Retired mom takes out $30,000 personal loan in her son's name to buy a boat, threatens to call CPS on him if he reports it to the police: 'They've missed 4 payments and [are] going to let it default since the boat can't be repossessed'

Author image for Emmy Pratt
Emmy Pratt • Writer and Editor
Apr 10, 2025 8:00 AM EDT

Everybody has a different relationship with their parents, and those differences extend to finances. There is no shortage of 26-year-olds whose parents secretly pay their rent, but that doesn't cancel out the 18-year-olds who pay the mortgage on their parents' house. Some kids support their parents, and some parents help their grown kids. Most of us are somewhere in the middle, with parents occasionally paying for dinner for their kids and kids helping out with necessary expenses every once in a while. There's nothing inherently wrong with accepting help from your parents or asking your adult kids for some money when you genuinely need it. But there's a big difference between asking for money and taking copious amounts for a frivolous purchase. If your parents need money to eat, that's one thing, but no retiree needs a vacation home, a new iPhone every year, a new boat, or Bob Dylan tickets. 

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  • The adult child of two irresponsible retirees recently went viral after sharing their harrowing tale of fraud at the hands of their parents. Let's just say they now have $30K in debt, and it is not due to a medical emergency, a college degree, or a mortgage on a house. 

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    MERCURY
    via Joshua J. Cotten

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

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    My mom got a $30,000 personal loan in my name without my knowledge. Now, they've missed 4 payments and told me they're going to let it default since the boat can't be repossessed AND they're going to call DCFS on me.

    I knew my mom had her eye on a pontoon boat for the last year. She and my dad retired in 2022 and while they aren't swimming in money, they weren't hurting much for it either, OR SO I THOUGHT.
    via u/credithelpscammed
  • 03
    They bought a boat in February for a little over $30,000. I didn't think a lot of it since they always rented a pontoon boat 2-3 times a year and didn't appear to have money issues. At the start of July, I began getting my ducks in a row to buy a house. When I applied for a pre-approval, I found out my credit score was barely over 600 and I had an extra $30k+ in
    via u/credithelpscammed
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    debt I had no idea about. Even worse, it was 90+ days late. I told the lender the account wasn't mine and he said my identity had probably been stolen, but it was probably someone close to me as the money would have had to go to a bank account with my name on it.
    via u/credithelpscammed
  • 05
    I shared a bank account with my ex-fiance and asked the bank to look into it. They said the account had been closed a couple of years ago (when we broke up) and no attempts to send money to it/take money from it have been
    via u/credithelpscammed
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    made since. I filed a dispute with the company and the credit agencies as it was obvious to me I had been hacked or my identity had been stolen.
    via u/credithelpscammed
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    0000000
    via Getty Images (Unsplash+)

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

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    About a week ago, I got a notice from the company to my apartment (first I had ever heard from them) saying they were going to charge-off the account if payment wasn't made. I requested more information from them and they linked me to their fraud department. They were able
    via u/credithelpscammed
  • 09
    to tell me where the money was sent.....to a bank account from when I was a minor that I shared with my mom. When I called that bank, they confirmed there was activity on the account and the statements showed the loan coming in and almost all of the money being transferred into what looks like my mom's
    via u/credithelpscammed
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    account at the same bank. I haven't used that bank in more than a decade.
    via u/credithelpscammed
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    I called my mom and asked her about it and she, after a long pause, said that's how they bought the boat. They made one payment on the account and realized they probably couldn't afford the monthly payment for the next 5 years. When I asked
    via u/credithelpscammed
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    why they hadn't told me, she said it was because they figured I would say no (they were right) and that they had worked hard in their lives and wanted to enjoy retirement.
    via u/credithelpscammed
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    Cheezburger Image 10492257280
    via James Hose Jr

