Parents may face huge bills as kids make in-app game purchases during Covid-19 crisis

UK schools have been closed for almost three weeks with at least another 2 weeks of Easter holidays and potentially more weeks at home due to the Covid-19 crisis. With kids being stuck home, they’re bound to spend more time playing online video games or games on mobile phones. The concern is that many children will be inadvertently or consciously buying expensive in-app purchases.

Increase in purchases

Experts in the field have concerns that the prolonged period of being at home rather than in school, will encourage more youngsters to spend too much time on their devices or games consoles and gaming operators will use this as an opportunity to encourage children to make in-game purchases.

According to Ofcom’s recent report, around 50% of parents with children aged 12 to 15 who play online video games such as Fortnite, Minecraft and Fifa, are concerned about their children being targeted by gaming operators to make these purchases. Many of these games’ features are supposed to be free, but there are an increasing number of special features and incentives which encourage children to buy them.

While for some, they make amusing news headlines, for some parents, being faced with bills of thousands of pounds caused by children making in-app purchases, is no laughing matter.

Parental Controls

In cases where children have racked up huge mobile phone or credit card bills, it is often very difficult for parents to have any recourse with companies. Gaming operators are advising parents to ensure that they set up the appropriate parental controls and blocks on card transactions and there are several ways to do this. Unfortunately, according to an NSPCC survey conducted last year, only 20% of parents have actually set up these controls and blocks.

Another survey from ParentZone found that 75% of UK children felt that gaming operators encouraged them to make purchases and 50% felt that games were only made enjoyable if they had made the additional payments for the extra features.