This study examined the association between numbers of benign melanocytic naevi in 7-year-old children in Oxfordshire born in 1988-9 with their mother's arm naevus count, and maternal and child pigmentation factors. We believe this is the first time that the relationship between child and maternal naevus counts has been reported. A high naevus count in the child was associated with male sex (P = 0.009), freckling (P = 0.001) and propensity of the child to burn in the sun (P = 0.05). A low naevus count was observed in red-haired children (P = 0.02). The strongest association of child's naevus count was with a high maternal arm naevus count, independent of the child's pigmentation factors (trend P < 0.0001). Maternal pigmentation factors were not associated with child's naevus count independent of the child's own pigmentation factors. Maternal arm naevus counts may be a better predictor of child naevus count than the child's own pigmentation factors and children. There has not been examination, however, of the relationship between naevus counts in children and those in their parents. We therefore conducted a study of the occurrence of naevi in children aged 7-8 years in Oxfordshire, examining, in addition to sex and pigmentation factors in the child, the relationship of maternal pigmentation factors and maternal naevus counts with naevi in their offspring.