A seven-year-old boy in Germany made over 1,200 in-app purchases worth €33,000 on his father’s tablet — and now a court has ruled that the parent must foot the bill.
The Regional Court of Karlsruhe (Landgericht Karlsruhe) found that the purchases were “authorised through negligence”, since the father had provided the device and payment access without safeguards.
How a child spent thousands in mobile games
The father had given his son a tablet linked to his personal account, complete with an active credit card stored for app purchases.
Over a period of 20 months, the boy repeatedly bought virtual items and game add-ons, spending several thousand euros per month.
When the father eventually noticed the charges, he demanded a refund from the payment provider and the gaming platform — arguing that his minor child could not legally consent to such transactions. The companies refused, and the dispute ended up in court.
The court’s verdict: negligence equals consent
Judges in Karlsruhe dismissed the father’s claim, ruling that his conduct created the appearance of authorised transactions.
By giving the child unrestricted access and failing to monitor or limit payments, the court held, the father effectively enabled the purchases.
The ruling emphasized that parents are responsible for implementing available controls — including spending limits, parental accounts, or notification settings.
The father had done none of these. For years, he ignored e-mail alerts about payments, failed to activate two-factor authentication, and never set up a child profile on the device.
Key legal principle: accountability through omission
The decision highlights a growing digital-age dilemma: when children use shared devices, parental negligence can imply authorisation under German civil law (§ 164 BGB, “Anscheinsvollmacht” – apparent authority).
The court concluded that the father’s inaction allowed the assumption that the purchases were legitimate:
“Anyone who gives a child unrestricted access to a payment-enabled account must also bear the financial consequences,” the judges stated.
Implications for parents and digital platforms
Legal experts say the Karlsruhe case serves as a warning to all parents.
German consumer law offers little protection if an adult fails to set proper limits — even when the spender is a minor.
Digital platforms such as Apple, Google, and gaming providers provide extensive parental-control options, including purchase verification and family-sharing tools.
If these are not activated, courts increasingly consider the resulting transactions valid and binding.
Consumer advocates recommend parents regularly review account statements, use prepaid balances instead of linked credit cards, and enable biometric or PIN confirmation for every in-app
ransaction.
A costly digital lesson
The Karlsruhe judgment underscores a clear principle in the digital economy: “digital responsibility begins at home.”
For the father, the oversight proved expensive — a €33,000 reminder that even small taps on a touchscreen can lead to very big bills.
