Betfred.com Operator to Pay £900,000 After UKGC Probe

An investigation by the UK Gambling Commission has resulted in Petfre (Gibraltar) Limited, the company behind Betfred.com, agreeing to pay £900,000 after the regulator identified shortcomings in its safer gambling procedures.

The settlement follows a compliance assessment that uncovered weaknesses in how the operator monitored customer behaviour and responded to signs of potential gambling-related harm. Alongside the payment, Petfre has also agreed to cover the costs of the Commission’s investigation.

According to the regulator, the issues centred on the company’s failure to operate sufficiently effective systems for identifying customers who may have been experiencing gambling harm. The Commission concluded that several aspects of Petfre’s policies and procedures did not meet the standards required under Britain’s remote customer interaction rules.

Investigation identified gaps in customer protection

The Commission said Petfre lacked adequate automated processes to monitor indicators of harm, including customer spending levels, gambling duration and spending patterns. It also found the operator had not implemented systems capable of triggering immediate automated interventions when strong indicators of harm were detected.

Another concern involved the company’s review process for customers already identified as requiring safer gambling checks. Once an account had been flagged, it would not be reviewed again for seven days, even if further warning signs appeared during that period.

The regulator said this delay prevented timely interactions with customers whose gambling behaviour continued to deteriorate.

One example highlighted during the investigation involved a customer who had already received a safer gambling interaction after exceeding a deposit threshold. Staff concluded that no further action was necessary at that stage. However, the individual subsequently deposited and lost another £17,900 within the following 24 hours without receiving any additional intervention.

The Commission said these failings related to multiple sections of Social Responsibility Code Provision (SRCP) 3.4.3 covering remote customer interaction requirements.

Regulator acknowledges improvements after intervention

Although the Commission identified significant shortcomings, it also recognised that Petfre responded quickly once the concerns were raised.

The operator introduced interim controls shortly after the investigation began and later implemented a broader action plan designed to strengthen its monitoring systems and customer protection measures. It also kept the regulator informed of the changes being made.

Commenting on the case, Commission Director of Enforcement John Pierce said in a press release:

“Diligent implementation of effective policies and procedures are the cornerstones of safer gambling in Britain.

“The Commission found that Petfre didn’t have sufficiently effective procedures in place, meaning some customers displaying markers of harm were not contacted quickly enough.

“While the gaps we identified were unacceptable, the licensee acted swiftly to implement interim mitigating controls to address our immediate concerns. They have since delivered an appropriate action plan and taken significant steps to assure the Commission that their current operating model meets our requirements.

“The failure to implement an effective monitoring framework to identify and contact consumers at risk of harm at pace has resulted in a significant regulatory settlement.

“We expect all operators to learn from this case and read the public statement to ensure they do not make the same mistakes.”

Despite acknowledging the improvements, the Commission said the seriousness of the failings warranted a substantial regulatory settlement.

Latest action follows previous regulatory breaches

The latest enforcement action is not the first involving Petfre.

The Commission noted that the operator had previously faced regulatory action in Great Britain. In September 2022, Petfre received a £2.87 million penalty for social responsibility and anti-money laundering failings. More recently, the business was fined £240,000 over breaches relating to online slot games.

The £900,000 payment represents the latest case in a series of enforcement actions taken by the regulator against gambling operators over compliance failures. Last week, the Commission also ordered Stakelogic to pay £122,835 after determining that some of its online slot games were operating faster than permitted under British rules.

The regulator said operators across the industry should review the findings from the Petfre case to ensure their own customer protection systems identify signs of harm promptly and trigger timely interventions where necessary.