How much should the toothfairy leave? Parents divided after one mum says £20 is 'ridiculous'

It's the one debate which always divides parental opinion.

P arents can never agree on just how much money the toothfairy should leave.

For some a simple £1 coin is suffice - but for others nothing less than a £20 note will do.

Others employ a more complex system - giving different amounts for different teeth, while some offer tokens instead.

So it's no wonder the whole thing can be a confusing process for parents who are new to the game.

One dad was so perplexed he decided to go to social media and ask fellow parents what the 'protocol' was for the toothfairy - and he got almost 3,000 comments in response.

Some said leaving up to £20 was fine, while others said leaving a note of any value was 'ridiculous'.

Posting on a popular parenting Facebook page, the dad said: "How much money does the tooth fairy pay in 2022? What's the protocol?"

One said some Toothfairies are very generous, saying: "A little girl in my infants school told me she’d lost her first tooth, and that the tooth fairy gave her £20. Ffs"

Another parent said: '£10 for the 1st tooth £5 for each subsequent. As long as they are clean and white. If there rooms are not clean she leaves them a note telling them it was to dangerous to fly in and she will try once more tomorrow!"

But her response displeased another mum who said: 'Its supposed to be a coin not £10/20 that's ridiculous my kids save their tooth fairy money until they have enough to get what they want and regardless of it being 1st tooth or other it's always the same amount they put it in a little tub beside their pillow and the tub gets replaced by the same tub with £2 in it."

Another mum said the Toothfairy left whatever she had rattling around in her purse. She said: "Cheap skate mum here! My kids get whatever money I have left in my purse but never more than a pound. There’s never a set amount because it makes it more difficult for you, especially if you forget or they have a tooth fall out before bed!"

Another had a similar approach, saying: "I'm obviously a s*** mum i do one pound they can get a bag of Haribo to get the rest them to fall out."

"£2.11 yesterday. £1.96 the time before. Keep them on their toes. Don't be predictable then it doesn't matter if one catches you by surprise and you only have 70p in your purse!!" said another.

But others had a system, depending on the tooth. One mum said: 'We did £5 for the 1st tooth & £2 after that. They must be clean & in good condition though. The tooth fairy doesn't like dirty teeth."

But others didn't agree with one added: "50p in our house, regardless of first tooth or extraction. We had a book when my eldest was a tot that the tooth fairy brought a big silver coin so that's what we've stuck with. I always add some silver glitter much to my husbands annoyance."

"Tooth fairy is minted didn't realise inflation was as much as a mortgage. 20p a tooth back in my day, 50p if you were lucky my daughter won't be getting more than £1 per tooth even if her mates are getting £10 a tooth whose mad idea was it to give their kids that much," said another

However the staggered value did not end well for one family who said: "We did £5 for the first and gave £1 for the next one thinking that would be ok, he woke up upset and said he had been scammed!"

Another mum had a more complex system, saying: "I save all the "special " 50p coins* the ones like Paddington and the Peter rabbit ones and give them £2 worth because the tooth fairy coins are special."

However one mum's system seemed to be a more realistic, if haphazard, approach. She said: "Protocol, is have bottle of wine, forget the tooth fairy, blame child for messy bedroom, eventually pay £1 with a sprinkle of glitter and a note to say sorry to be late, I was in covid isolation!"

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