Paddy Power Betfair hit with £2m fine over regulatory breaches
The Flutter-owned gambling operator failed to interact with customers that showed concerning behaviour.
UK.- Flutter Entertainment’s Paddy Power Betfair must pay a £2m penalty after the British Gambling Commission found social responsibility failures relating to customer interaction. Four separate operators, all trading under the names Paddy Power and Betfair will pay the fine as part of a settlement.
The British regulator found that the operators’ systems were not sensitive enough to identify indicators of harm. One customer deposited £12,000 over a 15-day period before being identified for review and another deposited £25,000 in 25 days before any interaction.
The Gambling Commission said another customer lost £12,300 in five weeks before being identified for an interaction, while one staked £86,000 over a 16-day period and lost £6,000 without undergoing any manual review.
Another customer displayed concerning behaviour in terms of intense spikes in activity without interaction. Their longest session over a 17-day period was 7 hours and 46 minutes, during which they placed over 300 bets amounting to £20,000. Their gambling behaviour was only identified as an indicator of harm after they hit a loss trigger that led the account to be manually reviewed.
The latest sanction comes after the Gambling Commission fined Paddy Power Betfair £490,000 in May 2023 for marketing to vulnerable consumers.
“These failings should never have occurred”
The Gambling Commission recommended that all operators take account of the failings identified in the investigation. Commission director of enforcement John Pierce said: “This £2 million settlement reflects the seriousness of the failings identified and the importance of meeting social responsibility and customer interaction standards.
“Our compliance assessment in 2024 uncovered examples where interactions fell far short of what is required. These failings should never have occurred. While the licensees co-operated fully with the investigation, accepted the failings early, and implemented an action plan quickly, this immediate response is the minimum we expect from operators when serious shortcomings are identified.
“Operators must ensure systems to identify and address harm work effectively and at the right time. Over-reliance on automation and failure to intervene when clear harm indicators are present exposes consumers to unnecessary risk. Where we find failings, we will act decisively to protect players.”
The fine has been issued to PPB Entertainment Limited, PPB Counterparty Services Limited, Betfair Casino Limited and TSE Malta LP.
