Son Pushed in Pool - Brand-new iPhone in Pocket. Who's Responsible?

Before I can give an answer, I'd like to know if the phone works or not. Some of the heavy cases are waterproof.
I think you would have to prove that it is damaged beyond repair or damaged at all.

That kid needs to pay. It's a good lesson for him that in life, everything that you do has a consequence. Go talk to the parents. If they won't help you out, go to the police. He is 100% responsible.

I haven't read all the responses but even if it was fully submerged in water iPhones are still salvageable if you try the silicon package trick or use a dry rice(?) also if he just bought it it should also be under warranty I just replaced my iPhone for free at an Apple store and got it last June... IMO bully is responsible BUT considering he's a bully I highly doubt you're ever in a see money from him to buy a new phone :( and even if you talk to his parents his parents will probably back up you know their own kid.

The kid who pushed your son into the pool is responsible, 100%. I would tell his parents that you expect your son to be reimbursed for his phone. If I were that kid's parents, I would pay you promptly and then then would expect my idiot kid to pay me back, but that's between them.

I really don't understand why other responders think this is acceptable behavior or that your son is somehow responsible, even in part. If this happened among adults, there would be no question that the push is unacceptable and the phone needs to be replaced. These aren't small children, it wasn't an accident, and that kid needs to be held responsible and make your son whole.

Wow, all these people criticizing a kid who was pushed into a pool. Suppose YOU were at a party, and one of the other guests shoved you into a swimming pool? Fully clothed and with your phone? Would you find that acceptable? I doubt it! A teen is fully old enough to be taught proper boundaries.

Yes, the bully is responsible. This was not negligence of your son. I would contact the kid's parents and ask them to pay the cost of a replacement phone.

The bully (or his family) is 100% responsible for this. No way would I let it go. Yes, if necessary I would take them to small claims court. I'd be livid that my kid who worked so hard had something ruined by someone else's ill behaved child. Seriously...yes, they pay.

Judge Judy would make the person who pushed him in the pool pay, unless he is a minor. If he's a minor the parents pay.

Are there witnesses to back your son's story?

Well sure he should offer to pay to replace the phone but unless he does so willingly how will you make him do it, other than take him to small claims court (?) which seems like a huge hassle.
What happened when he apologized, did he or his family offer to replace the phone?
If they didn't offer you could call them or send them a message about replacing it and see what they say.
This is why I hate smart phones. Yes I have one too (an iphone 6) but I'm always so paranoid anytime it falls or gets bumped, they are so freaking expensive and easy to damage, they are like little ticking time bombs of financial catastrophe :-(

I think you should respectfully contact the parents of the child who pushed your son. Go see them in person and tell the story of what happened, what was witnessed, including that their child apologized, and there's a good chance they will OFFER to replace the phone. They should if they are good and decent people. Give the parents a chance to make it right. If they're crazy hot-heads or something and the conversation goes awry, then I'd look into small claims court.

Just because the boy 'didn't know' your son had the iPhone in his pocket....
Entirely irrelevant. What was your son supposed to do? Wave it around and say "don't push me in, I have a phone in my pocket"? That's just stupid.

You get your victims 'as they are'. That means that just because someone 'doesn't know' some information about the person they are about to do something mean to doesn't let them off the hook. It shouldn't have happened in the first place.

Yes, the other family needs to pay. I'd talk to the hosts, get their observations and then talk to the other family with a 'just the facts' approach.

If the kid truly bullies your kid, why were they at the same place.

Bully is thrown around so loosely. Maybe they just don't click well as friends? That's ok.

Accidents happen. We carry insurance on our iPhones and have only been responsible for the deductible when something came up.

My daughters friend accidently knocked my daughters iPhone 6 out of her hand and it cracked to pieces. No way would I allow her to pay for it because she's a struggling college student. Of course she offered to pay.

Accidents happen. I hear you loud and clear that you don't like this kid and your angry. It would be nice if he offered to replace the phone but don't hold your breath. Also small claims court for a teen??? That's extreme.

Take your emotions out of the thought process here and try too look at it objectively. You don't know for a fact exactly what happened, you weren't there and didn't see it. You heard your sons side. Get all of the facts. What were they doing at the pool of if it wasn't a pool party? I think all parties have some skin in this game as far as not being responsible for behavior.

Imagine if your son was the one who accidently or deliberately made someone fall into the pool. You really think he should be taken to small claims?

uuumm why don't you have insurance on your phones?? I do. For all EXCEPT my husband's because it's a cheap clam-shell phone.

