Dad has to sell his car to pay his 8-year-old daughter's £4,000 iPad bill
A FATHER is having sell his car after his daughter racked up a £4,000 bill playing games on his iPad.
Eight-year-old Lily ran up the astronomical bill by purchasing in-game extras on free games including Smurfs' Village.
Lee Neale, 43, only discovered the charges after his bank froze his account, and he is now having to sell two prize off-road motorbikes as well as his car to pay off his debt.
Mr Neale claims his daughter was unaware she was being charged "real money" for the in-game purchases and asked to Apple to scrap the charge.
The technology company has refused to waive the bill, telling Mr Neale "all purchases made on the iTunes Store are final".
Mr Neale from Peasedown St John, Somerset, said: "Lily is only eight and hasn't grasped the concept of money. She probably wouldn't know how much a bag of crisps costs.
"I was very surprised how dismissive Apple were. This was an eight-year-old girl. Basically iTunes have told me categorically that I won't be getting my money back.
"I am also disappointed that my bank didn't alert me to what was going on.
"Now my dad is having to lend me money in the short term and I'm in the process of selling my car, my son's off road motorbike and probably my bike too.
"I just think these in-app purchases are terrible and people need to be aware."
Mr Neale, an aerospace designer, said messages alerting him to iTunes purchases were going to his work email account - which he was unable to access as he was on deployment to another company.
Lily ran up a bill of more than £2,000 in just six days topping up rewards and enhancements in 74 transactions.
He said: "There are numerous games where Lily had been inadvertently making in-app purchases, but the major culprits were Campus Life, My Horse and Injustice, a super hero game.
"Almost as bad are Hay Day, Gymnastics Events and Smurfs' Village. She just thought it was all free.
"It was not until I grilled her that she said she had been using a password that she had seen me put in when I had downloaded free games for her.
"Even when I sat her down and explained that what she was doing had cost dad money, I still don't think she really understood."