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The top 10 Money Moral Dilemmas of 2023 dumping ground

18 January 2024

10. Is it OK to use a surplus food app to buy cheap food even though I'm not struggling?

I read about an app that allows you to buy discounted food from stores that would otherwise be thrown away. I thought this was a great idea, so I downloaded and started using it. My local deli was on it and I bought £12 worth of food for just £4. But then I started to think that, while I'm not rich, I'm hardly poor, so should I be using this app or leaving it so there's more available to those who are struggling?

📅 Date appeared in the Money Tips Email:Tuesday 27 June 2023

👀 Number of views on Friday 5 May 2023: 23,560

🧵 MSE Forum thread: Is it OK to use a surplus food app even though I'm not struggling?

🗣️ Insiders' response:"I volunteer for [sharing app] Olio and trust me, if we only waited on people who were 'struggling' to collect from us we would have an enormous surplus of wasted food every time we list." - shykins

10. Should I pay for a full funeral just because one of my children wants me to?

I'm planning for the future and have been looking to buy a non-attended cremation for when I die, as post-life events don't hold any particular significance for me. I have three grown-up children, and two of them are fine with it, but the third gets very upset at the idea of not having a traditional funeral to say goodbye to me. Should I pay for the funeral to make them feel better, or stick with my original plan?

📅 Date appeared in the Money Tips Email:Tuesday 9 May 2023

👀 Number of views on Friday 12 May 2023: 24,831

🧵 MSE Forum thread: Should I pay for a full funeral just because one of my children wants me to?

🗣️ Most telling-it-like-it-is response:"My family don't bother with me whilst I am alive, so I don't want them there when I am dead! If they want to shed crocodile tears, they can pay for it themselves. I have stipulated in my will that if they want a ceremony, they can pay for it themselves. Harsh but fair." - fern37

10. My son's friend borrowed his bike and it got stolen – should his parents replace it?

My son cycled to a friend's house and left his bike there – his friend agreed to store it so my son could collect it a few days later. In the meantime, his friend borrowed it to pop into town, left it unlocked outside a shop for five minutes and it was stolen. The bike cost £350 and wasn't covered by my contents insurance. Should I ask the parents of my son's friend to replace it, as he borrowed it without permission and didn't lock it up, or do I replace it as his friend obviously didn't intend for it to be stolen?

📅 Date appeared in the Money Tips Email:Tuesday 19 September 2023

👀 Number of views on Friday 22 September 2023: 25,069

🧵 MSE Forum thread: My son's friend borrowed his bike and it got stolen – should his parents pay?

🗣️ Seeing-the-bigger-picture response:"I’m actually more concerned that the friend probably rode the bike without a helmet." - bouicca21

10. Should I save up child benefit to give to my children when they're older?

I have two children – aged one and four – and receive child benefit for both, totalling about £140 a month. I've been using it for their general living expenses, such as clothes, clubs and so on, but I've started to wonder if it's their money to decide what to do with. Should I be putting it in a savings account each month until they're old enough to decide, or is it OK to continue spending it on them as I have been?

📅 Date appeared in the Money Tips Email:Tuesday 2 May 2023

👀 Number of views on Friday 5 May 2023: 25,983

🧵 MSE Forum thread: Should I save up child benefit to give to my children when they're older?

🗣️ Response MSE Kelvin most disagrees with:"£140 a month spent in childhood can have a much bigger impact than £140 a month spent on expensive craft beers as an adult." - mark_cycling00

MSE Email icon 26 November 2024

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