Your SON is responsible. He should NOT have had his phone in his pocket near a pool.

"Bully" - what do you mean by "bully"?? that word is used ssssooo frequently and OVER USED that it doesn't MEAN anything anymore. Your son is a teenager. He should have SKILLS to defend himself. You do realize that your son is NOT going to be buddies with EVERYONE - right? Not everyone is going to like him. So please - before you use the word "bully"? clarify it with background.

How does this other boy "bully" your son? Why has your son NOT done anything about it? What do you want to happen? YOU SHOULD have insurance on expensive phones. that's the SMART thing to do. Stuff happens and that's what insurance is for.

If your son is having trouble with this boy and has for months? Why have you NOT asked your son how he is going to handle it?? You could talk to the boy and his parents and let them know about this unfortunate turn of events and see what their take is on it - but overall?? The onus is on your son. This is one of those "stuff happens" things that INSURANCE is for...

Update us when you have been in touch with the parents of the kid who did the pushing.

I agree with others that this kid bears responsibility. One question: Is the host parent willing to step up and say clearly to the kid's parents that she saw this kid push your son? Are other teens who were at the party willing to do that if they witnessed it? The kid's parents could be fine and pay up as they should, or they could be balky or even nasty about it and claim their kid did nothing, your son shoved first, whatever it takes to prevent paying and to throw blame elsewhere. You may need the host parent and other teens to be willing to say what they saw and to let this family know (IF they are resistant) that they will tell a small claims court what they saw, if needed.

I hope you don't have to go that far and that the parents would do the right thing.

The "rice recovery" is a nice idea but I've known a couple of folks who did it and their phones were never the same. Your son should get the phone completely replace with a new phone even if it seems to work again after it's dried out. It will always have issues.

ETA:

I thought about it - really, it would be no different than say if a kid threw a snowball at your son, who was just minding his own business, and broke your son's glasses. Same idea. So I would say he should replace them.

Also - I don't usually call kids bullies because it diminishes what actual bullies do (I find we overuse the term) - but I get what you mean.
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So unfortunate. Frustrating I'm sure.

First of all - if you just unscrew some of the screws in the phone, then in rice, and I was told to put the entire bowl/rice/phone into a Ziploc baggie - I was able to save my phone. You run the risk of getting some rice dust into the phone but we just lightly blew that out. It worked better for me to get the insides dry.

I think I would approach the parents - regardless - and just say we just wanted you to be aware of what happened at the party. That your son pushed mine in and it's now cost us x amount of dollars. We'd like to reach out to see if your son would be willing to contribute towards the cost of a new phone ... type thing.

The thing is, I suppose the getting the phone part is accidental. He didn't know your son had a phone in his pocket (although honestly, all kids have phones in their pockets) but still - I'm sure his intent behind his action was more to soak your son and not ruin his phone.

We've had bully-friends of my kids (sort of friend of friend) ruin my kids' hoodies etc. before. Roughhoused them and tore a pricey piece of clothing. I just suck that up - as you would. But a phone ... I think I'd reach out.

What does the mom of the party say? The other thing is, if she knows the parents, she should probably reach out herself to say what happened at the party. That would be my preference. Approach her, say you're going to call the boy's parents - has she made them aware? If I was the mom of the party, I would. I would feel irresponsible for not at least mentioning it.

I'd probably start there, and then reach out to the boy's parents.

Good luck - let us know how it turns out. I hope the phone can be saved

In my opinion the bully boy is totally responsible and he (or his parents) must pay for a new phone or for the repair service cost. Period.
Anyway iPhone is very resistant, probably it still works. I would bring it to apple service to be sure everything is ok.

if it wasn't a pool party, I don't blame your son for having his phone in his pocket. If he didn't and you wanted to get ahold of him at a party, people would say he should have had his phone with him! I would approach the parents and not bring anything up from the past but say witnesses say it was completely unprovoked and now your son is out a phone. I would pay as a parent and make my kid work it off. Ever read about the woman at her bachelorette party who was pushed into a pool and is now paralyzed? What this kid did is dangerous. I'd point that out and say good thing you're not suing for a real injury if they're not apologetic and don't offer to pay right away. Pushing is one thing if people are kind of expecting it. When they aren't, it's dangerous. Then if they're real jerks and won't pay, I'd push to split the cost. Id mention small claims court but not likely go that far. Not worth it. They may know that but I'd act like it was the principal of the thing so I'd spend my time pursuing it and hopefully they'd believe me and pay.

the bully should pay up. actions have consequences.you push someone in and ruin their stuff you replace their stuff.

