Placing winning bets has led to neigh wins for punters
Bookmakers are there to offer betting options to punters who wish to place bets, those bets are then accepted and should your bet come in, you’re instantly credited with your winnings – but this hasn’t been the case for many Ladbrokes customers, which has led to customers issuing solicitors letters to the gambling operator. The Independent Betting Adjudication Service (aka IBAS) received at least here complaints from disgruntled punters recently, all claiming that Ladbrokes cancelled their bets after the had been accepted! One customer was that fed up with it all, he threatened Ladbrokes with a solicitor and to his and the IBAS’s surprise, they coughed up! A UK tabloid newspaper; the Guardian, reported that this isn’t an isolated incident and again, the punter threatened the bookie with legal action and they paid up.
Horse Racing Declined Bets
In the summer of 2018, Paul Glynn fancied his luck on a horse racing bet; two single bets and a double for races at Sandown and Haydock. His two bets amounted to £330 and his bet was accepted, a receipt for these transactions were received and the money was taken from his account. All looking good so far. An hour after the bets were staked, they were displaying as cancelled and to Paul’s horror – his horses came in, which would have landed him £1,200 in winnings!
Horse Play
Complaining to Ladbrokes, he was told his bets were rejected and that his money was refunded – but it should never have been. Paul sought legal advice and issued Ladbrokes with a ‘Notice Before Action’ letter eight weeks after his rejected bets took place. Obviously alarmed by this letter, the company decided to pay up!
Ladbrokes paying out could influence the investigation being carried out by IBAS. Richard Hayler, the managing director of IBAS said;
“Now that IBAS is aware of this, it may be taken into consideration in regard to the three cases being considered by IBAS.”
When speaking to iGamingBusiness, Mr Hayler also said;
“Really, there should be no ambiguity at any stage in the process about whether a bet has been accepted or not. Ladbrokes are the only company people have complained about on this matter. No other bookmakers appear to be creating records of bets in customers’ ‘open bets’ pages for bets that they say were never accepted.”
Hundreds of Bets
The independent body investigating has revealed that Ladbrokes could be forced to pay out hundreds of cancelled bets. Finding in favour of the punters, could lead to a torrent of claims from around the globe – which is not good news for Ladbrokes. Punters have lodged complaints where bets have been rejected or re-offered, at reduced odds or at a reduced stake of as little as 10p.
What happened to sportsbook companies taking your money for your bets and just paying out when you win?