Paddy Power Betfair will pay £2m after a Gambling Commission investigation found social responsibility failures related to customer interaction.
The issues, which were identified in April and May 2024, related to both the Betfair and Paddy Power brands run by four licensees.
Those licensees are PPB Entertainment Limited, PPB Counterparty Services Limited, Betfair Casino Limited and TSE Malta LP.
Overall, the GC said the operator had “not always ensured that their policies, procedures and controls had been effectively implemented”.
Shortcomings found by the regulator included one customer depositing £12,000 on Betfair in 15 days before being identified for manual review and a “two-way interaction” being performed.
Another Betfair customer was able to deposit £25,000 within 25 days before being interacted with, the GC said.
While the regulator said several systems were in place to identify markets of harm, traits such as velocity of spend and increasing deposits were not acted upon immediately.
Another example saw one Betfair player lose £12,300 five weeks. The operator attempted an interaction upon a trigger being hit, with a £500 monthly deposit limit being put in place afterwards.
The GC said that Paddy Power Betfair should have “considered if stronger action was needed on hitting the trigger”.
Elsewhere, one Betfair user staked £86,000 and lost £6,000 during a 16-day period. The GC said no manual review took place, with the customer receiving four automated interactions instead.
The GC stated that action, while taken, was not “sufficiently timely” in cases.
The GC did note that the operator “swiftly put in place an action plan” to rectify the issues, as well as fully cooperating with the regulator throughout the process.
Paddy Power Betfair also provided information by agreed deadlines and accepted the failings at an early stage, the GC added.
John Pierce, GC director of enforcement, said: “This £2m settlement reflects the seriousness of the failings identified and the importance of meeting social responsibility and customer interaction standards.
“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.”
A Flutter UK and Ireland spokesperson said: “Flutter takes its safer gambling responsibilities incredibly seriously and we firmly believe that we lead the industry in player protection.
“Customer safety is our number one priority and there is no suggestion that any of the customers reviewed by the Gambling Commission experienced any harm. Our controls have evolved significantly and we recently introduced a next generation customer safety platform, with the vast majority of checks now happening in real-time.
“As such, we are confident that the issues highlighted by the Commission in its public statement would not be repeated today. We continue to invest in our technology and our people to raise standards in the regulated industry.”
The PPB ruling comes in the same month the Commission announced Betfred had been fined £825,000 over AML and social responsibility failings in relation to its retail estate.
In November, Videoslots was hit with a £650,000 penalty over similar shortcomings.
The post Paddy Power Betfair to pay £2m over social responsibility shortcomings first appeared on EGR Intel.
Flutter-owned brands agrees to settlement with the Gambling Commission, as regulator points to delays in safer gambling interactions
The post Paddy Power Betfair to pay £2m over social responsibility shortcomings first appeared on EGR Intel.