I would make every attempt to get the kid who pushed him in to pay for the phone.

Well clearly if someone wrecked my phone that way I would ask them to pay to replace it.
This wasn't an accident after all.
So I guess that's what you do, you call the parents and ask them for X amount of $.
Hopefully they step up and you don't have to take time off work to go to court.

Heck yes the bully is responsible. Try to have all the parents who witnessed this back you up as his parents may also be thick-headed,

Bully or not, the person who pushed him into the pool bears responsibility in the cost of replacing the phone. My co-worker's son was pushed into a pool (though this was at a pool party), and although he was friendly with the kid, the kid apologized and gave him some money to replace the phone. Turns out my co-worker had insurance on her son's cellphone, but there was still a deductible she had to come up with. The kid's payment was enough to cover that.

I feel so badly for your son! He must be so upset that he saved for the phone and had it (likely) ruined in this way. I would respectfully approach the bully's parents and explain what happened, and let them know that it is going to cost X amount to replace the phone. Make sure that they know that your son bought the phone with his own money.

Awesome if they pay. Even if they offer to split it. I would be surprised, though. If they say no, I would just let them know that you are disappointed that they wouldn't accept responsibility for their son's actions. And make sure they know that there is not a lot of misinterpretation possible since the host witnessed the behavior. Then let your son know that unfortunately there are people in the world who don't hold themselves accountable. Tough life lesson, I hope there is a positive resolution.

If it was a pool party, I'd say your son was not showing great foresight in having a phone there. But if, as you say, it was NOT a pool party, I'm still not sure it qualifies as a bullying episode but rather a thoughtless prank. This is what teens do - stupid stuff with no forethought about consequences (which comes from the part of the brain that doesn't develop until about age 25).

I don't think you will get anywhere by referring to this kid as a bully. They were at the same party, your son knew this problem boy was there, and still he had a phone in a pocket and he stood near a pool. I'm not blaming your son - clearly the fault is much more with the other boy - but part of growing up is learning to anticipate other people doing stupid things. We teach our teen drivers to watch for other people doing the wrong thing, we teach them how to handle drinking/drugs at a party, and so on. They have got to learn to survey their surroundings.

I think a sit-down with the parties involved would be in order. You will have to restrain yourself from referring to prior problems, bullying, and placing blame. The tone should be "here's the problem, let's talk about what happened and where we go from here."

I think you will likely end up, at best, with split expenses. It would be a good lesson for your son in protecting his valuables and getting insurance. You certainly can't press charges - I doubt this is actionable.

Did you try opening up the phone and burying in rice? My son-in-law saved a phone doing that.

As to who's responsible. Your son and this boy have a history of not getting along. I suggest asking him to pay will only increase his anger and you'll still not get paid. I would just let it go.

Your son did choose to be by the pool/remain at the pool. He bares some responsibility. I suggest instead, you focus on teaching your son how to respond to kids with whom he doesn't get along. What could he do to protect his phone in the future? This can be a learning experience.

The definition of bully is actually quite narrow. Shoving your son into the pool is typical teen behaviour. Of course, I don't know what has happened before this incident. He may be a bully but pushing your son into the pool would not be considered bullying behavior.

I suggest this incident gives your son a lesson of life in the real world. Painful, yes. How do we take care of our phone? We cannot expect that others will be responsible. What can we do in response to a bully. Unless the boy purposely threw the phone in the pool, he is not legally responsible for damage to the phone.

Insurance on an expensive phone will provide your son a new phone at minimal cost. Teens are likely to be rough on phones, as this situation illustrates. An Otter type of cover provides some protection too.

This question has been on mamapedia before.

I definitely think you should try, but my guess is that the bully's parents aren't about to fork over money for this phone.

You could take them to small claims court, but I don't know if you would win.

If you have another adult who can corroborate the story, then yeah I'd take it to those other parents. If you've had problems with this kid and they parents don't seem sympathetic then I'd probably consider small claims court.

this is a tricky situation because the kid's parents were not present. so, to them it will be a hear- say type situation. there are a few things you could do here (as long as you remain realistic not expecting the parents to pay unless they offer). get the info from the hostess and call them. explain calmly what has happened. calling the other kid a bully is a stretch. if he has a proven history of bullying your son, then i wonder why was your son at a party where this kid was too? i know if it were my child, we would have avoided that situation, and also,we would have addressed this bullying stuff as it was happenning. not after the fact.
if the parents say not our responsibilty, then I would drop it. it's up to you if you want to help your son get a new iphone. but someone mentioned small courts? too much hassle over an accident.

