AITA for asking my neighbor to get their child that’s jumping on our trampoline in our yard? It’s not so much that the act of the child jumping that bothered me. It was the minimal supervision of said child and that there was no communication. If the child were to get hurt on our property we’d be liable. I try really hard to keep our children out of others yards and property, if walk in the neighborhood we stay on the roadway. I hate confrontation and hate that I had to ask. Should I have just let it go?.. (let me preface this with I paced my front door for 3-5 mins waiting for the adult to get said child, to avoid asking them..)
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AITA for asking my neighbor to get their child that’s jumping on our trampoline in our yard? It’s not so much that the act of the child jumping that bothered me. It was the minimal supervision of said child and that there was no communication. If the child were to get hurt on our property we’d be liable. I try really hard to keep our children out of others yards and property, if walk in the neighborhood we stay on the roadway. I hate confrontation and hate that I had to ask. Should I have just let it go?.. (let me preface this with I paced my front door for 3-5 mins waiting for the adult to get said child, to avoid asking them..)
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OP has offered the following explanation for why they think they might be the asshole:
> Asking the parent to remove said child from our property.
Could be construed as I’m just a Karen who doesn’t like kids. Or kids having fun.
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Contest mode is 1.5 hours long on this post.
NTA – if the kid gets hurt on your property you can expect to get sued, so.
NTA, It’s not your responsibility to look after their child, however I would always make sure that my garden is secure to ensure if anything happened then your covered if anything happens on your property.
Out of curiosity what age was the child?
NTA. Yes; tell, don’t ask, your neighbor to get their child. I hope that it’s fenced off because, otherwise, your liability for whatever happens could be massive.
NTA. Go outside, tell the child to get off your trampoline and go home immediately and not to come back unless they’re invited.
Definitely NTA. I get it because I hate confrontation too. It’s unfortunately necessary sometimes though and I think this is one of those times.
NTA – but if there’s space I would move the trampoline to the back. Having it set up in the front where it’s easy to access (not behind a fence) does make it more communal appearing.
I would never let my kids play on someone else’s stuff without them there. That’s pretty presumptuous.
Also check with your insurance if you’re concerned about liability. Trampolines are “attractive nuisances” so you have to take additional steps to lock and secure them. Letting your house be the neighborhood playground, especially with a trampolines, is a lot.
YTA for having a 20 foot unfenced trampoline in your front yard. Get a safety net.
Are you in the US? If so you need to read up on what an “attractive nuisance “ is – basically, of course kids want to jump on your trampoline, and trampolines are dangerous, so it is up to you to go to extra effort to keep them off of it. You are legally responsible and can be sued if they get hurt. You really need to protect yourself (and the kid! They definitely shouldn’t be unsupervised on a trampoline)
>If the child were to get hurt on our property we’d be liable.
NTA
Trampolines are considered an attractive nuisance in many places. That means you have the responsibility to install fences and gates to make sure that children can’t get into your yard.
NTA for contacting the neighbor… but you need to solve this problem.
NTA. You’re allowed to tell a directly child on your property that they’re not allowed to be there. And then if they don’t leave, you can say “I’m going to have your mom/dad to come and get you, because you’re not allowed to jump here without them watching you.” (If that’s the case.)
NTA
It isn’t a if someone gets hurt, but it is a when someone gets hurt on a trampoline. No child should be using one unsupervised. This isn’t something you can hesitate on because you will be held responsible for any injuries.
Honestly, I would remove it from the front yard and if you can’t put it in the backyard, then you remove it all together.
NTA for asking but YTA if you do nothing
NTA this kid is unsupervised and this is an accident waiting to happen.
Trampolines can make your homeowners insurance go up because they are easy to get hurt on. If you are not declaring this on your homeowners insurance, especially if its not fenced in, I am not even sure if you would be covered if something were to happen to your child or another child so you better think long and hard about this because in this case its basically the worst case scenario and I assume the hurt party if it does happen could go after your personal assets in this case but you would have to consult a lawyer for actual details on this.
If someone does get hurt you are going to be in for a world of hurt literally because its going to be your ass on the line if someone’s kid gets paralyzed on your trampoline and its not properly fenced off or put away when not in use not to mention the mental anguish and costs of this.
If it does not fit in your house and you have no way of fencing it in then well, its time to get rid of the trampoline unfortunately for your safety.
And yeah I have heard of children getting paralyzed on trampolines, its surprisingly easy to happen (the kids are jumping after all) especially if multiple kids get on there and start jumping all over each other. Your spine compresses when you jump on a trampoline and one wrong step. There was a kid when I was little who got paralyzed from a trampoline at someone’s birthday party.
Trampolines are notorious for their high rate of injury. NTA for telling the kid to get off but YTA for not having a hard restriction on access to the trampoline. (Attractive nuisance. How old is this child?) Fence it, lock it, and make sure you have a good liability insurance policy.
NTA. You were protecting your property and the child’s safety. Waiting a bit first shows you weren’t confrontational, just responsible. You handled it patiently, too.
NTA. Nobody should just let children randomly roam into other people’s yards without supervision. That’s super unsafe and also weird as fuck.
So you paced by the door essentially supervising the child?
ESH. Secure your trampoline, grow a spine and tell the kid to go home. Also it doesn’t need to be a confrontation if you do speak to his parents, just a conversation and maybe even an acknowledgment on your part that that trampoline is incredibly accessible.
His parents suck for obvious reasons.
NTA you’re allowed to protect yourself
NTA—people need to parent their children and teach them to stay out of people’s yards without permission. And you’re definitely right about the liability. And you just know the neighbor would get grumpy if you just went out there and told the kid to get out of your yard.
First of all if it’s your trampoline and the child is there, did they ask you if they could be there or is the child trespassing? Because it sounds like the child is there without adult supervision it’s not your child and that no one even asked you if they use your trampoline so yes, they need to come get their child and he needs to see your property unless they ask and you say yes, they can be there. But it’s not your kid. That’s not your responsibility.
NTA. In no way should a child be using your trampoline with out your express permission and appropriate supervision. If they get hurt you could, and if this is the USA almost certainly would, be sued. Tell the neighbour that their child is not welcome on your property. Don’t ask them, that implies the matter is up for discussion. Tell them that they need to keep the kid off your property. Don’t worry about being mean worry about the kid’s safety and your potential liability. If you catch the kid in your yard boot them.
NTA Huge liability.
There’s no conflict here at all. No reasonable person would think you’re TA
so random children that don’t belong on your property can come and jump up and down on it
NTA but just tell the child to get off the trampoline and stay off. If they don’t listen then go get the parents.
In most states a trampoline is considered an attractive nuisance in the eyes of insurance companies. If that kid gets hurt, you are liable whether you gave permission or not. Tell the parents to keep the kid off your property. NTA
I don’t know how people today would have handled/survived when I was growing up. Simpler times. My neighbors wouldn’t give two poops if I was jumping out of trees, only once I injured myself would they consider going to my parents to tell them their dumbass kid fell again.
“hey neighbor, I saw your kid jumping on my trampoline. Unfortunately we do not allow any kids to use the trampoline without asking us first each time, and there needs to be a present adult supervising.”
It’s entirely possible they didn’t know, or their kid told them they were allowed to. I would think of it less as a confrontation and more as neighbors watching out for neighbors if that helps?
No one but your family has the right to be in your yard. Unless you’ve invited someone over, no one should be in your backyard. You need to be more firm with the parent before that kid gets hurt and you’re stuck paying medical bills. Shut this down now.
Turn the trampoline over on the other side….the kids will get the hint