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

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    It ended by them saying the boat couldn't be repossessed because it was a personal loan. My mom suggested declaring bankruptcy and I told them I was going to the police. My mom said not to do that because they wouldn't take it seriously. When I told her I was
    via u/credithelpscammed
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    doing it anyway, she hinted that she might have to call DCFS on me (my 2 year old burned themselves on a hot pan earlier this year, simple ER visit and was told accidents happen, he's fine) regarding an unsafe home.
    via u/credithelpscammed
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    I think I'm still going to the police because declaring bankruptcy would make it impossible to buy a house. I just needed to vent and looking for any advice.
    via u/credithelpscammed
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    Tombstonesss She stole 30k, potentially ruined your financial future for 7 years, threatened to put your child in a situation where they could be taken and put in foster care for a pontoon boat?
    via u/Tombstonesss
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    Big_Particular7643 OP, this right here. All this unnecessary suffering and stress over a pontoon boat? I'm sorry but your mom sks.
    via u/Big_Particular7643
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    crbryant1972 Dispute the loan. Do what you have to do to protect yourself. Contact the police. If she contacts DCFS, it will look more like retaliation once you explain to them everything.
    via u/crbryant1972
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    Heathster249 Don't worry about DFCS. Chances are they will not investigate the report anyway. If they do, it's obnoxious, but these are 80% unfounded. You may need an attorney to represent you and file cease and desist letters that could turn into restraining orders. They stole $30k from you and it was premeditated. They couldn't qualify for the loan themselves, so they stole the money from you instead - without asking. With the $ amount, the DA is likely to press charges.
    via u/Heathster249
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    I filed my police report the same day as my first post. The officer and I talked for probably 20 minutes and I printed out a statement from the bank. I spoke with a detective a couple days later for another 20 minutes.
    via u/credithelpscammed
  • 22

    Update #1

    Fast forward about 2 and a half weeks and my dad called saying my mom had been arrested. He said an officer and a detective showed up at their house asking to speak with her. When she went onto the porch, they grabbed her and arrested her. The detective (same one I talked to) explained they had a warrant. My mom has never been in trouble with the
    via u/credithelpscammed
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    law in her life and she got arrested on a felony. They tried talking to her and she immediately requested a lawyer. They stopped asking questions but didn't let her see a lawyer right away. My dad was furious but the detective told him to have a lawyer go down to the county jail in the morning before she went to the judge.
    via u/credithelpscammed
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    The next morning, apparently she and the lawyer talked and she was released in the afternoon with a new court date. About a week later, I get a call from DCFS requesting to meet with me about my son. I had nothing to hide so I agreed. We spoke for
    via u/credithelpscammed
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    about half and hour at my apartment and I explained the situation. She seemed understanding and told me there are no obvious issues,she just had to follow up on a report.
    via u/credithelpscammed
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    I will say if I'm ever in trouble, I'm hiring her lawyer. The case was dismissed at her next court date in late September. The detective called me the next day and explained the state attorney believed that they wouldn't be able to prove beyond a reasonable doubt she intentionally stole my identity. He
    via u/credithelpscammed
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    said he figured it was a BS reason because he had documents from the bank and loan company. He said the state attorney drops a lot of cases, even open and shut ones, especially when it's not violent and they have a hired attorney. She never made a statement other than her attorney telling the detective she didn't do
    via u/credithelpscammed
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    it. He also said the loan company might go after my mom in a lawsuit. What brings me back here is that a couple weeks ago the account dropped from my credit. Even better though, I got a letter from DCFS yesterday saying the allegation against me was unfounded.
    via u/credithelpscammed
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    I'm never talking to my piece of trash mom again. Thank you everyone who gave me advice and hope in my first post. It just sks that she is probably going to end up with a free boat out of it, unless the loan company sues her, which I hope they do.
    via u/credithelpscammed
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    Update #2

    I'm happy to say nothing else has popped up on my credit in the last 3 months. What I'm REALLY happy to say is that the credit card company itself is suing my mom for almost $40,000 according to my aunt. I no longer talk to my mom buy she messaged me on Facebook last week.
    via u/credithelpscammed
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    She had the nerve to ask me to both: • Ask the credit card company to drop the lawsuit AND • Pay half of what they're asking for with the "understanding" that I'll be paid back at some point
    via u/credithelpscammed
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    Both of these with the veiled threat she will call DCFS again if I don't. No and No. She's seeing the consequences of her actions.
    via u/credithelpscammed
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    JenninMiami You need to file a report for threats/harassment with the police. They'll be able to tell you what the charge would be - just print out the messages. You have proof in writing that she's going to commit fraud.
    via u/JenninMiami

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family drama entitled parents finance money problems entitled parent reddit story finances debt loan family parent Reddit boat money parents boats
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