If they haven’t got one, every child seems to want a mobile phone for their Christmas gift. And if they’ve already got one, they probably want a newer one.
Now while mobile phones are never going to be a cheap present, there are two possible ways to look at this situation. Firstly the negative side of they could get bullied via text at school as happens sometimes. They could lose the phone or it could get stolen at school. They could run up huge bills if you put them on contract and so on.
Equally, if put on a pay as go phone with a strict monthly budget it might be an ideal way to ensure your child is able to contact you at all times in the case of an emergency. It gives you a chance to teach your child about budgeting their credit and them a chance to earn your trust in terms of what they do with the phone.
It really is your decision but here are 3 tips if you *do* decide to go ahead with buying a mobile phone as a Christmas gift…
1) Go Pay As You Talk
Don’t even give your child the opportunity to rack up huge bills because - let’s be honest here - most will take it even if they know better. I have heard of £400+ bills in a month caused by a teenager with a contract mobile phone. By paying for credit in advance it limits spending.
2) Decide On A Budget
Decide in advance how much you will be topping up each month for your child - or whether you’re expecting them to pay for credit out of their own pocket money. And remember - an extra fiver of credit for doing well in a test or cleaning a bedroom can work wonders 
3) Let Them Pick It
Children are fussy and unfortunately as smart and talented as you are, you don’t know what’s cool at school right now. So deicde how much you’re willing to spend, then take the child in to the shop or let them look online so they can choose their own phone. Yes, it takes away the surprise and some of the magic but you don’t want to be going out on boxing day trying to swap it.
Bonus Tip: if you *do* decide to choose it yourself I can offer you two tips from my days in mobile phone sales - firstly young girls love pink phones, and secondly teenagers love Sony Ericsson phones.
