upvote 0
I don't get all the fuss. If you had a "pool house" in the garden, with beds, toilet, fridge and tv, would there be the same concern?

Like I said, it's like a bedroom. I don't see any suggestion that they will have to spend any more time in there than for sleeping. Surely if it's the first time away with him, it's better if they have somewhere to escape to that's relatively private.
They'll probably be on their phones the whole time anyway.
Safety concerns are easily sorted. Turn the gas off at the bottle and just run it on hookup. Heating, lights, tv and fridge all available. I would suggest not leaving them with the ignition keys, most vans can be locked from a button on the dash.

If the van is a transit with a dirty mattress in the back, obviously the appeal disappears.

Of course if they don't want to go, anything becomes a problem...
 
Upvote 1
MisterB said:
there seems to be little comment re trusting the father to make decisions that he is entitled to make as a father? if of course experience has shown that he is irresponsible when it comes to looking after his children, then i understand the concerns raised, i wonder if people would had the same concerns if the children were staying at their mothers?
Click to expand...
No difference in my eyes, if the mother was the one doing this I'd be just as concerned. Mother or father their emphasis should be on what is best for the kids.
 
Upvote 0
Thankyou for all your comments. Typical teenager did not listen properly to what Dad had said. My daughter has spoken to her ex. It turns out the girls were originally going to stay in the house and their dad and his GF would sleep in van. GF Father thought the girls may not want to sleep in the house with a strange man so suggested the van. They are going to see what the girls want to do when the time arrives , its only for two nights and the van does have heating
 
Upvote 0
lindyloot said:
I dont have any communication with him
Click to expand...
Sometimes everything is hard when separation happens i do feel for you. Having been through it and come out the other side from experienceif your daughter can speak to him ( i know it takes 2 to have a civil conversation) she should express the worries and how the children feel ,it may have not even occurred to him how the 16yr old feels

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 
Upvote 0
I agree with the 16 year old it is like putting the dogs out. To be honest I wouldn't put my dogs to sleep alone in our MH and it is on the drive next to our house. I would want the girls under the same roof as me. I would worry about the van catching fire or someone breaking in to it. Sounds to me like the girlfriend doesn't want them there. If she loves the dad she has to accept his children and treat them as the precious girls that they are. If they haven't got a spare bedroom then they should take the mattress out of the MH and let the girls sleep on it in the living room.
 
Upvote 0
PeterCarole29 said:
Sometimes everything is hard when separation happens i do feel for you. Having been through it and come out the other side from experienceif your daughter can speak to him ( i know it takes 2 to have a civil conversation) she should express the worries and how the children feel ,it may have not even occurred to him how the 16yr old feels
Click to expand...
I see you posted whilst i was writing
 
Upvote 0
The world is a different place but as a kid, under 10, I often slept on the back seat of a car wrapped in blankets. Not alone I was with a younger cousin.

The car was parked on the road outside my uncles house.

It was a great adventure, often repeated.

However it's a different world now. Now I don't have kids so not really equipped to answer but my thoughts are, in no particular order;

Only the parents know their kids!
Do they have a mobile?
Is the van safe?
Do the kids want to do it?
Do they like adventures?
Are they confident that the van services are safe, gas, electricity, water etc?
Do they know how to secure the van from the inside?
What security does the van have as I doubt the alarm can be activated with people inside?
You wouldn't want the van nicked with the kids inside!
Take the ignition keys into the house, just in case the adventure gets too adventurous!!!! :) Yes we did go for a drive!!!!!!
Van parked on the flat and in gear, just in case they knock the handbrake off!

What a great sleepover it will be!
 
