Parents whose son spent £1,700 of their money on 'free' iPad game gets full refund from Apple

Your support helps us to tell the story

Support Now

Find out moreClose

As your White House correspondent, I ask the tough questions and seek the answers that matter.

Your support enables me to be in the room, pressing for transparency and accountability. Without your contributions, we wouldn't have the resources to challenge those in power.

Your donation makes it possible for us to keep doing this important work, keeping you informed every step of the way to the November election

Andrew Feinberg

White House Correspondent

The parents of a five-year-old boy who spent £1,700 of their money on iTunes have received a full refund from Apple.

Greg Kitchen, from Bristol, had punched in his iPad's passcode when he thought his son Danny asked to download a free game, but later received emails from Apple detailing successive payments of £69.99 to iTunes.

Mr Kitchen and his wife Sharon dismissed the emails as an error but later received a phone call from their credit card company to query the hefty transactions.

Danny had downloaded Zombies vs Ninja, which lets the player aim ninja-style weapons at cartoon zombies, and although the game itself is free, the user is able to purchase in-game ammunition upgrades for as much as £69.99.

Mrs Kitchen praised Apple for their assistance getting the download

Mrs Kitchen told the BBC Danny was very upset when he realised what he had done and he promised "not to do it again".

Martyn Landi, a writer with Apps magazine, told the BBC: "We are hearing stories like this all the time, so credit to Apple for paying the money back.

"But it is a risky strategy for parents to simply think they can claim the money back if all goes wrong.

"A few seconds spent checking these things can save a lot of money and stress in the long run."