The operator of online betting brand Betfred has been fined a hefty £240,000 by the Uk Gambling Commission after a number of its slot games were found to be breaching national standards. Petfre (Gibraltar) Limited which runs Betfred as well as Oddsking.com was hit with the fine after it was operating games that were running unfairly according to the Remote Technical Standards (RTS).
The regulator came to the conclusion that some of the online slots provided by Petre didn’t display net positions information correctly so bettors couldn’t see how much they had won or lost. On top of that, games were using sounds or visual effects that made a negative outcome appear positive. The Gambling Commission said that that sort of feature could “negatively impact a players ability to interpret their gameplay accurately and make informed choices.”
It is a rule in the UK that you must not mislead bettors with feedback or celebrate outcomes on bets when the return is less or equal to the bet’s stake.
Once notified Petfre removed the games but the Gambling Commission said the breaches had enough severity to warrant a hefty fine. The regulators director of enforcement John Pierce said the features that mislead a player is “a clear risk. While we acknowledge the operator acted swiftly to remove the affected games, this enforcement action should serve as a clear signal to the wider industry. Operators must ensure gameplay is fair and that consumers are not exposed to unnecessary risk.”
In 2022 Petfre was fined £2.9 million for anti money laundering and social responsibility failings. It comes as a wider crackdown by the Gambling Commission, with the last few months other operators have faced fines. Lottomart.com’s operator Maple International Ventures were hit with a £360,000 fine and also ProgressPlay fined £1 million for similar compliance failings.
The latest fines mirror the increasing focus on technical compliance and how the gambling commission wants games to be designed. Some will say the £240,000 fine is modest for such a big betting brand; it shows that even the major names can fall short of consumer protection standards. The issues identified especially by “losses disguised as wins” have been banned since 2021.
Such design features are not just cosmetic but can also change a players behaviour and encourage one to play longer by masking real losses. Regulators have warned these features increase the risk of gambling harm immensely.
The Gambling Commission’s message is clear to the industry, you need to be proactive not reactive with compliance. Fairplay gameplay and design features is paramount and a fundamental responsibility.