Updated

this is a tricky situation because the kid's parents were not present. so, to them it will be a hear say type situation. there are a few things you could do here (as long as you remain realistic not expecting the parents to pay unless they offer). get the info from the hostess and call them. explain calmly what has happened. calling the other kid a bully is a stretch. if he has a proven history of bullying your son, then i wonder whyw as your son at a party where this kid was too? i know if it were my child, we would have avoided that situation, and also,we would have addressed this bullying stuff as it was happenning. not after the fact.
if the parents say not our responsibilty, then I would drop it. it's up to you if you want to help your son get a new iphone. but someone mentioned small courts? too much hassle over an accident.

I didn't read all of the responses, but I just thought I would throw this out there. Is it possible that the folks that hosted the party have a zero deductible home insurance policy that would cover the loss? I know it is a reach, just a thought . . .

Based on the added information and the info in "so what happened," I would get a new phone for your son. Maybe a refurbished one?

It appears you value your friendship with the host so asking them to cover the cost is not really worth it. It also seems asking the bully/his parents to cover the cost is not worth it for various reasons you stated.

Since you as the parent forgot to transfer the insurance, you also bear some of the responsibility as you indicated, so why not just get a new one for your son? I feel for him -- he did everything right and nothing wrong -- he did a very "adult", responsible thing by saving for a new iPhone and it wasn't his fault he was thrown in the pool.

I'm assuming you've already checked to see whether or not the phone is working?

I-Phones are built very well - they are sealed tight. My son dropped his I-Pod Touch in the water (completely submerged), and it never stopped working. In fact, I've heard stories of I-Phone/Pad/Pod's left in pockets and going through the wash cycle.

If it is, in fact, not working, I would considering going back to the place where he bought it. It is very possible it is still under warranty. I would at least try.

As much as I want to agree that the bully or family should be responsible, if the bully didn't know the phone was there, that might be a hard sell.

I'm so sorry this has happened. Definitely look in to whether or not the phone is still working and/or can be fixed or replaced for free.

Under the details of the scenario that you described, then it is the pusher's responsibility. At a minimum, the pusher knew that clothing and shoes were going to get soaked, and it is very common for phones to be in pockets of normal clothing. Your son didn't do anything negligent in regards to his phone.

I'd say the boy who pushed him in the water was at fault but when it comes down to it, doesn't your son have phone insurance? With a new phone that expensive there's no way I would skip that part. That's why I'm asking. Even if there is a charge to replace it that cost might be a lot less? U S Cellular replaces phones completely and that's why we've stayed with them for so long.

I'm sure your son already told the kid his phone was in his pocket and is now ruined. What did the boy say? Did he apologize? I think your son should tell the kid he owes him a new phone but I wouldn't hold my breath waiting for it.

Next time you should probably get the phone insured.

What does your son say? Is he Ok with protecting the bully and let it go? How is your son handling the bully in school?

The boy who pushed him in is totally at fault. At the very least his parents need to know what he did. His behavior is not acceptable. How they decide to punish him is up to them. I would also speak to the principal of the school and report his behavior. That way when he does something worse, it won't be his first offense, a behavioral file would have already been started for him and teachers can watch out for trouble brewing, maybe getting him into counselling before the does something really bad. If it is all hushed up it will happen again. The boy is looking for attention.

I actually think you could make the arguement that the host family should cover the cost. It was their home, and the adults were inside, while the kids were outside, meaning they weren't supervising that closely. So, in some sense, the hosts could be considered responsible and their home owner's insurance could cover it.

If my son was the one accused of damaging the phone, this is the argument I'd make.

And if my kid was the one who had his phone in his pocket around a pool, at a party, I'd say tough luck. Kids/teens goof around, especially around water. Lesson learned - leave phone safely inside next time.

That stinks!

I guess this is valuable life lesson for both kids.
One should keep his hands to himself, the other needs to guard what is precious to him.

I think your son and the other kid should pay 50/50.

If the other kid doesn't pay (probably won't) I would give my kid half the money with a LONG conversation of this being 1x 'accident support' from me, how to take care of things several hundred $$$$, and the concept of insurance.

Really if your kid is old enough to have this type of phone, then he needs to decide how to handle it. You just provide the guidance.