The father of a five-year-old boy has criticised a mother who sent him an invoice for failing to give notice that his son would not be attending her child’s birthday party in Plymouth.

Derek Nash said that his son, Alex, was invited to a party just before Christmas at a dry ski slope in Plymouth, Devon. But after his son did not go to the event, the birthday boy’s mother sent him an invoice for £15.95 saying that Nash had left her out of pocket and had not informed her that Alex would not be attending.

Nash, of Torpoint, Cornwall, told the BBC: “It was an invoice for a child no-show for the party. It was a proper invoice with full official details and even her bank details on it. I can understand that she’s upset about losing money. The money isn’t the issue, it’s the way she went about trying to get the money from me. She didn’t treat me like a human being, she treated me like a child and that I should do what she says.”

Nash, a delivery driver, said that his son had been double-booked and was spending time with his grandparents that day. He said that he had not had contact details for the boy’s mother at that time and he had been told he would be taken to the small claims court if he refused to pay the invoice.

The boy’s mother said in a statement to the BBC: “All details were on the party invite. They had every detail needed to contact me.”