Upvote 0
lindyloot said:
Thankyou for all your comments. Typical teenager did not listen properly to what Dad had said. My daughter has spoken to her ex. It turns out the girls were originally going to stay in the house and their dad and his GF would sleep in van. GF Father thought the girls may not want to sleep in the house with a strange man so suggested the van. They are going to see what the girls want to do when the time arrives , its only for two nights and the van does have heating
Click to expand...
Ah that puts another slant on it, we had all assume that what had been related to the mother was correct ... should've known to put the 'teen' twist on it! :giggle:
 
Upvote 0
Minxy said:
Not is not OTT, there are genuine concerns which should never be ignored nor the genuine feelings of the children. How would you like it if you were having to go to somewhere you don't know, with people you haven't seen before, never mind stayed with, in winter and be 'put out' of sight overnight, just you and your sibling? This is the first time the Dad has had them and his focus should be on their needs and putting them first, not sticking them outside in a camper on their own. You've got to wonder just how much he wants to interact with them or is he just doing it because it's what his girlfriend/her parents want ...
Click to expand...
Can't respond any other way! :giggle: :giggle: :giggle: :giggle: :giggle: :LOL::LOL::LOL::LOL::LOL: Post 35 says it all! You can swear if you want? Can't hear anyway! :LOL:
 
Last edited:
Upvote 1
Oops so sorry I misread the situation. It is the girlfriends parents house. I think yes ok for the girls to sleep in the MH if dad sleeps in there with them it is only for 2 nights after all. He can go without his Christmas nookie for 2 nights;)
 
Upvote 0
Captain Yoghurtpot said:
I'm sorry, but I think that is a very inappropriate comment about the cellar, even if in jest.
Just my opinion though, thanks.
Click to expand...
I agree a loft qould be better

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 
Upvote 0
mitzimad said:
I agree a loft qould be better
Click to expand...
That's also not funny, in my opinion only.
Sorry, but that's just the way I feel about children being pushed out the way.
Met a few in my time who have been locked in bedrooms, cupboards,sheds, attics by cruel unthinking parents.
Never a solution to gaining kids trust or respect.
Sending them to their room, yes.
Locking them in it,or anywhere else, no way.
But as I have said, just my personal opinion ,thanks.
Enjoy your tea.
 
Upvote 0
Gina M said:
Oops so sorry I misread the situation. It is the girlfriends parents house. I think yes ok for the girls to sleep in the MH if dad sleeps in there with them it is only for 2 nights after all. He can go without his Christmas nookie for 2 nights;)
Click to expand...
Two whole nights? Would be blind by then :LOL:
 
Upvote 0
Let’s hope the sixteen year old doesn’t join the army, half of you would have Lilly livered fits?

All four of my boys were outside in tents as soon as we’d let them, so they could mess about which we’d moan about if they were in the van

Mind you, we also used to put them in bed when they were tired whilst driving, make drinks, make food and use the loo whilst driving too! Shock horror

We also regularly overnight on motorway Aires

#livingdangerously
 
Upvote 0
Captain Yoghurtpot said:
Sorry, but that's just the way I feel about children being pushed out the way.
Click to expand...
I was definitely a nuisance to my parents when I arrived in 1945 - mum was 44, Dad 51 and I had a 23 year old married sister. According to my sister when my Mum discovered she was pregnant she was mortified at what the neighbours would think.
From age 9 until 15 'mine' and the spare bedroom were occupied by foreign students. I slept on a wooden frame with webbing that my Dad made and was kept under my parent's bed and put on the bath every night. I couldn't go to bed until all the students were home from evenings out and I had to get up very early before they were about. From 15 to when I married at 23 I slept in the spider-overrun loft which had Just a couple of 8 x 4 chipboard floorboards, a bed, a 'shoe shop' ladder, no window and a light bulb on an extension lead. It was freezing in winter and blistering hot in summer.
It's odd but very often now, 55 years later, when dressing I still recall being so delighted when I married and had my own house with a wardrobe in which to hang my clothes.
One upside is that the students used to speak to each other in their own languages so even at a young age I became very proficient in French and German and by my late teens near fluent as a result of going into Brighton with them socially (pubs, clubbing etc) and meeting with their friends. When I took my 'O' level oral exams my French and German were better than my heavily Yorkshire-accented teacher. :giggler:

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 
Last edited:
Upvote 0
Spriddler said:
I was definitely a nuisance to my parents when I arrived in 1945 - mum was 44, Dad 51 and I had a 23 year old married sister. According to my sister when my Mum discovered she was pregnant she was mortified at what the neighbours would think.
From age 9 until 15 'mine' and the spare bedroom were occupied by foreign students. I slept on a wooden frame with webbing that my Dad made and was kept under my parent's bed and put on the bath every night. I couldn't go to bed until all the students were home from evenings out and I had to get up very early before they were about. From 15 to when I married at 23 I slept in the spider-overrun loft which had Just a couple of 8 x 4 chipboard floorboards, a bed, a 'shoe shop' ladder, no window and a light bulb on an extension lead. It was freezing in winter and blistering hot in summer.
It's odd but very often now, 55 years later, when dressing I still recall being so delighted when I married and had my own house to have a wardrobe in which to hang my clothes.
One upside is that the students used to speak to each other in their own languages so even at a young age I became very proficient in French and German and by my late teens near fluent as a result of going into Brighton with them socially (pubs, clubbing etc) and meeting with their friends. When I took my 'O' level oral exams my French and German were better than my heavily accented teacher. :giggler:
Click to expand...
Brilliant! ::bigsmile: ::bigsmile: ::bigsmile: Crying with laughter (y)
 
Upvote 0
Spriddler said:
I was definitely a nuisance to my parents when I arrived in 1945 - mum was 44, Dad 51 and I had a 23 year old married sister. According to my sister when my Mum discovered she was pregnant she was mortified at what the neighbours would think.
From age 9 until 15 'mine' and the spare bedroom were occupied by foreign students. I slept on a wooden frame with webbing that my Dad made and was kept under my parent's bed and put on the bath every night. I couldn't go to bed until all the students were home from evenings out and I had to get up very early before they were about. From 15 to when I married at 23 I slept in the spider-overrun loft which had Just a couple of 8 x 4 chipboard floorboards, a bed, a 'shoe shop' ladder, no window and a light bulb on an extension lead. It was freezing in winter and blistering hot in summer.
It's odd but very often now, 55 years later, when dressing I still recall being so delighted when I married and had my own house to have a wardrobe in which to hang my clothes.
One upside is that the students used to speak to each other in their own languages so even at a young age I became very proficient in French and German and by my late teens near fluent as a result of going into Brighton with them socially (pubs, clubbing etc) and meeting with their friends. When I took my 'O' level oral exams my French and German were better than my heavily accented teacher. :giggler:
Click to expand...
.
 
Upvote 0
eddievanbitz said:
Let’s hope the sixteen year old doesn’t join the army, half of you would have Lilly livered fits?

All four of my boys were outside in tents as soon as we’d let them, so they could mess about which we’d moan about if they were in the van

Mind you, we also used to put them in bed when they were tired whilst driving, make drinks, make food and use the loo whilst driving too! Shock horror

We also regularly overnight on motorway Aires

#livingdangerously
Click to expand...
👏😁
 
Upvote 0
Headrush said:
The title is misleading as the 10 year old isn't on their own. But in any case it's perfectly legal as the minimum age is 13 to be classed as responsible.
Not that it's relevant unless the motorhome is somewhere other than the parents drive. It's no different to being in a bedroom IMHO.
Click to expand...
Unless the law has changed dramatically since I retired, this is simply wrong! Emmit’s comments in post 3 are correct - a parent cannot transfer their responsibility for a child, even temporarily, to any under 16. As to whether it’s sensible or wise, a whole new ball game!

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 
Upvote 0

Join us or log in to post a reply.

To join in you must be a member of MotorhomeFun

Join MotorhomeFun

Join us, it quick and easy!

Join us

Log in

Already a member? Log in here.

Latest journal entries

Back
Top