Photo unrelated to article. [Getty Images Bank]
Photo unrelated to article. [Getty Images Bank]

A story about a mother who lent her credit card to a friend's parent for her 9-year-old daughter's theme park outing — only to find more than 300,000 won ($209) had been charged — is stirring controversy online.

The case was featured on JTBC's "Sageon Banjang," a TV current-affairs program, and involves a woman in her 30s, identified only as A, who is raising an elementary school-age daughter.

A had been unable to spend time with her daughter while caring for a sibling injured in a traffic accident. When her daughter expressed a wish to visit a theme park, another mother, B, whose child is friends with A's daughter, offered to take the girl along.

Grateful for the offer, A handed B her credit card and asked her to use it only for her daughter's admission and meals for the three of them.

That evening, however, A was stunned when she checked her card statement and found the total charge had reached 300,000 won.

When A asked about the spending the next day, B said, "Do you have any idea how expensive snacks are at a theme park? A hot dog and an orange juice alone easily runs over 20,000 won."

A closer look at the day's total revealed spending had exceeded 600,000 won. B had also charged more than 300,000 won on her own card, meaning the two cards combined accounted for over 600,000 won in a single day.

"I heard they ordered more than five servings of meat at a barbecue restaurant for dinner and even had naengmyeon on top of that," A said. "It's shocking that one adult and two children spent 600,000 won in one day."

B, for her part, expressed displeasure, saying, "I spent the whole day looking after your child, and instead of thanking me, this is how you react?"

Lee Gwang-min, a psychology professor who reviewed the case, said, "When using someone else's card, you need to consider that person's spending habits as well. If you end up spending more than expected, it is right to ask for understanding in advance."

Psychology professor Park Sang-hee also weighed in, saying that while it is natural to cover a meal or some costs for someone who looked after a child, spending a total of 600,000 won with two children in one day was "somewhat excessive."

Reactions online were divided. Some said "spending 300,000 won in one day on someone else's card is too much" and "giving someone your card doesn't mean they can spend freely." Others argued that "you have to consider how hard it is to look after someone else's child all day" and that "B also spent 300,000 won of her own money — not only is A not grateful, she went as far as reporting it to a TV show, which is going too far."


choigo@heraldcorp.com