Boy, 5, misses friend's birthday party, dad billed by friend's parents

PLYMOUTH, England -- The parents of a 5-year-old boy who missed his friend's birthday party were recently handed a "no show fee" bill, the Plymouth Herald reports, and threatened with legal action if they did not pay up.

According to the Herald, Derek Nash and his wife's 5-year-old son Alex was invited to a birthday party before the Christmas break at a ski resort. The parents RSVP'd to the event, and said Alex would be coming.

However, when the day came, Nash realized they had already made plans to take a day trip with the boy's grandparents.

They didn't know the birthday boy's contact information, so they weren't able to formally cancel, Nash said.

Instead, they just didn't show up.

"By this time we did not have a contact number, email or an address to let (the boy's mother) know," explained Nash. "He chose to be with his grandparents."

When Alex returned to school after Christmas break, he was handed the "no show fee" invoice for £15.95 -- about $25. Nash and his partner found it in Alex's book bag. Alex said one of his teachers had passed it to him.

Nash confronted the birthday boy's mother, and gave her a piece of his mind.

"I told her she should have spoken to me first and not put the invoice in my son’s school bag,” he told the Plymouth.

He added: "I would have sympathized with her about the cost of Alex not showing up, but I can't believe the way she has gone about it."

Now, Nash claims the mother of Alex's friend has threatened to take him to small claims court if they don't pay up.

“I thought it was a joke to begin with," Nash told the Plymouth. "I am lost for words.”

The mother of Alex's friend was not immediately available for comment.

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