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A father admitted to taking $10,000 from his 4-year-old’s savings account and spending it on a vacation in an interview on Financial Audit with Caleb Hammer. The father, a mailman in Biloxi, Mississippi, admitted to taking the money from the account in order to fund his vacation in a new episode. “That’s going to make me hate you real quick,” Hammer said on the show. Why It Matters Americans are facing higher costs of living due to inflation, as well as President Donald Trump’s tariffs imposed on a wide array of imports. Savings accounts are often a key way to build financial security for your children, but a parent’s misuse of the funds can reap serious consequences. Piggy banks sit on the shelf at the After The Quake store on February 5, 2009, in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) What To Know The father, in the latest episode of Financial Audit with Caleb Hammer, admitted to the misuse of funds openly. “I figured I value building memories with him and stuff,” the father said, adding that he didn’t regret it. “I took him to New York four times in the last year, the Bahamas, Disney World…” The father defended his actions, saying, “He won’t know” about his 4-year-old son, who allegedly wanted to go on the trips multiple times a year. “This is insane,” Hammer said. “This is disgusting.” The father went on to say he hadn’t faced that much judgment because people believed he was going to pay his son right back. “This is more than just bad judgment,” Michael Ryan, a finance expert and the founder of MichaelRyanMoney.com, told Newsweek. “It’s financial theft dressed up as family fun. The dad ‘borrowed’ $10k from his 4-year-old’s savings account (mostly birthday money from family, by the way) to fund multiple NY trips. And then racked up the credit cards all over again. Is that a parent, or a pattern to you?” Kevin Thompson, the CEO of 9i Capital Group and the host of the 9innings podcast, said there’s a long history of parents unintentionally setting their children back financially, whether that be by damaging their credit, mishandling funds or making short-sighted financial decisions. “These choices can create a much harder path for kids when it comes to building savings, establishing credit, or developing healthy money habits,” Thompson told Newsweek. Ryan said stealing from a child’s savings account isn’t just costing money but also the compound growth on that account. “That $10,000, left in even a modest investment account earning 10% annually, would have grown to nearly $40,000 by the time that kid turns 18,” Ryan said. “That’s a college fund, a business starter kit, or a down payment on their first home. Gone because dad needed his fifth vacation to Manhattan this year.” Ryan said this sort of behavior is more common than one might think. “Research shows that parents increasingly ‘borrow’ from children’s accounts during financial stress, but this case is different,” Ryan said. “The red flag here isn’t just the behavior; it’s the complete lack of remorse. He literally said he ‘doesn’t regret it’ and plans to go back to New York with the reimbursement check meant to cover his travel expenses to the financial audit.” What Happens Next Thompson told Newsweek: “I wouldn’t call it common, but it does happen. Typically, families who have the means to save for their children tend to be in stronger financial positions overall, especially when those funds come from parents or extended family members.” Alex Beene, a financial literacy instructor for the University of Tennessee at Martin, told Newsweek: “Discussing parents spending their children’s money is always a tricky subject. The parent is the legal guardian responsible for making decisions for a child, including financial ones. However, when money is set aside for children at an early age, even if they are still too young to fully grasp the concept of that investment, it can equate to hurt feelings down the road if that money is mismanaged.” Ryan told Newsweek: “You can’t build memories on borrowed futures. This father needs to understand that his son won’t remember the four trips to New York at age 4, but he’ll absolutely remember being told at 18 that his college fund was spent on dad’s wanderlust.” What Happens Next Many children like the one mentioned in the episode enter adulthood to find that money originally set aside for them was misused by their family members. “That discovery often results in arguments and, sometimes sadly, even permanent division,” Beene said. “Even if it is technically ‘your money’ as a parent, you should always think twice before setting aside funds for your children. If you think you’re going to need them for other expenses, it’s likely best to not put them under their name. As with any giving, only set aside money in their accounts you tru...
