Can I give my 16 year old a credit card?

Just to let you know, I had a credit card on my dad's account when I was 17.

It was used when I was doing grocery shopping for my parents or bringing my younger siblings clothes shopping. If I ever used it myself (to book something online etc) I lodged the money to my dad's account in advance of the due date.

I think it taught me quite a lot about budgeting and responsibility.
 
lightup said:
Just to let you know, I had a credit card on my dad's account when I was 17.

I think it taught me quite a lot about budgeting and responsibility.
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That's one of the things we're going for. If she's going to make "mistakes" I'd rather she did it under our watchful gaze than risk her messing up her credit rating in the future. Although with this one, I doubt that would happen.
 
One thing I noticed among my own friends is that those who had to work part time from an early age and didnt receive money from their parents had much more respect for money when they eventually did have to stand on their own two feet than those who were given money by their parents easily. I had one friend in college who never had to work in her teens/early 20s, was given an allowance, plus was bought anything she wanted in terms of clothes, books, cds etc.... She herself said that when she moved out of home and got a job and had to budget for herself she was a mess for a number of years and allowed herself to max out credit cards because she knew that her parents would bail her out of trouble if it came to it.
 
truthseeker said:
she was a mess for a number of years and allowed herself to max out credit cards because she knew that her parents would bail her out of trouble if it came to it.
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Yeah - in addiction terms it's called codependency and enabling...
 
Bubbly Scot said:
Although with this one, I doubt that would happen.
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Sorry but everyone says that about their own children. Everyone was 16 at one stage and mostly everyone will agree that when they were 16 they were not responsible. They obviously thought they were at the time but when they look back theres always drastic mistakes made and big lessons learned.

And yes ppl will respond saying when they were 16 they were very responsible etc but realistically they were very immature and could not make decisions and depended on Daddy.
 
I was given an associate card by my dad when I was 17 and I never used it unless he said I could. It was for any emergency that might arise when I worked abroad and I would have to pay him back whatever I spent on it. He wouldn't give one to my sibling though and she was a dab hand at forging his signature on his cheques - we found out years later and he never noticed. So yes Phil1147 some of us were responsible at that age. I think the OP is doing the right thing trusting her child, she knows her better than anyone.
 
Again with Bronte, I was a relatively responsible teenager when it came to cash where my sister had to learn the hard way what credit costs. The difference was evident from a much earlier age in our respective attitudes to money. At sixteen you are old enough to comprehend this and even to manage a budget, whether you understand it fully is dependent on the attitudes you have imbibed (we had the same exposure in terms of early monetary education but what we took from it differed quite considerably). Having said that, you learn to value your money far more if you have to earn it first.
Inconvenience isn't really enough of a reason to give a child a credit card but if you find it works best for you, lay out the rules very strictly in terms of who pays the bill and what spending behaviour is acceptable. Monitor the card activity regularly, preferably with the teenager present so that it isn't done behind their back and they can immediately account for anomalous spending (less worrying for you and less combatitive all around). And put clear penalties in place for any infringement of the rules, even to writing them down and getting the two of you to sign it as a contract. If they play by the rules it would be a good learning experience for them. If they don't it may be an even better learning experience if the penalties are well applied.
You are clearly sensible enough to do this but no harm in saying it :)
 
Just to update. She is getting a card, with stringent guidelines and yes, I trust her. I understand there are irresponsible 16 year olds out there but I can point out a few irresponsible 56 year olds too! I have faith in the way I have brought up my kids and even more faith in them...or in this instance, her.

So we discussed it with her, explained what we expected, what was allowed (every spend on it has to be prearranged), she took it all on board.

Next day in a quiet moment I asked how she felt about getting the credit card, she said it was "cool" and "useful" and then after a pause.......

"I don't really get why people use credit cards, it seems like a stupid way of handling money, like you have money you don't really have!"

well she shut ME up! I almost got out my statements showing we clear them every month!
 
Bubbly Scot said:
"I don't really get why people use credit cards, it seems like a stupid way of handling money, like you have money you don't really have!"
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Good for her! I'll never forget someone referring to spending on a credit card as like having free money, I'd just got my first credit card and was more concerned about ensuring that I wouldn't spend more than I could repay, it was a bit of a jawdrop for me!
 
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