Betfred to pay £2m in software glitch jackpot case
High Court dismisses grounds for withholding payout to winning punter on Frankie Dettori blackjack game
Betfred has been ordered to pay a punter £2m by the High Court after judges ruled the bookmaker had unfairly withheld winnings from the customer.
Andrew Green won a £1.7m jackpot on the Frankie Dettori Magic Seven Blackjack game in January 2018, but his request to withdraw the money was declined. He later took a screenshot of the jackpot to prove he was unable to withdraw the funds.
Green extended his overdraft and spent £2,500 on celebrating the jackpot, claiming the firm had given him no reason to expect non-payment of the prize.
However, Betfred refused to pay out due to a software error which stopped the game from resetting properly, something which the operator claimed it was entitled to do under its terms and conditions.
Specifically, Betfred’s 49-page terms and conditions document included a clause which stated all “pays and plays” would be void in the event of a “malfunction”, suggesting Green had agreed to these terms when signing up for a Betfred account.
Challenging the decision to refuse payment, Green was offered £30,000 as a goodwill gesture by Betfred as part of a non-disclosure agreement (NDA), which he refused. This offer was increased to £60,000 but was once again refused by Green.
In April 2019, he launched a lawsuit against Betfred and Gibraltar-based parent company Petfre seeking £2m, a sum made up of the £1.7m jackpot and interest earned on these monies.
Lawyers for Green argued that if all pays and plays on the game were voided then Betfred should have repaid other punters winnings, which they claimed had not occurred.
Under current Gambling Commission (UKGC) licensing conditions, Betfred’s supplier on the game, Playtech, was required to notify the UKGC of a malfunction as a ‘key event’, something which Green’s lawyers argued the supplier had failed to do adequately.
Judges at the High Court ruled that the wording of the clauses contained within the terms and conditions document were inadequate, lacked transparency and fairness and that Betfred could not draw upon them in this case.
A Betfred spokesperson said: “Mr Green won the jackpot three times whilst playing a game provided by one of our third-party suppliers.
“The supplier reported a software problem to us and advised that we should withhold payment.
“However, we will abide by the court’s decision and not appeal. We would like to apologise to Mr Green for the delay in receiving his money,” Betfred added.